This podcast exalts Schools to shift the focus from partnership with parents to partnership with families; to embrace a more holistic and inclusive approach which values the contributions of all family members involved in a Childs life.
At its loftiest this is a paradigm shift to more Family centred practice; in its practical reality it is about adjusting your school newsletter to read ‘dear families’, instead of ‘dear parents’.
In 21st-century Society, when so much childcare is delivered by family members other than parents, do we truly value their contribution ? Does it matter if the home – school liaison diary is completed by a grandparent ? Where is the ‘SibShop’ workshop event in the school calendar to enable siblings to come together for fun activities whilst bonding with other siblings whose life journey is also as a brother/ sister to a child with special educational needs/ disabilities ?
Such approaches will enrich the practice of our schools, and the lives of our families, as the speakers in this podcast powerfully illustrate.
Barry Carpenter Education 