Imagine if someone said to you at the beginning of the year: “In a couple of months you need to be ready to deliver remote learning to the majority of your pupils because the country will be on lockdown due to a global pandemic.” I’m guessing you would either laugh, cry or head to the nearest bar. (Remember those?)

“Can everyone go on mute”, “How do I share my screen?” and “I’ll meet you on my link” are common phrases anyone managing a remote team will be all too familiar with.

School leaders, however, haven’t typically fallen into this group until recently,  and are only just discovering the charms and challenges of remote working amid partial school closures. Nevertheless, in true sector spirit - they are adapting at pace and sharing their tips with the rest of us.

The resilience of schools is being tested significantly right now. But what an incredible response we’ve seen from the sector over the last several weeks? We’ve been humbled by some of the stories we’ve heard of school leaders going above and beyond to support their pupils, staff and communities. And yet, the situation continues to evolve.

Maintaining a good dynamic with parents is no mean feat at the best of times. So how do you manage it when your community is spread between skeleton schools and home learning environments?

It’s a challenge, but true to form - schools are rising to it and sharing their best practice with the rest of the sector. We spoke with several school leaders, as well as our colleagues at The Key to bring you these expert tips on communicating with parents during COVID-19: