Community schools families and communities at the heart of school life

Recommendations

To realise the vision for effective community schools in Wales in a strategic and sustainable way:

Schools should:

R1 Build strong partnerships with families as an integral part of improving the wellbeing and achievement of all pupils
R2 Refer clearly in strategic plans to how they will work with families, the community and partners to improve the wellbeing and achievement of all pupils
R3 Employ family and community engagement staff to work with families, the community and wider partners
R4 Work with the local authority and with statutory and third-sector partners to provide services that address the needs of families and the community, including co-locating services and utilising school assets
R5 Evaluate the impact of community school strategies

Local authorities should:

R6 Include in strategic planning actions on how they will develop authority-wide initiatives to support schools to be effective community schools
R7 Strengthen cross-directorate working to plan ways of locating a range of services in schools
R8 Ensure that 21st Century Schools planning considers the need for spaces / base rooms for family and community access
R9 Support schools to appoint family and community engagement staff, including developing a role description for these staff
R10 Provide professional learning opportunities for support school staff, governing bodies and strategic partners to develop community schools

The Welsh Government should:

R11 Develop a set of agreed, defining characteristics for community schools, and consider how schools are classified as ‘community schools’ and how this term is used to identify specific schools
R12 Promote the benefits of community schools, particularly in areas of disadvantage, with schools, local authorities and regional consortia
R13 Strengthen the expectation for including actions on family and community engagement in school strategic plans
R14 Refresh national guidance on community schools, using the Family and Community Engagement Toolkit (FaCE), and provide guidance on how schools can evaluate and improve their community school strategies
R15 Ensure that 21st Century Schools and Colleges Programme planning, guidance and building standards take into consideration the need for spaces for family and community access