The Starting School, Moving On project is part of a wider extended schools campaign by the DCSF to bring parents into schools. The Family and Parenting Institute and 4Children were commissioned to pilot the project in 20 local authorities from April 2006. It covers the transitions from pre-school to primary and from primary to secondary.
The two-year pilot phase ends in March 2008 with the publication of the final evaluation into the scheme.
Schools start by organising a one-off Starting School Information Session to welcome parents and provide basic information about the school. Many of the pilot schools have gone on to develop innovative parent support tools.
Janet Kent, national co-ordinator of the project, said, 'What schools are really trying to do is to promote the impact that parents can have on their child's school life.
'One school had a high percentage of young parents in its cohort, so they held a pamper day in their on-site children's centre where the young mums could get their nails done or have a shoulder massage. The Foundation Stage staff joined them and chatted to them informally about what the school was like and what they could expect for their children. It was all about getting them through the school doors.'
Another school found a permanent way to engage with its majority intake of children from South Asian and Eastern European communities.
Ms Kent said, 'They transformed the hall into a marketplace with 25 different community stalls and held a Foundation Stage classroom session about supporting your child's learning. The staff showed a filmed session of them teaching. Parents were watching their own children and could get an idea about what they do at school.
'This all led to the emergence of a language cafe supporting parents with English difficulties, which has become really central to the school's link with the community,' she added.
