A NEW parents’ charter has been launched ahead of next week’s Holyrood election with a call for Highers to become two-year courses.

Connect, which represents all parent councils across Scotland, produced the document containing more than 70 calls for action in education, following “thousands of interactions with parents and carers.”

Those calls include improved access to qualifications for home-educated youngsters, a national strategy for what it terms “highly able learners,” and two-year Higher courses.

Connect also demands improvements in diagnosing and helping children with additional support needs, as well as more specialist staff, equipment and IT, warning: “Mainstream primary and secondary schools must do more in this area as, right now, the system is letting our young people down.

“Many are not getting the education they need as there is an overwhelming lack of resource and funding and schools are beyond stretched.”

Connect executive director Gavin Yates said: “For too long the views of parents and carers have not been given the weight they deserve in improving opportunities for our children.

“Scotland’s mums, dads, and carers are the champions of, and advocates for, their children.

“They are the primary providers and first educators of their children and they are taxpayers too.

“Their voices must be heard.

“We urge everyone to sign up to support the charter.”

He said Connect will “continue in its mission to hear and put forward the range and diversity of parents’ experiences and views – we encourage all education partners in schools, local authorities, education organisations and Scottish government to do the same.

“As one parent commented in a survey, ‘We are all in this together and parents’ experience should be valued and sought out.’”