Recommendation 23

The Department must ensure that disadvantaged White communities are a priority for support. Schools should be an important part of the work of developing Family Hub models, following the example of the Reach Children’s Hub. The Department must help schools emulate this model by inviting applications to open free schools from organisations interested in creating their own ‘cradle to career’ pathway. The Department should explore what support will effectively help existing schools to build local partnerships in this way, as well as what resources schools need to build their own versions of parental engagement strategies such as those at Reach Academy Feltham, including parent-school pledges and home visits. Schools must have autonomy over the form of these parental engagement strategies, to take account of their local area’s cultural nuances.