PARENTAL ENGAGEMENT
Using bilingual staff and interpreters When schools’ welcome pupils from around the world, it can be difficult to find someone who speaks their first language. Schools can facilitate initial communication by checking for other languages the family may know, asking bilingual staff for help, hiring interpreters, or using tools like Google Translate.
Hosting community events Parental engagement is about providing families with meaningful opportunities. This is particularly crucial for families who are new to English, as language barriers can lead to isolation, especially if they lack nearby friends or relatives. At Horton Grange, our parental engagement program includes a variety of events such as English lessons for adults, coffee mornings, mental health support, and day trips that allow parents to connect with the local community and other families.
We place a lot of value on our partnerships with parents, carers, and members of the community, who make a positive contribution to the life of the school. Creating opportunities for parents to engage in events is key to creating a sense of belonging. For instance, school fairs provide an excellent occasion for parents to establish stalls offering baked goods or crafts that reflect their personal heritage and cultural significance.
Supporting families to integrate Many pupils who are new to English are also new to the country, often arriving as refugees or asylum-seekers. If their basic needs at home aren’t met, they will struggle to learn effectively in school. Families who have just arrived in the UK may feel overwhelmed with the amount of
paperwork required; this is where schools can offer support by helping families understand communications from agencies, signposting relevant services, and guiding them towards the correct organisations, which helps them navigate the asylum-seeking process. In addition to education, families often require assistance with practical matters such as opening bank accounts or accessing English language classes. While we offer a significant amount of support, staff also encourage parents to make use of online translation resources like Google Translate, which can help families become more self-sufficient as they adjust to life in the UK. These tools support, but do not replace, the use of professional interpreters during key meetings or sensitive conversations.
As mentioned earlier, some parents relocate to the UK specifically to pursue higher education. In such cases, their children may arrive with an already well-established educational background, having experienced structured schooling and consistent academic progression in their home countries. These pupils often bring strong study habits, developed literacy skills in their first language, and a solid foundation of prior learning, all of which can influence how quickly they adapt to the curriculum and wider school environment. Recognising this variation is essential, as it highlights the diverse starting points among multilingual learners and ensures that support is accurately tailored rather than based on assumptions.
Useful resources and guidance Guidance on supporting multilingual pupils is limited, so schools should seek evidence-based
EAL training to engage effectively with these pupils and their families.
As a Bell Foundation Licensed Practitioner, I have engaged in extensive EAL professional development and implemented The Bell Foundation’s Five Principles of EAL Pedagogy, which form the foundation of our practices at Horton Grange. Additionally, we have utilised the Foundation’s guidance on engaging with parents of multilingual pupils and on developing EAL learner profiles. These tools are regularly employed for pupils who are new to English and have proven particularly valuable in our context.
In summary
With the number of multilingual learners rising nationally, these approaches are increasingly important across schools. Establishing a robust partnership with parents is fundamental to enhancing students’ educational outcomes. Facilitating parental involvement through attendance at school assemblies or participation in family learning initiatives can assist children in adapting to the school environment. Additionally, offering support for parents’ personal development, such as English language instruction, enables them to provide greater assistance with their children’s homework and language acquisition.
In our context, these approaches have helped to strengthen parent-school relationships, support smoother transitions into school life, and build pupil confidence as they settle into their new environment. Collectively, these strategies are instrumental in fostering the successful integration of children and their families into both the school setting and the broader local community.
February 2026
www.education-today.co.uk 33
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44
