A leading Scottish parents’ organisation has appointed a new executive director.
Connect, the independent membership organisation and charity for over 1,500 parent councils and parent-run groups in Scotland, has today revealed that Patrick McGlinchey will take the helm from August.
Mr McGlinchey - who spent a decade as a Labour councillor and five years as deputy leader of West Dunbartonshire Council - is a chartered public relations professional specialising in strategic government relations and policymaking.
He says he is passionate about the power of education, the fundamental importance of inclusion and, of course, the role of parents and carers in children’s learning and school lives.
“I am so pleased to be joining Connect and look forward to helping to shape the organisation for the benefit of Connect members, parents and carers, children and young people, and all those partners who are committed to taking a whole-family approach to children’s learning,” said Mr McGlinchey.
“I am particularly keen to lower the barrier and flatten the path, making parental engagement in education accessible and rewarding for all. I will do my best to ensure Connect remains Scotland’s leading independent organisation for parent-run groups in schools and nurseries.”
In spring 2020, Connect was one of the first organisations in Scotland to shed light on how parents were coping in lockdown. It carried out a survey that showed there was an appetite among some parents for children to redo the school year - or at least be allowed to return to the class they were in before the move to online learning.
Outgoing executive director Eileen Prior has been in the role for 12 years. Lindsay Law, convener of Connect’s board of directors, praised her “outstanding contribution to Connect and to parental involvement and engagement in children’s learning and school lives” - as well as her commitment to inclusion.
In an interview with Tes Scotland last year, Ms Prior called for more focus on individual pupils’ strengths and abilities and an end to the “sausage-factory model” in Scottish education.
