Ms Áine Lynch:

The main thing about communication in schools is that the most effective communication is between the school and the family and the child. Parents do not necessarily engage with the Department of Education and Skills. It is through the medium of the school that they get the communication that is specific to their school. Members can see in our survey that many parents were very satisfied with the communication received, but some parents said there was a lack of two-way communication. Whereas they might have got information, they did not feel in some small instances that they had an opportunity to talk to the school about concerns they had or to express their difficulties with arrangements that were put in place. Where there is no such two-way communication, I think that can cause frustration that bubbles under the surface. As I said, in the survey many parents said this was working well in their school, but where it was not working well it did cause more anxiety.