Communicating with Parents and Carers
Worthing College
Communicating with parents Worthing College places great value on the support parents and carers provide for students, which we believe is crucial to their success in their studies We share information with parents and carers in many ways: • Through our website www.worthing.ac.uk which includes a range of general announcements and communications. There is a Parents and Carers page which includes all of the communications which have been emailed home during the year. • The My Data website. This gives students, parents and carers secure access to a range of records such as attendance, progress reports, grades achieved and individual timetables. The site can be accessed from the College website and is kept secure by the requirement for parents to set a password. • Newsletters. We send out termly guidance newsletters to parents and carers highlighting a wide range of forthcoming opportunities and events. • Email: we send out a range of letters by email such as invitations to parents’ consultation evenings, invitations to information events, newsletters, etc. • Automatic email: Automatic emails are sent to parents / carers in response to student absences and when teachers record commendations or concerns on our tracking system. • Face to face meetings by appointment. Parents /carers are welcome to request a meeting with their son /daughter’s personal tutor to discuss any issue they are concerned about. When a student is placed on an action plan or a disciplinary contract the parent / carer is automatically informed by letter or email and invited to the review meeting. • We may also use other forms of contact where appropriate.
Feedback from parents indicates nearly 100% of parents are satisfied with the level of communication they receive and we are keen to maintain this high level of service. We store the personal contact details of parents / carers, including mobile telephone number and email address because we believe this is vital for supporting the education of students. We provide parents / carers with a Section 14 next of kin privacy notice within one month of the student’s application to the college, informing you of how your data is processed. In a small number of cases where there is a significant estrangement between the student and their parent / carer or in cases where there are safeguarding or child protection concerns, the college may decide not to communicate with parents / carers. For more information about this please see our Data Protection Policy which is available on our website. If a student is 19 years old when they first enrol at Worthing College they will be treated as an adult and we will not communicate with parents / carers, although we will still retain emergency contact details.
www.worthing.ac.uk