ENGLISH parents are too complacent about their children's schooling, believing it is up to teachers, not themselves, to ensure their offspring make the grade, a study claimed yesterday.

Research conducted by academics at Sunderland University based on a survey of parents in the city showed they thought homework was less important than their Russian counterparts.

Professor Julian Elliott, one of the authors, said it was time for parents to realise the home had a "vital role" in raising standards.

Prof Elliott studied attitudes of nearly 6,000 parents in Sunderland, St Petersburg and the US state of Kentucky. He saidd: "Education is not valued too highly in our Posh and Becks world."

Russian children went to school six days a week and, at ten, did more homework in an evening than English GCSE students, he said.

In Sunderland, 81 per cent were highly satisfied with their children's achievement, compared with 52 per cent in St Petersburg - although 58 per cent of North-East parents thought their children could improve significantly.

Four out of ten parents in Sunderland said that harder work in class would help, while 31 per cent believed it was down to their children's teachers, compared with just two per cent who thought more help at home would do the trick.

By contrast, 34 per cent of St Petersburg parents thought working harder at school was the key, while just five per cent said it was down to the teachers and 19 per cent considered more help from home was important.

Prof Elliott said if the English wanted to match the educational results of Russia, Singapore and Taiwan, it would be necessary for schoolchildren to undergo a six-day week and two hours' homework a night for ten-year-olds.