Co-Parenting Education. Headteachers and school administrators can find themselves in a difficult situation if caught between the separated parents of one of their students.
The school must act carefully to comply with the
applicable rules and requirements and the parents need to know their rights and responsibilities. This recently published guidance from the Department of Education is very helpful for all involved in understanding and dealing with issues relating to parental responsibility – GOV.UK
It is important for the school and parents to be clear about:
- Who is a ‘parent’ and who has ‘parental responsibility’?
- Who are the ‘resident’ and ‘non-resident’ parents?
- What the school must do / can do / should do, depending on legal duties/powers / pursuant to guidance?
A couple of key points to bear in mind include:
- A resident parent cannot prevent the school from carrying out its legal duties, such as sharing a child’s educational record with a ‘non-parent’. eg; sharing GCSE results.
- However, the school can delete or limit certain information from the child’s educational record that is shared with the non-resident parent. eg; if it is necessary to safeguard the child or resident parent from a risk of serious physical or mental harm.
These points can be difficult to work out and there isn’t enough space in this article to consider each in detail. Therefore, the HGW Family team can help advise on and answer these questions.
Contact Your Friend-In-Law today to ensure you’re well-informed and well-prepared.