5 simple ways to boost school communication

During my career in education, I have often found that schools’ communication with staff and parents hasn’t been as effective as it could be.

Often, new plans or policies are shared without clarity, forethought or explanation, which means even good ideas that should be well received can cause backlash.

That’s why, when I began my first headship last year, I was determined to ensure how we communicated was done in a positive way and had real impact for all involved.

1. Involve staff in more decisions

One of the first things I did was increase staff engagement in decision making, such as using a whole-staff Inset day to change our school values, or bringing midday staff together to discuss zoning areas of the playground to improve engagement during breaktimes.

This meant that when decisions were formally communicated, many staff were already involved and were on board with decisions made - and could talk to staff who had questions, rather than that being something only leaders could do.

A parallel teaching assistant meeting also mirrored what was covered during the teaching staff meeting.

This was effective for a couple of reasons: the messaging was consistent; feedback was instantaneous; and most importantly, all members of staff felt valued, included and were on board with the journey of the school.

2. Upcoming events

When I entered the school in September, a common line that I heard with regularity was “we never know what is coming up”.

Although dates were (mostly) added to our Google calendar, we were often still unprepared.

So I introduced a more comprehensive plan of the week ahead, which contained the events, dates and times, the location and a short line about what to expect.

This was sent on a Friday afternoon and included all the events and meetings taking place the following week.

The email was sent to all staff, was specific regarding dates and times, but also added appropriate context to each event, ensuring clarity around logistics (such as cover arrangements, guests, timings of coming and goings, etc).

Adding these details really supported the smooth running of the school, as the information left very little ambiguity.

Staff feedback showed quickly they appreciated this short but clear oversight to help plan ahead.

3. Parental engagement improvements

A previous parent survey had shown communication and engagement were areas that needed developing, with a few commenting on the consistency and amount of time in which notices were given.

Developing an open door culture has also really supported communication with our families.

This was achieved in a few different ways: a rotation of staff accompanying me on our school gates during pick-ups and drop-offs; hosting regular, themed and focused coffee mornings on the last Friday of each half term; and involving families with personal development and curriculum of the school (such as careers week and how to support your child workshops).

We have also sought their views on changes through polls, including on our school values or clubs that are being run, and generally running more events in schools such as open evenings and class assemblies.

These changes were relatively easy to implement and didn’t require lots of work or money, but they played a big part in developing our overall messaging and communication strategy.

4. The power of a newsletter

After a few weeks, I also saw there was clear room for improvement with the school newsletter, which was delivered inconsistently and often left out useful information.

As such, I overhauled it to ensure it was delivered weekly and contained key information coming up for families that helped reduce confusion over requirements for pupils in the weeks ahead or opportunities to engage with the school they may have otherwise missed.

We also included more positive stories about recent school success, to shape a more positive narrative around the school and a sense of community and pride.

5. Keep it simple

One of the key things I think we got right this year was not to overdo the communications or try to introduce too many new methods.

While I quickly saw it was an area we could make some wins in, there is nothing worse than overpromising. As such, the improvements were aimed to be light-touch but effective, and I feel, based on the feedback we received, that has been achieved.

Ultimately, the decisions in schools have a greater impact than the communication, PR or messaging around them, but if you want as many people as possible on that journey with you, then these areas cannot be overlooked.

Jordan Coombes is headteacher at Lambourne Primary School, part of Epping Forest Schools Partnership Trust