A belief that it “takes a community to raise a child” has earned one Bradford primary school a nomination for the Telegraph & Argus School Awards.

Lister Primary School, in Manningham, was nominated for the Community Involvement award for its work to get parents more involved in their children’s education.

The school also offers parents the chance to improve their own education, which staff say has a knock on effect on children’s performance.

The school was nominated for the award, which celebrates schools that forge strong links with the community, by the family learning team at Bradford Council.

With many parents not speaking English as a primary language, the school’s efforts have helped them better integrate into the community and forged stronger links with their children.

Their nomination said: “Lister Primary has worked tirelessly to create a real partnership with parents. They live and breathe by the motto ‘It takes a community to raise a child’.

“Lister Primary is a school where they are always willing to try new ideas and work with people to enhance the lives of their families and they always talk about not the Lister child, but the Lister family. They epitomise for me how a school can be the heart of the whole community, serving families as a whole unit.”

Gaynor Kilmister and Moira Hunt are co-headteachers, and Mrs Kilmister said: “We’ve been dedicated to involving the parents and the community in children’s education. Over the years that involvement increased and we’ve welcomed parents into the school. The parents come in and work with the children. They do reading activities, numeracy activities – all with parents and children working together.

“We also run substantial parental involvement activities where we support parents in their education. This year the classes have been so popular we’ve had to rent room in Manningham Mills – 45 parents have applied for courses.

“We fully involve parents in all aspects of life at the school. We have very good attendance and parents have come to really realise the value of their children being in school. They are not frightened to come in and ask for help with their children.”

Each half term parents are invited to award nights for children, but once a term the school flips things round and holds awards nights for the parents where their successes are recognised while their children proudly look on.

Mrs Kilmister added: “The parents really work with us. It is a privilege to work here.”

Links with the community are so strong that other groups use the school for evening and weekend events.