IPPN

Published: 15 June 2023

NPC understands that, as Principals, you have a great responsibility to manage the different stakeholders in the school community while still putting the children in the centre of it all. NPC is proud of its growing large base of member Parents’ Associations across Ireland and would like to share some of the success stories of schools where the partnership in the school community has resulted in innovative projects and better outcomes for children.

Every year National Parents Council recognises the innovative partnership work between schools and parents, which supports children in having the opportunity to reach their full potential through the Fred O’Connell - NPC Innovation Award.

Click here to learn more about The 2023 Fred O’Connell NPC Innovation Award 

The closing date for the 2023 Award is the 8 September.

The NPC Innovation Award 2022 took place at the NPC AGM on Saturday 24 September 2022. Below are some of the activities NPC member Parents’ Associations conducted:

• Implementing a car free zone outside the school entrance, with Parent Volunteers at the entrance to the school, new double yellow lines, refreshed road markings and signage designed with the support of the school.
• Culture Week: The purpose of this week is to create an inclusive event that aligns with the ethos of the school, welcoming the diverse community to share and celebrate their identities while learning about each other's diverse backgrounds. As part of this week, the children learn about their classmates' national traditions, dress, sports, languages and food. They were encouraged to dress in national dress or colours and each class is allocated a country to explore together. The Parents/Guardians and Teachers Association (PGTA) aimed to involve parents/guardians in this week, recognising that food and cooking are central to every family in the community. Families were invited to share their favourite dishes from around the world, contributing to the creation of a recipe book and includes photographs of families eating and cooking together.
• School Uniform Engagement Project: Many comments/issues have been voiced by parents regarding the school uniform for many years, but these issues were never addressed/resolved. The perennial issues of cost, quality and comfort were raised. The Parents’ Association (PA) endeavoured to try to resolve the issue and find a longer-term fix. The PA decided to solicit detailed, usable feedback regarding school uniforms and research alternative options to present to the Board of Management (BOM), with the aim of encouraging change.

These are just some of the examples of the many innovative initiatives member Parents’ Associations have made possible given the two years away from school due to COVID.

To learn more about how NPC can help your school community, you can call directly on 01-8874034 or email at info@npc.ie.