The SPTC in the news

Letter to the Minister

SPTC are part of a voluntary sector coalition formed in response to the vetting (disclosure) proposals. Read the coalition's letter to Adam Ingram, Minister for Children and Early Years.

''BAN ON SCHOOL CAKE SALES?''

This was the headlines in last week's Times Educational Supplement following a letter SPTC sent to all local authorities about public liability insurance for the new parent councils.

08 Aug 2006

''Risk and the real danger for children''

SPTC continue with the campaign against the climate of fear and excessive child protection laws in an article in "The Herald".

07 Aug 2006

We told you about the fantastic response from parents to our survey on the cuts in class contact time for teachers, well the results have certainly made some people notice and provoked a few newspaper headlines.

03 Aug 2006

"The child protection industry"

Read a copy of a letter from SPTC sent to the Times Educational Supplement.

26 May 2006

Going ''soft'' on children's education

Following the announcement by a teachers' union that some subjects should be scrapped to focus on the "soft skills" valued by employers, Judith Gillespie wrote an article for the "Evening Times".

25 Apr 2006

Is this child protection?

Will anybody see common sense in the way we are protecting our children? SPTC's Judith Gillespie wrote to "The Herald" newspaper.

14 Mar 2006

Responding to the panic in our schools

SPTC Development Manager, Judith Gillespie wrote a letter to "The Herald" following Iain MacWhirter's article "This paedophilia panic is undermining our schools".

23 Jan 2006

Are schools really failing to teach the basics?

If you have seen some of the newspaper headlines recently, you may have wondered about the state of our primary schools. Well ... read on

17 Nov 2005

Attack on ''parrot style'' teaching

Quote: "You can teach a child to pass exams or you can educate them - you can't do both".

03 Nov 2005

30 subjects to be axed

03 Nov 2005

CHILD PROTECTION

The shocking case of the abused children in Lewis and the length of time it took to help them prompted Judith Gillespie to write to "The Herald".

11 Oct 2005

Return of the nit nurse?

According to the "Edinburgh Evening News" on September 15th, parents are calling for the return of nit nurses to halt the spread of head lice in schools. SPTC were asked to comment ...

15 Sep 2005

New laws to give parents more power in schools

"The Dundee Courier" reported on new legislation aimed to improve parental involvement. SPTC commented.

15 Sep 2005

"Scots youth choose DVDs over sport"

15 Sep 2005

''Motorists driven round bend by two speed limits''

15 Sep 2005

Drunk pupils bunk off school to hide their hangovers

15 Sep 2005

Should schools contact the parents of absent children?

As part of an online debate, SPTC's Development Manager commented that there is no simple, foolproof way forward.

26 Aug 2005

Schoolgirls prefer trousers

15 Aug 2005

Protection gone mad?

SPTC comments on the news that Aberdeenshire council are advising pupils not to travel on public buses to school due to the concerns of some parents.

21 Jul 2005

The queues are the problem, not the food!

Read SPTC reaction to research that concluded: "Unless the problems associated with queuing for school meals are addressed and better understood, it is likely that young people will not consider "healthier" options even if they do become available."

11 Jul 2005

EMAs - are they working?

05 Jul 2005

''Child Protection checks flawed''

Following comments from a former director of education that money spent on the administration of Disclosure checks would be better spent on community-based projects, SPTC's Judith Gillespie was quoted in an article in "The Herald".

20 Jun 2005

Let's clear things up!

Read a letter from SPTC which was published in the Times Education Supplement on 17th June. It might make the situation a lot clearer for some parents who seem to have been misinformed about some aspects of the proposal for parent forums.

17 Jun 2005

Catching the Truants

10 Jun 2005

Filters on school PCs block pupils' access to sexual health issues

According to recent newspaper articles a Scottish Executive initiative to provide school pupils with information on sexual health is failing to reach its audience because school computer filters are blocking the websites.

07 Jun 2005

Setting versus Streaming

SPTC comments on the news that more schools are opting to set children by ability.

27 May 2005

Don't write off the work that PTAs do

Judith Gillespie stands up for PTAs in the Times Educational Supplement.

27 May 2005

School Bullies should be put into care

SPTC's Development Manager attacked the idea that school bullies should be removed from their families and put into foster care.

25 Apr 2005

Volunteer check alert for parents

SPTC guidance on PTA/PAs and police checks was the subject of an article in "The Herald" newspaper on Tuesday 12th April

12 Apr 2005

Teachers baffled by police checks law

Judith Gillespie was quoted in the "Edinburgh Evening News" on April 5th as part of SPTC's continuing battle to get some clarity about the need for police checks.

05 Apr 2005

Placing Requests

SPTC believe that parents should try to support their local schools rather than applying for a placing request.

17 Mar 2005

Teacher Strike Ballot

10 Mar 2005

Uniformity versus Individuality

In "The Scotsman" on Wednesday 2nd March, Judith Gillespie gave her opinion on school uniforms. This followed comments by Jack McConnell who attacked the dominance of a liberal educational establishment and highlighted the opposition to school uniform as one of the crucial factors in under-achievement.

03 Mar 2005

Sex education survey for Glasgow parents

Parents in Glasgow are to be asked for their opinions of sex/sexual health education via a survey run by the Teenage Pregnancy Steering Group. Judith Gillespie, SPTC's Development Manager comments in an article on the BBC website.

01 Mar 2005

Parental Involvement in the Curriculum

In a recent issue of "Scottish Headlines" - the Journal of the Headteachers' Association of Scotland, the SPTC Development Manager Judith Gillespie pulled no punches. As usual!

The recent report detailing the succes of the "new" system of phonics used in Clackmannanshire to teach children to read will have left most parents puzzled. What was "new" about using letter-sounds to build up words? That's the system that most of them were taught by, so who was the idiot who had decided to replace it with the less successful "look and say" approach?

15 Feb 2005

Is this the end to expensive school holidays?

In a bid to cut the prices during school breaks, ABTA, (the Association of British Travel Agents) are to ask their Scottish members to consider discounting holidays during school breaks. This is because of a rise in children missing lessons because of family holidays. SPTC commented...

14 Feb 2005

Headmaster forced out by parent power

In a Scotsman article on February 8th, Eleanor Coner, SPTC Information Officer commented on the suspension of a Borders Headteacher. Parents had complained about his "lack of performance and questionable teaching methods".

09 Feb 2005

Fear grows as figures show primary school bullying on rise

A report in the "Edinburgh Evening News" on Wednesday 9th February revealed that although there has been a fall in incidents of bullying over the last five years in Edinburgh, there is an increase in the numbers of reports. Judith Gillespie, SPTC Development Manager commented ...

09 Feb 2005

Voucher shopping for teachers

Education chiefs are offering shopping vouchers to people who recommend a friend for a teaching post. SPTC Development Manager, Judith Gillespie made the following comment in "The Scotsman" and "Edinburgh Evening News":

07 Feb 2005

SPTC believes that youngsters need to be well-informed about sexual health

As reported on the BBC website: The Scottish Parent Teacher Council welcomes the launch of the Sexual Health Strategy. Eleanor Coner, Information Officer commented ....

28 Jan 2005

Spring babies are

The Evening News (19/01/2005) reported that, according to research, the oldest pupils in primary school classes are more likely to go to university than their younger peers. SPTC comments..

27 Jan 2005

Glasgow Primary 1 pupils face a full day at school

Glasgow City Council have been talking to parents and teachers to see if they would be in favour of their Primary 1 children starting "full-time" at school. Eleanor Coner spoke to the Evening Times ...

27 Jan 2005

The Child Protection debate

Judith Gillespie, SPTC Development Manager wrote to The Herald (19/01/2005) as part of our campaign to bring some common sense to the debate on child protection.
"Ill Defined Act to protect children in Scotland"

27 Jan 2005

Pupils miss lessons for cheap holidays

As reported in "The Scotsman" on Wednesday 15th December 2004.
Judith Gillespie was quoted as saying that "there needs to be a big effort to persuade parents that it is always bad to remove their children from school during term".

07 Jan 2005

Brown takes taxing view of the nanny state

Brown takes taxing view of the nanny state
The Scotsman - Edinburgh,Scotland,UK
... First of all, as Judith Gillespie of the Scottish Parent Teacher Council (SPTC) says, the research is "pretty crude" in that in some respects it simply states ...

03 Dec 2004

Headteacher�attacked by boy of eight'

Headteacher �attacked by boy of eight'
The Herald - Glasgow,Scotland,UK
... The SPTC told BBC Scotland's Politics Show that serious measures had to be taken to protect the education of the majority, where it is being disrupted by ...

03 Dec 2004

Nursery

Nursery children do better in class
The Scotsman - Edinburgh,Scotland,UK
... Judith Gillespie of the Scottish Parent Teacher Council (SPTC), which campaigned in the 1990s for local authorities to provide nursery education for pre-school ...

26 Nov 2004

Pupils not learning from work experience.

Pupils 'not learning' from work experience
Scotland on Sunday - Edinburgh,Scotland,UK
... Judith Gillespie, the general manager of the Scottish Parent Teachers Council (SPTC) said fourth-year pupils should not be forced into placements which are ...

15 Nov 2004

Parents slam school counselling scheme

Parents slam school counselling scheme
The Scotsman - Edinburgh,Scotland,UK
... But last night, Eleanor Coner, of the Scottish Parent Teacher Council (SPTC), said the pupils were too young to be given counselling sessions. ...

15 Nov 2004

Primary teachers threaten weekly walk-out

Primary teachers threaten weekly walk-out
The Herald - Glasgow,Scotland,United Kingdom
... Mrs Gillespie, speaking on behalf of the SPTC, said: "Professionalism is not about counting the minutes. Teachers want to play both ends of the game. ...

15 Nov 2004

Schools to get same half-day in shake-up

03 Nov 2004

Anger at morning-after pill for teens

03 Nov 2004

Music to the ears of talented students

Judith Gillespie, SPTC's Development Manager was quoted in Scotland on Sunday, 31st October. She was commenting in response to the news that gifted pupils will be encouraged to take ten or more Highers as part of a major shake-up of Scotland's secondary school system.

03 Nov 2004

16 Jun 2004

School chiefs expel term shake-up plan

EDUCATION chiefs have ditched plans for a controversial shake-up of city school holidays and term times.

12 Jun 2004

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