• 55 % of parents say the Government does not listen to parents when making decisions about education – only 14 % say that it does
• This has decreased by seven percentage points since 2023, when, 62 % of parents said the Government does not listen to parents
• The proportion of parents saying the Government does listen to them( 14 %) has remained the same since 2023
• Six in ten( 61 %) parents of children with special educational needs say the Government does not listen to parents when making decisions about education
• A third( 34 %) of parents whose child has SEN strongly disagree that the Government listens to parents about education
• Independent school parents are twice as likely to say the Government does listen to parents in education policy( 26 % vs. 13 %)
• Ethnic minority parents are two and a half times as likely to say the Government does listen to them in education policy compared to White parents( 31 % vs. 12 %)
• Just over three in ten( 31 %) ethnic minority parents say the Government does not listen to them, compared to almost six in ten( 58 %) White parents
• Parents in the South East( 65 %), North East( 63 %) and South West( 63 %) are more likely to say the Government does not listen to parents than in other parts of the UK
Image: Ffrindiau Ysgol Blaenau PTFA, Paul Meyler Photography
Image: istock. com / Phynart Studio
52 THE NATIONAL PARENT SURVEY 2026