WELCOME TO FRIENDS OF POVEREST

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1 WELCOME TO POVEREST PRIMARY SCHOOL TILLINGBOURNE GREEN ORPINGTON KENT, BR5 2JD Registered Charity No:

2 Welcome to Your Friends Association! All parents and carers, along with their extended family at Poverest Primary school are automatically members now that your child has enrolled in the school. It s your association. This booklet has been compiled especially for you, as a new family joining our school community. We realise it can be strange and a little nerve-wracking starting at a new school and there always seems to be so many questions to ask. This booklet aims to provide you with information about our Friends Association which forms a major part of school life. Meet the 2017/18 Committee Members Our committee consists of five Officers: Chair, Vice Chair, Deputy Vice Chair, Treasurer and Secretary. We also have 19 ordinary committee members to make up the full committee. The Committee meet on a regular basis usually once or twice per term, with other meetings as necessary when we are planning larger events. Liz Mungeam Chairman Geraldine Mills Vice Chairman Julie Green Deputy Vice Chairman Marie Devine Treasurer Marie Shaw Secretary Our Vision To advance the education of pupils in the school, in particular by developing effective relationships between the staff, parents and others associated with the school; engaging in activities or providing facilities or equipment which support the school and advance the education of the pupils. Our Ethos WORKING TOGETHER FOR THE BENEFIT OF OUR CHILDREN

3 How we get information to you We regularly send out event flyers home in book bags as well as displaying them on our noticeboard. We will also send you reminders on class dojo and facebook, along with a newsletter going out either each term, or each half term if we have lots of news to share. The newsletters include information on upcoming events as well as to let you know how much was raised, and if we can, we tell you what the money will be spent on. Letters and newsletters are also displayed on the school notice boards which are situated by the main hall opposite the blue entrance gate. If you would like to receive the minutes of the meeting, please let us have your address to include you. What is the Friends Association? Commonly known as a PTA, Friends of Poverest is an open community of family and friend s volunteers working alongside the teachers to the benefit of our school and to ensure the best educational experience for all its pupils. How does the School benefit from having a Friends Association? Parents and carers have a big impact on how well their children do at school. Taking an active role in your friends association is one of the ways you can make a difference and get involved in your child s school life: We raise money to fund school initiatives through activities and events We provide a social support network for our school community We provide a forum for parents to have a say We provide volunteers and opportunities so that parents can support their child s learning Why do we have a Friends Association? Our charity is about much more than simply fundraising. The Friends Association exists to provide closer links between home and school and it is an excellent way to bring staff, parents and friends together socially in support of the school, working towards a common goal. It is fun too - just ask any of the Committee members or helpers. Obviously, as in any organisation, we have experienced some challenges but with the continued support of parents and staff, our Friends Association has always succeeded in its efforts. Friends of Poverest is extremely conscious of the ethos and diversity of our school, and we try very hard when organising and planning events to respect this. Not all of our events are run as fundraisers, for example the school disco charge is just to cover the cost of the DJ and refreshments and the Autumn Craft Project is fully funded by the Association as it brings so much joy to the children.

4 How we raise money Like most charities, the majority of our funds are raised through the events that we run. Whilst we do like to try some different events, but we try to do the following popular events every year: Winter and Summer Fair Winter Shopping Evening Winter, Fathers Day and Mothers Day Gift Sale Pamper Night School Disco Quiz Night Skate & Scoots & Film Nights Spring Treasure Hunt Health Week Fruit Tuck Shop So you can see there is always something going on. We always try and respond to the children s requests; it is great to see them having fun at the events. We raise money in other ways too. Donations from parents are extremely important. You can donate time, money, items for sale and raffle prizes. How we spend the money we raise Following a fundraising event the money is banked straight away. It is at our Committee meetings, that the decisions on how to spend the money are agreed with the Head Teacher. Usually, Mrs Weeks and the Teaching Staff will have a wish list of items that the school would like the Association to consider funding. Sometimes this will be as a result of the children asking for something. At other times it will be for resources to improve a particular area of the curriculum or school environment. The funds are spent on the extras that are not provided by the school s budget, thus making our children s learning experiences so much more fulfilling and exciting. For example, Summer Term 2017 we contributed towards the online maths programme to support both in school and at home learning. Support from and supporting small businesses A number of our parents have their own business or are part of a home business, which many have started to fit around their home life commitments. Many of these parents support us by sponsoring events or purchases or donating their products or services to us. We in turn look to support our parents with their ventures by advertising their business to our community. If you have a venture that you would like to share with us, please get in contact.

5 How you can help and how much time do you have to commit There are lots of ways you can help and support your child through the Friends Association. Every Parent, Carer, Grandparent, etc has skills to bring, from graphic design to gardening; from events management to balancing the books. Some of our most active mums and dads work fulltime, or have other commitments and If your child has younger siblings, helping out is a great way to familiarise them with their future school. Offering to help before events or at other times during the year is so valuable. It doesn t matter if you can t help on a regular basis, or even if you cannot come into school. There are always jobs that can be done from home if you have half an hour to spare. Examples of how you can commit, either at an event or behind the scenes, include: Write to local businesses for donations contribute to termly newsletter promote easyfundraising help with particular event (summer fair / film nights) help out on our Friday tuck shop Wrapping gifts Preparing raffle tickets We really couldn t achieve what we do without the behind the scenes help that we receive, BUT please remember, we all have lives away from school, and it s OK to say no. You can help by letting us know if you have any contacts or skills we could use, everything is potentially valuable to us. And finally, we are always extremely grateful to receive donations as mentioned before. There is brief questionnaire at the back of the booklet to fill in and return if you are able to help in any way, no matter how small. Don t forget to include an address if possible.

6 Annual General Meeting (AGM) Our Annual General Meeting is held nearing the end of the academic year and provides an opportunity for all parents to come along and hear a summary of the years events we have run, the funds we have raised and how the money has been spent. It is also the occasion when we elect our new committee members. It is important that all parents and carers have a voice on how their friends association is run. Support from PTA-UK Our Friends Association is a member of PTA-UK, which is a national charity and membership organisation providing us with advice and support, ensuring: we run our Friends Association well according to good practice our events are properly insured, legal and safe We pay an annual membership fee which gives us lots of member benefits including comprehensive insurance cover for all Friends Association run events, support and advice on running the charity plus fundraising ideas and good practice hints and tips. PTA-UK also provides us with the opportunity to meet and communicate with other PTA s, PTFA s and Friends Associations to discuss and share experiences. See and subscribe for all the latest updates. Check out the Facebook page for interesting chats and info: Follow on Thank you for taking the time to read our booklet. We hope you now know a little more about your Friends Association. On behalf of all the pupils we would like to thank you for your very valuable support which enriches their learning experience and makes their time in school so enjoyable. From all the Friends of Poverest Committee Mob: (Liz Mungeam, Chairman) Facebook: friendsofpoverest@gmail.com A list of attachments at the back of the booklet should include: Our Constitution Code of Conduct Parents Questionnaire for parents to complete and return List of upcoming events