What do our parents and carers think?

The views, opinions and ideas of our parent/carer community are extremely important to us. They enable the whole school team to reflect on what the parents/carers feel the strengths of the school are, but also to share their suggestions for future development. This means that the school improvement plan is truly collaborative with all of our community. Views are gathered in several ways:

1. Our annual parent/carer survey;
2. Regular school update meetings for parents/carers where the Senior Team share updates on progress, improvement priorities and next steps;
3. Quick conversations on the gate!
4. Appointments made to see the SLT;

Our most recent parent/carer survey outcomes are below:

Parent / Carer Survey February 2026: Feedback

parent questionnaire outcomes february 2026.pdf

Parent / Carer Engagement

It is commonly acknowledged that “It takes a village to raise a child.” 

At John Gulson Primary School, parent/carer engagement is vital. We offer a variety of ways parents/carers can engage with the school.

Class Dojo is our primary method of communication. Class Story allows teachers to share photos, videos, documents and special occasions from the classroom for parents/carers to see. It also allows parents/carers to see what is being taught each half-term. There is also a messaging system within Class Dojo, which allows our families to directly message their child's class teacher.

The whole school story allows whole school letters and messages to be shared with the full school community. 

We have an open door policy. There is a member of SLT present each morning and after school, on the main gate, to liaise with parents. For something more urgent, families can make Ann appointment with the relevant staff member. 

Our weekly newsletter goes out to families every Friday. Within each newsletter, there is information from each member of the senior leadership team; weekly attendance numbers; upcoming events; mental health and wellbeing support; photos of work; Star of the Week awards; UNICEF awards; and Reader of the Week! 

Once per year, our parent/carer questionnaire goes to families to complete, allowing them an opportunity to share their views on key aspects of the school. Once the data has been analysed, the Headteacher shares the outcomes with the school community and also addresses key concerns, either providing explanation for why certain things are they way they are OR making adjustments to processes in order to address these concerns. We also allow parents/carers to share what they like about the school, to ensure we do them more often!