Look who we found on our bird box check today in school

What family engagement practice would immediately disappear if the lead person left tomorrow? People are important. But sustainable family engagement lives in routines, not individuals. Strong systems protect strong relationships

This week's Community Connections explores a simple idea: Relationships are expensive. Rituals are cheap. Why the schools building the strongest family trust are focusing less on big events and more on small, repeatable moments. Read the latest edition www.investorsinfamilies.co.uk/newsletter/

Cricket training soon comes around. Happy Friday

Bird box update from school

The goal isn’t perfect engagement. It’s dependable engagement. Small actions. Repeated well.

Morning 🌞

Schools invest huge energy into open evenings. Families remember Tuesday mornings. The ordinary moments are doing more work than the big events.

Please help. I mention from time to time I volunteer at a clothing charity. This summer we’re aiming to provide 1200 uniform & nursery clothing packs for free. If you can help with a small donation Aviva will match it 😁 communitiesfund.avivafoundation.org.uk/p/qr/XWJOZ2x...

Choose one routine. Can every staff member explain it the same way? If not that’s your improvement project.

2:15am airport run done as two of our young people (and staff) headed to Portugal. For us in AP, another huge first ticked off. These moments are built on trust, prep and staff willing to go the extra mile. Really proud.Sometimes progress looks like a passport and a boarding pass

Spot anything? We had something watching us on the dog walk.

Always enjoy a spin on the bumper cars

If your family engagement lead disappeared for two weeks… What would continue automatically?

Try this with your team: Pick one family process. Then ask: Where does this currently live? In: one person’s memory goodwill inboxes Or: routines clear ownership predictable experience Small systems create big trust.

Morning

Schools helping schools. The best ideas in education often come from other schools. That’s why we’re growing the Investors in Families Mentor School Network. Proud to introduce our first Mentor Schools. Proud to introduce our first Mentor Schools. investorsinfamilies.co.uk/our-settings/m…

Schools often say: “We’re really supportive.” Good. But here’s the harder question: Would families experience the same support if your key person was off tomorrow? Support matters. Systems make support sustainable.

It's #FFBWednesday on BlueSky. For educators ready to build genuine connections: 💫 Like and repost 💫 Comment with your edu bio + #FFBWeds 💫 Follow everyone who participates Let's create the education community BlueSky deserves. #EduSky

Maybe we’ve framed behaviour incorrectly. Too much focus on: consequence sanction escalation The strongest schools seem to focus more on: routines relationships belonging repair Behaviour isn’t always managed. Often it’s engineered.

Schools spend thousands improving behaviour systems. Very few invest the same energy into improving relationships with families. Yet one trusted relationship with home can prevent: attendance issues complaints conflict and disengagement.

Went to see the brilliant stage version of The Shawshank Redemption @ClwydTweets But how are we still at a point where people leave phones on. Unbelievable. You’re not at home watching Netflix. Put it away for two hours.

Family engagement should not depend on one passionate staff member or goodwill alone. The strongest schools build systems that make families feel welcome heard and supported consistently. That’s what Investors in Families helps schools achieve. [email protected]

An inspection is the opinion of a small team, over a short period of time. A snapshot. Not the full story. And by the time reports are published, schools have already changed. Maybe before reposting celebrations across socials, spare a thought for colleagues living the other side of the process.

Know a teen who is on their phone too much? Ask if they've heard of the Forest app? Users set timers for time spent concentrating off line. The app then grows a tree for your forest whilst your device is idle. Mess with your phone and a tree will die... #TechTipFriday

Most schools already care deeply about families. The challenge is making good practice consistent. We help schools embed: stronger relationships clearer communication and sustainable family engagement. Not more workload. Better systems. [email protected]

Families notice reliability more than effort. Not: how hard schools are working behind the scenes. But: Was the call made? Was the follow-up clear? Did somebody do what they said they would? Trust grows through predictability. Small systems. Repeated well. Every day.

We launch our mentor schools today The best improvement rarely comes from theory alone. It comes from shared practice honest conversations and small ideas that work Our Mentors continue to model strong family engagement in real schools with real pressure share.google/7liLtIfuy5lx...

It's #FFBWednesday on BlueSky. For educators ready to build genuine connections: 💫 Like and repost 💫 Comment with your edu bio + #FFBWeds 💫 Follow everyone who participates Let's create the education community BlueSky deserves. #EduSky

If they were off tomorrow… would this still happen? If the answer is no, the practice is not embedded yet. Good family engagement should survive: absence pressure staff change That’s the difference between support and systems.

Support doesn’t scale. Systems do. The schools building the strongest relationships with families are not relying on: hero staff memory good intentions They are building repeatable habits. Because trust grows through consistency. Not intensity.

'Never let someone else’s bad advice become your bad decision.'

Trust is built before it’s needed. Strong family engagement doesn’t appear in a crisis. It’s built quietly in tone, in consistency, in small daily moments. That’s where the real work happens.

The one barrier challenge Don’t fix everything all at once. Fix one thing well. Ask your team: What is one barrier families face we could remove this week? Examples: simplify communication adjust timings create informal drop-ins offer practical support Solve one. Then move to the next.

I like this idea. It reminds me of the James Clear line from Atomic Habits that I over-quote: 'You don't rise to the level of your goals; you fall to the level of your systems.'

Took my eldest daughter to vote for the first time today. Strange little moment really. One minute you’re teaching them to cross the road properly… next minute you’re standing outside a polling station. Even the dog came along for the occasion

Design your first 30 seconds. Most schools plan events. Very few design everyday interactions. Pick one moment: morning arrival end of day phone calls home Then ask: What does this feel like for a parent? Upgrade it: use names lead with a positive Small change. Big shift.

It's #FFBWednesday on BlueSky. For educators ready to build genuine connections: 💫 Like and repost 💫 Comment with your edu bio + #FFBWeds 💫 Follow everyone who participates Let's create the education community BlueSky deserves. #EduSky

Engagement doesn’t live in events. It lives in the gaps. the 30 seconds at the gate the quick message home remembering something small about a child the tone of a phone call These aren’t systems. They’re signals. And families respond to signals far more than strategy.

Consistency beats creativity. Schools often search for new ideas. Families want something simpler, Predictability. They want to know: who to speak to how things will be handled what tone they’ll receive The strongest schools aren’t the most creative. They’re the most consistent.

It's #FFBWednesday on BlueSky. For educators ready to build genuine connections: 💫 Like and repost 💫 Comment with your edu bio + #FFBWeds 💫 Follow everyone who participates Let's create the education community BlueSky deserves. #EduSky

We are so lucky with our forest school area.

An update from our school bird box

Another bag donated yesterday. The messages we receive say it all. 💛 A small bag. A big difference. Our First Night in Care Bags include all the things our young people suggested. Helping young people feel safe, valued and thought of from night one.

Do me a favour? Who has the right scone?

I bought a book, started reading and found a post it note inside. It said:- 'All days are good days. You don't have a bad day, just a bad minute.' Simple. Powerful. Worth remembering. Bad moments pass.

Someone was keeping an eye on us on the dog walk this morning.