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Important update from TheSchoolRun

For the past 13 years, TheSchoolRun has been run by a small team of mums working from home, dedicated to providing quality educational resources to primary school parents. Unfortunately, rising supplier costs and falling revenue have made it impossible for us to continue operating, and we’ve had to make the difficult decision to close. The good news: We’ve arranged for another educational provider to take over many of our resources. These will be hosted on a new portal, where the content will be updated and expanded to support your child’s learning.

What this means for subscribers:

  • Your subscription is still active, and for now, you can keep using the website as normal — just log in with your usual details to access all our articles and resources*.
  • In a few months, all resources will move to the new portal. You’ll continue to have access there until your subscription ends. We’ll send you full details nearer the time.
  • As a thank you for your support, we’ll also be sending you 16 primary school eBooks (worth £108.84) to download and keep.

A few changes to be aware of:

  • The Learning Journey weekly email has ended, but your child’s plan will still be updated on your dashboard each Monday. Just log in to see the recommended worksheets.
  • The 11+ weekly emails have now ended. We sent you all the remaining emails in the series at the end of March — please check your inbox (and spam folder) if you haven’t seen them. You can also follow the full programme here: 11+ Learning Journey.

If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected]. Thank you for being part of our journey it’s been a privilege to support your family’s learning.

*If you need to reset your password, it will still work as usual. Please check your spam folder if the reset email doesn’t appear in your inbox.

The benefits of joining a PTA

Group of mums
Why should a parent join the PTA? National Confederation of Parent Teacher Associations (NCPTA) communications manager Laura Warren explains.

Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs) are an active part of school life for schools across the country. Many thousands of parents volunteer to join in with PTA activities at their child's school, giving their time and energy to fundraising and working in partnership with the school.

The National Confederation Parent Teacher Associations (NCPTA) is the umbrella organisation for PTAs across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. With a current membership of around 13,000, it represents the voice of more than seven million parents and teachers. Membership fees are based on the size of the school (ranging from £55 - £95 a year) and provide subscription-linked £10 million public liability insurance plus many other benefits.

Founded in 1956 and a registered charity, the NCPTA aims to promote effective partnerships between parents and teachers which support learning opportunities at home and school.

The role of the PTA

PTA activity will vary from school to school. Almost all PTAs are involved in fundraising and most will organise social events for parents and children. Many provide helpers for outings and special events and a large number run clubs for sport, music or drama. Some PTAs will organise meetings to inform parents about education issues, too, particularly when changes are taking place.

Recent figures show that PTAs raise over £73 million a year, providing funds to improve the school experience for millions of children in both the primary and secondary sector - from buying skipping ropes for playtime to equipping an ICT suite.

This achievement makes a real difference to schools and their pupils, providing extra resources and, in some cases, making it possible for activities such as school trips to happen.

A successful PTA will bring together parents and teachers who are interested in supporting the school. Meetings are usually very informal with event planning and organising the main focus. PTAs tend to meet a couple of times each term with an extra meeting just before an event. Meetings may be held at school but some PTAs get together at a local pub to make it more of a social gathering

The importance of involving parents

Research has shown that parental involvement has a very significant impact on a child's achievement and attainment at school.

A successful PTA provides parents and teachers with the opportunity to exchange views, work together and to develop mutual trust and confidence. The NCPTA supports this success with a wide range of information and practical guidance.

In a world where everyone's time is precious getting people to join a PTA can be daunting task. But all parents and teachers can get involved, even if they only have a small amount of time available.

The lifecycle of a PTA committee will vary. Some members may stay involved for ten years or more - particularly if they have subsequent children attending the school. Others may stay for a few years and then move on.