School Council

School Council 2025-2026

Our Role and Plans for the Year

Our School Council meets regularly with Mrs Spiby-Wilson to share ideas, raise important issues, and work together to make our school the best it can be. We aim to bring about positive changes that reflect the voices of all pupils.

This year, we have been completing an exciting progression plan which outlines the projects we’ll be working on and would like to start. You can find it displayed on the School Council notice board in school.

We've explored fun and inclusive ways to fundraise for the school – ideas that pupils, parents, and staff have all enjoyed and been able to get involved in.

If you have a suggestion or would like to contribute your thoughts, please visit the discussion section of our notice board – we’d love to hear from you!

What We've Been Working On

Before half term, we asked students for their opinions on a few school matters:

😄 Worry Wednesday – Should we bring it back?

🍽️ School lunches – Are you happy with the portion sizes?

🐾 School mascot – Would you like the school to have one?

What’s Coming Up

🌟 Looking Ahead to an Exciting New School Council Year! 🌟

As we reach the end of another fantastic school year, we'd like to thank all of our families for their continued support of our School Council initiatives. We are already looking forward to welcoming everyone back in September and have an exciting programme planned to help our pupils get involved, have their voices heard, and make a positive difference in our school community.

Here's a sneak peek at what's coming up:

🎤 School Council Assembly - We'll kick off the new year with a whole-school assembly explaining what the School Council does, why it's important, and how pupils can get involved.

🗳️ Class Elections - Every class will have the opportunity to prepare speeches before voting for their new School Councillors, giving every child the chance to take part in the democratic process.

🤝 School Council Introduction Meeting - Our newly elected councillors will meet for the first time to discuss any outstanding ideas from the previous year, share their own suggestions, and begin planning for the months ahead.

💷 Planning the School Council Budget - Pupils will work together to discuss how to manage their annual budget, including planning favourite initiatives such as Treat Tuesdays and Party in the Playground.

👋 Welcome Week & New Student Buddy Programme - To help new pupils settle into school, we'll be launching our Buddy Programme—an idea suggested by our current School Council—to ensure every child feels welcomed, supported, and included from day one.

😊 'Get to Know Your Council' Campaign - Throughout September, pupils will be introduced to their new School Councillors and learn how they can share ideas, suggestions, and feedback throughout the year.

💙 Back-to-School Wellbeing Week - Returning after the summer holidays can be a big adjustment, so we'll be focusing on wellbeing, kindness, and helping everyone feel happy, confident, and ready to learn.

🎉 Freshers Day - There will be lots of opportunities for pupils to discover the exciting range of after-school clubs and activities on offer and sign up for something new!

We can't wait to begin another exciting year of pupil leadership, new ideas, and opportunities for every child to play an active role in school life.

🌞 Wishing all of our families a wonderful, safe, and relaxing summer holiday. We look forward to welcoming everyone back in September!

What We've Achieved

👔 Interviews - We have taken part in four interview panels and are really proud to have represented all the pupils in our school. We're pleased to say that our views were taken into account by the Senior Leadership Team when making their final decisions.

- one to help select our new Head Boy and Head Girl.

- one to help select a new Safeguarding and Inclusion Support Officer.

- three to help select new Learning Support Assistants to work within our school.

🌐 Set up our own designated School Council page on ClassDojo.

🎃 Halloween Disco – took place on 4th November and was an evening of fun and spooky surprises.

🧦 Anti-Bullying Assembly – We led an assembly for the whole school on 10th November to mark Odd Socks Day, promoting kindness, respect, and inclusion.

🌺 Poppy Appeal – During our first week back, we sold poppies and related items to support the Royal British Legion in the lead-up to Remembrance Sunday.

💛 Children in Need Fundraising Day – took place on 14th November, we organised fun activities to raise money for this amazing cause.

🎄 Christmas Fayre – This had to be postponed until the New Year but was an incredible success raising over £500!

❤️ Valentines Disco - took place on 12th February and was an evening of dance, hot dogs and lovable selfies.

🎭 Comic Relief - We lead an assembly for the whole school on 20th March to explain the importance of comic relief and how our simple acts of silliness can help change lives. As a school we raised £326.66 for this great cause.

🐰 Easter Raffle - thank you to all of the people that donated raffle prizes to the school.

📋 Petitions - Our petitions were extremely successful! Out of all of the clubs that were requested by children in the school we have been able to offer all but two in the Summer Term. The others are going to be offered during the next academic year.

🧠 Mental Health Awareness Week (week beginning 11th May – same week as SATs) - We offered a number of ways to support the wellbeing of all children across school during this important week by offering lessons and resources for;

🧘 Monday – Mindfulness Monday (Breathing exercises, quiet time and relaxation),
💬 Tuesday – Talk Tuesday (Encouraging conversations, support and sharing),
💪 Wednesday – Wellbeing Wednesday (How to take care of yourself),
😊 Thursday – Thankful Thursday (Writing thank-you notes to friends/teacher/Parents and carers, and sharing things we're grateful for),
🤝 Friday – Feel Good Friday (Party in the Park).

🍎 Teacher Appreciation Week - We held an assembly on the 8th May to show our thanks and appreciation to teachers and staff in school who make a difference to us and who have had a positive impact on individual children. All the children in school voted, via a survey, on awards and these were handed to the staff during assembly.

🧁 Macmillan Cancer Support Bake Sale 3rd June - We held a fundraising event to support Macmillan Cancer Support and used it to launch Treat Tuesdays. We managed to raise an incredible £400.

🥗 Healthy Eating Week - During the week of 8-12 June each class designed a healthy smoothie during their lessons on healthy eating choices which aimed to help children understand which foods are healthy and how they can support a balanced lifestyle.

🏃 Colour Run – on the 12th June we held a Colour Run for The Rose Learning Trust Charity which this year is Winston’s Wish, a Childhood Bereavement Charity which offers free, accessible grief support to children and young people. Our generious parents all got involved and we raised over £5000 for this wonderful charity.

🏫 Winter breaktime activity in the hall – From September there will be an indoor activity offered during breaktime.

We’re proud to be making a difference and helping our school community grow stronger every day.

Below is a list of activities that our School Council have implemented in recent years.

Christmas Fayre

In 2023 and 2024 the School Council has organised a Christmas Toy Fayre. This year due to unforseen circumstances we had to postpone the fayre until the New Year. Each year, we receive a huge amount of donations from parents, family, friends and local companies which helps to make the Fayre a success and gives many of our families the opportunity to make Christmas that little bit better.

Thank you to everyone who donated toys, books and clothes. Thank you to all those who attended the event and assisted us on the day working the stalls, bringing children to parents along with all of the people who helped behind the scenes. We could not have done this without your support.

We managed to raise £500 and still have lots of items left which we are donating to Barnardo's. The School Council chose this particular charity because it helps to care for vulnerable children.

Hallam FM Cash for Kids: Wear, Share, Care

Our School Council members ran an appeal for Hallam FM Cash for Kids to help those who need it most. They were asking for donations of clothes, shoes, belts and handbags. Everything donated was clean and could be reused or recycled for further use.

The donations were collected and weighed. Owston Park raised £228 for this very important campaign.

Thank you to everyone who donated to this amazing charity that will give back to our community.

Eco Schools

Our School Council members have earned the Bronze Eco Schools award for helping to keep our school 02 by emptying recycling bins, ensuring lights are turned off if the room is empty as well as litter picking around school. We are now aiming to earn the Silver award and the Green Flag award.

As part of the 2022 and 2024 Mayoral Elections, KS2 completed an election in school. The children studied the manifestos of each party and completed the process of voting as a way to understand democracy. The majority vote was for the Green Party candidate. This ties in with the school’s ecofriendly environment that we are creating and showcases the importance of our environment to our children.

Worry Wednesday

Our School Council run a Worry Wednesday group at lunchtime on Wednesdays in the library. There is always one school councillor from each year group in there during lunch along with Mrs Spiby-Wilson. Worry Wednesday was created in 2022 to help support all of the children with any problems or worries they had. It is an opportunity for children to speak to other children about their worries and feel supported.

There is also a worry monster that lives in the library so if the children don’t want to talk to anyone they are able to write down their worries and then place them in the worry monster to give him something to eat!

The Big Battery Hunt

Owston Park School Council signed the school up to participate in the Big Battery Hunt. This is a programme to recycle batteries and help protect our environment.

There are some great prizes to be won, not only for the school that recycles the most batteries but also the pupil that recycles the most within those schools.

Any batteries must be recycled at a recycling centre and photos were sent to us at school and the big battery hunt website to help us keep account of how many batteries are being recycled.

For more information please visit www.bigbatteryhunt.co.uk

School Council

School Council 2025-2026

Our Role and Plans for the Year

Our School Council meets regularly with Mrs Spiby-Wilson to share ideas, raise important issues, and work together to make our school the best it can be. We aim to bring about positive changes that reflect the voices of all pupils.

This year, we have been completing an exciting progression plan which outlines the projects we’ll be working on and would like to start. You can find it displayed on the School Council notice board in school.

We've explored fun and inclusive ways to fundraise for the school – ideas that pupils, parents, and staff have all enjoyed and been able to get involved in.

If you have a suggestion or would like to contribute your thoughts, please visit the discussion section of our notice board – we’d love to hear from you!

What We've Been Working On

Before half term, we asked students for their opinions on a few school matters:

😄 Worry Wednesday – Should we bring it back?

🍽️ School lunches – Are you happy with the portion sizes?

🐾 School mascot – Would you like the school to have one?

What’s Coming Up

🌟 Looking Ahead to an Exciting New School Council Year! 🌟

Here's a sneak peek at what's coming up:

🎤 School Council Assembly - We'll kick off the new year with a whole-school assembly explaining what the School Council does, why it's important, and how pupils can get involved.

🗳️ Class Elections - Every class will have the opportunity to prepare speeches before voting for their new School Councillors, giving every child the chance to take part in the democratic process.

🤝 School Council Introduction Meeting - Our newly elected councillors will meet for the first time to discuss any outstanding ideas from the previous year, share their own suggestions, and begin planning for the months ahead.

💷 Planning the School Council Budget - Pupils will work together to discuss how to manage their annual budget, including planning favourite initiatives such as Treat Tuesdays and Party in the Playground.

👋 Welcome Week & New Student Buddy Programme - To help new pupils settle into school, we'll be launching our Buddy Programme—an idea suggested by our current School Council—to ensure every child feels welcomed, supported, and included from day one.

😊 'Get to Know Your Council' Campaign - Throughout September, pupils will be introduced to their new School Councillors and learn how they can share ideas, suggestions, and feedback throughout the year.

💙 Back-to-School Wellbeing Week - Returning after the summer holidays can be a big adjustment, so we'll be focusing on wellbeing, kindness, and helping everyone feel happy, confident, and ready to learn.

🎉 Freshers Day - There will be lots of opportunities for pupils to discover the exciting range of after-school clubs and activities on offer and sign up for something new!

We can't wait to begin another exciting year of pupil leadership, new ideas, and opportunities for every child to play an active role in school life.

🌞 Wishing all of our families a wonderful, safe, and relaxing summer holiday. We look forward to welcoming everyone back in September!

What We've Achieved

👔 Interviews - We have taken part in four interview panels and are really proud to have represented all the pupils in our school. We're pleased to say that our views were taken into account by the Senior Leadership Team when making their final decisions.

- one to help select our new Head Boy and Head Girl.

- one to help select a new Safeguarding and Inclusion Support Officer.

- three to help select new Learning Support Assistants to work within our school.

🌐 Set up our own designated School Council page on ClassDojo.

🎃 Halloween Disco – took place on 4th November and was an evening of fun and spooky surprises.

🧦 Anti-Bullying Assembly – We led an assembly for the whole school on 10th November to mark Odd Socks Day, promoting kindness, respect, and inclusion.

🌺 Poppy Appeal – During our first week back, we sold poppies and related items to support the Royal British Legion in the lead-up to Remembrance Sunday.

💛 Children in Need Fundraising Day – took place on 14th November, we organised fun activities to raise money for this amazing cause.

🎄 Christmas Fayre – This had to be postponed until the New Year but was an incredible success raising over £500!

❤️ Valentines Disco - took place on 12th February and was an evening of dance, hot dogs and lovable selfies.

🎭 Comic Relief - We lead an assembly for the whole school on 20th March to explain the importance of comic relief and how our simple acts of silliness can help change lives. As a school we raised £326.66 for this great cause.

🐰 Easter Raffle - thank you to all of the people that donated raffle prizes to the school.

📋 Petitions - Our petitions were extremely successful! Out of all of the clubs that were requested by children in the school we have been able to offer all but two in the Summer Term. The others are going to be offered during the next academic year.

🧠 Mental Health Awareness Week (week beginning 11th May – same week as SATs) - We offered a number of ways to support the wellbeing of all children across school during this important week by offering lessons and resources for;

🧘 Monday – Mindfulness Monday (Breathing exercises, quiet time and relaxation),

💬 Tuesday – Talk Tuesday (Encouraging conversations, support and sharing),

💪 Wednesday – Wellbeing Wednesday (How to take care of yourself),

😊 Thursday – Thankful Thursday (Writing thank-you notes to friends/teacher/Parents and carers, and sharing things we're grateful for),

🤝 Friday – Feel Good Friday (Party in the Park).

🧁 Macmillan Cancer Support Bake Sale 3rd June - We held a fundraising event to support Macmillan Cancer Support and used it to launch Treat Tuesdays. We managed to raise an incredible £400.

🥗 Healthy Eating Week - During the week of 8-12 June each class designed a healthy smoothie during their lessons on healthy eating choices which aimed to help children understand which foods are healthy and how they can support a balanced lifestyle.

🏫 Winter breaktime activity in the hall – From September there will be an indoor activity offered during breaktime.

We’re proud to be making a difference and helping our school community grow stronger every day.

Below is a list of activities that our School Council have implemented in recent years.

Christmas Fayre

Thank you to everyone who donated toys, books and clothes. Thank you to all those who attended the event and assisted us on the day working the stalls, bringing children to parents along with all of the people who helped behind the scenes. We could not have done this without your support.

We managed to raise £500 and still have lots of items left which we are donating to Barnardo's. The School Council chose this particular charity because it helps to care for vulnerable children.

Hallam FM Cash for Kids: Wear, Share, Care

Our School Council members ran an appeal for Hallam FM Cash for Kids to help those who need it most. They were asking for donations of clothes, shoes, belts and handbags. Everything donated was clean and could be reused or recycled for further use.

The donations were collected and weighed. Owston Park raised £228 for this very important campaign.

Thank you to everyone who donated to this amazing charity that will give back to our community.

Our School Council members have earned the Bronze Eco Schools award for helping to keep our school 02 by emptying recycling bins, ensuring lights are turned off if the room is empty as well as litter picking around school. We are now aiming to earn the Silver award and the Green Flag award.

Worry Wednesday

There is also a worry monster that lives in the library so if the children don’t want to talk to anyone they are able to write down their worries and then place them in the worry monster to give him something to eat!

The Big Battery Hunt

Owston Park School Council signed the school up to participate in the Big Battery Hunt. This is a programme to recycle batteries and help protect our environment.

There are some great prizes to be won, not only for the school that recycles the most batteries but also the pupil that recycles the most within those schools.

Any batteries must be recycled at a recycling centre and photos were sent to us at school and the big battery hunt website to help us keep account of how many batteries are being recycled.

For more information please visit www.bigbatteryhunt.co.uk

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