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Nottingham AMBER
Project
AMBER, which stands
for Adult Minorities Breaking Educational Restrictions, helps families
gain a better understanding of the education system and provides vocational
guidance for the parents themselves.
The project, launched
in 1995, began by working mainly with Asian and African-Caribbean parents
but has since been expanded to include other groups in the City and County
of Nottingham who have been at a disadvantage when it comes to participating
in school life.
AMBER aims:
- to empower and
encourage parents to become involved in their children's education
- to provide the
opportunity for school-based adult learning
- to train parent
support workers to facilitate these aims.
How does AMBER
work?
Parents participate
informally through fundraising and general school support activities,
social events, etc. and more formally through in-class help,
governorship and parent consultations:
- a worker is placed
in a school for ten hours per week
- each worker undertakes
five hours of unpaid training
- parents are encouraged
to become involved in the life of the school and are given support and
knowledge to work at home with their children
- schools are encouraged
to think about the ways in which parents can be welcomed, encouraged
and valued as partners and co-educators.
Measures of success
- Helping to establish
community rooms/facilities in schools.
- Increasing parental
take-up of parent governor vacancies through individual support.
- Parents feel valued,
feel that there is someone there to listen to them and act on the issues
they raise, someone who is just there for them. This helps to build
a strong link between them and the school.
- Increased effectiveness
of communication with ethnic minority parents through bilingual workers
where appropriate.
- Enhanced community
networks and dissemination of information about local events and initiatives.
- Individual support
for parents wishing to re-enter the worlds of education or employment
tailored to their needs and skills.
- Support for school
staff in communicating with parents and early interventions regarding
absences, etc.
If you would like
to know more, contact the AMBER Co-ordinator, Maria Semak
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