Concern as schools keep parents in the dark over child’s wellbeing

New study from Sangoma underscores the urgency for schools to improve their “frustrating” communications with parents

Nearly a third of UK parents say they feel kept out of the loop when it comes to their children’s wellbeing by the schools and colleges they attend, research from Sangoma has identified.  

Sangoma, a unified communications specialist, has highlighted the need for better communications between education facilities and families, after 31% of parents admit to being in the dark as regards how their children are faring while at school or college.  

Additionally, 30% of parents admitted that they don’t know what their children’s school activities are because of poor communication from schools. One in five (20%) parents also feel out of the loop with their children’s school events.  

And relating to poor communications from schools, 38% of UK parents agreed the communications from their children’s school(s) need to be better managed, underlining the need for a process that can help administrators, teachers, and staff in touch with parents.

Nearly one in five (18%) stated they find communication between themselves and schools is frustrating.  

Parents of children attending primary school, secondary school and colleges were interviewed for the research survey. The findings pinpoint the organisational issues faced within the education sector, and the need to help already stretched teachers balance their daily duties with the needs of parents. 

Commenting on the state of communications in Schools, mother of three, Jade, from Berkshire said: “I feel constantly out of the loop with the lack of communication around my child’s progress from his school. It is hard to get any information on how he is doing in his schoolwork and areas he might improve. But more worrying is their failure to report incidents that have happened during the school day, such as bullying and injuries from playtime. This lack of contact is concerning, and I strongly believe that communications between schools and parents must improve as a key priority for the next academic year.” 

Simon Horton, VP International Sales at Sangoma, says:

“With evidence that poor communications are resulting in parents being kept in the dark about their child’s wellbeing, it is clear schools need to look for ways to improve their processes. For any parent or guardian to not know how their children are is of course a worry for them.  

“But it’s important for educational facilities to take note of these findings too. Such negative can reduce school satisfaction rates and negative Ofsted Parent View surveys, leading to a low Ofsted rating for schools as inspectors consider parents’ views when making their overall judgement of a school. 

 “Schools should replace their outdated voice-only legacy communications systems. Replacing an outdated system with an upgraded communications system not only saves schools time and money, but will improve lines of communication between parents and teachers to give them the peace of mind they need.”