Ms Audrey Deane:

It is about reform and accountability. In many cases, parents are not very empowered because they are at the school gate if they are there at all. They wonder who is on the board of management, how does one get there, and whether its members are hand-picked by the principal. It can be quite a closed arena and this needs to change. We are looking to our legislators and representatives. We would like an accountability framework, whereby schools need to show they have considered ability to pay and can evidence they have a variety of practical options available to reduce costs. This means walking the walk and not just talking the talk, which means being accountable to parents.