Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

‘Bonds of trust’ broken between families and schools, says report

The Centre for Social Justice has called for more sport in school to help tackle absences.

Rob Freeman
Saturday 06 January 2024 23:37 EST
The Centre for Social Justice has called for more sport in school to help tackle absences (PA)
The Centre for Social Justice has called for more sport in school to help tackle absences (PA) (PA Wire)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Almost one in three parents believe the coronavirus pandemic has shown it is not essential for children to attend school every day, according to a new poll.

The poll, conducted by YouGov for the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) think tank into the relationship between parents and schools, found 28% felt that way and only 70% of parents are confident their child’s needs are being met – a figure which drops to 61% at secondary school.

CSJ chief executive Andy Cook said there is “fundamental work to be done in rebuilding the contract between families and schools”.

He said the polling, which questioned 1,206 parents during December 2023, showed there remains a “significant minority for whom the bonds of trust between families and schools were broken”.

Failure to address this will be catastrophic for the future of our people, communities and state

Andy Cook, Centre for Social Justice

“This is not a one-way street,” he said. “Parents have legitimate expectations of schools which government must help them to deliver, but as parents, we need to take responsibility for getting our kids ready for school, at school, and for keeping them engaged in school.

“Restoring the bond between parents and schools – supported by small charities and community organisations – will help us to do this.

Failure to address this will be catastrophic for the future of our people, communities and state.”

In its report on the finding, entitled The Missing Link: Restoring the bond between schools and families, the CSJ sets out a seven-point plan which Mr Cook said puts a “focus on parental engagement and whole family support”.

The plan calls for more at least five hours of extracurricular activities each week via a “right to sport”, plus investment in youth clubs and services, mental health support and the roll out of attendance mentors.

It also recommends a review into the effectiveness of finds and prosecutions for absences, as well as creating a National Parental Participation Strategy.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in