Parent Council
A Parent Council is a group of parents selected by members of the Parent Forum to represent all the parents of children at a school. The Parent Council works with the Head Teacher to support learning and teaching, school improvement and parental and community engagement. They are allocated a small amount of funding by local authorities to support work with the wider Parent Forum. In Aberdeenshire Parent Councils are insured for their activities through an organisation called Connect.
What is the difference between the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) and the Parent Council
The PTA is largely a group of parents who fundraise for the school. Parent Councils are covered by the Parental Involvement Act 2006 and are the recognised way for schools and local authorities to consult with parents. It is the responsibility of local authorities to provide support for Parent Councils.
What is the Parent Forum/Parent Body
The Parent Forum or Parent Body is the name given to all parents (including guardians and carers) of all children attending the school. It is the role of the Parent Council to gather and represent the views of all parents. The Parent Council is therefore accountable to the Parent Forum.
What is a Parent Council Constitution
The constitution is the set of guidelines the Parent Council will adhere to. It should be shared with the Parent Forum and be regularly reviewed, ideally every 4-5 years. We have produced a constitution and appendices to support Parent Councils in Aberdeenshire. View parent council constitution (PDF 171KB) and appendix 1 (PDF 146KB), appendix 2 (PDF 95KB) and appendix 3 (PDF 100KB).
Where to get more information on Parent Councils
Connect is an organisation set up to support parents with all aspects of Parental Engagement. They insure all Parent Councils in Aberdeenshire. Their website contains lots of useful information and resources to support Parent Councils.
You can contact us at parentalengagement@aberdeenshire.gov.uk to get more information on Parent Councils.