This council is made up of eight Year 6 members. Four pupils are voted for by the pupils in the Year 6 cohort and four pupils are chosen by the staff in the School Leadership team. Each candidate writes a letter of application in response to an advert. They then perform a speech to explain why they are a good person for the job and what they could contribute to the school community if elected. Year 6 Children then do an anonymous vote, demonstrating democracy in action. SLT discuss whom they recommend for the position and a vote is taken. Successful candidates are announced in classes and in the school newsletter.Being on the Executive Council is a role which is held in high esteem and is evident by the wearing of a blue shield badge so all know who these are, so they can approach them with any ideas or concerns. Each Executive Council member has a role within the committee: Chairperson, Vice Chairperson, 2x Treasurer, 2x Secretary, 2x PR. Executive Council also help with tasks which help with the running of the school. Outcomes of meetings are fed back to the school in assemblies and to the Local Governing Board. This Council is overseen by Mrs Davies.
Our School Council are chosen by a class vote. Each class has two representatives. Each class has a School Council book in which they record class items they wish their representatives to bring to the School Council meetings. Being a School Council representative is a role which is held in high esteem and is evident by the wearing of a red School Council badge for all to see. Meetings are held each half term. following the rules of a real council i.e. chairperson and only speaking when asked etc. The class representatives bring ideas, issues and requests from their class, referring to their School Council notebooks.Executive Council sometimes lead these meetings alongside Mrs Davies. The impact of this council is powerful as children can see things from a child's view and identify problems, issues and ideas which are real to them within their school. All ideas are taken seriously and given time is allocated for Executive Council to ponder before responding.School Council reps also meet with relevant staff to discuss e.g. the kitchen staff regarding new menu choices, the business manager regarding more glue sticks, the playground supervisor regarding new equipment. School Council assemblies are held when needed, when representatives give feedback to all children about current ideas and solutions.
Lunchtimes at Redhill Academy are happy, enjoyable and safe for children. The children engage in a range of activities as well as enjoying time to play with their friends. Our Playground Friends are a pupil voice group who we recruit at the start of every year. Children from Years 1-6 can apply by writing a letter explaining why they would make a good playground friend. We have a rota system in place, where each day the children take turns to instigate playground games, encourage children to engage in activities, or to provide an ear if anyone needs a chat or some support. All of this helps to ensure that all children have a calm and happy playtime. This year, we are relaunching the activities carried out by the Playground Friends with the help of an outside agency, Bedazzle. They are strong advocates for positive mental health and well-being for children which is has been a key area which has been further developed by the academy over the past few years. We are excited to put into place the new ideas and to continue ensuring that playtimes at Redhill Academy are a positive, engaging experience for all our children.
Junior Road Safety Officers (JRSO) Children in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 apply for this role by filling out an application form and write a letter of application to Mrs Kirkpatrick. In this, they indicate what difference they can make to raising awareness of safety. As part of their role they promote safety in assemblies e.g. what to wear when riding a bike, crossing the road etc. They attend local and national networks and have thought of ways of promoting travel safety.
This is led by the Junior Road Safety Officers to promote all aspects of travel e.g Walk to School week. The focus of this group is to encourage children to lead a healthier lifestyle and to promote safety awareness in the community.
As a Fairtrade Achiever School, we have a dedicated Fairtrade Committee which meets to discuss how we can raise awareness of what Fairtrade means to the farmers in this country and globally. Children from any year group in Key Stage Two can apply for a position on this committee by letter of application to Miss Dhillon. We now have a very big committee of enthusiastic children. The Committee runs events and stalls every term e.g. in the summer fayre, Christmas fayre and during Fairtrade Fortnight. The Committee welcome guest speakers to speak about Fairtrade and write flyers to promote fair trade products to hand out.
Our S.A.F.E committee (Safe and Friendly Environments) are a group of eight, years 5 and 6 children who are chosen by class teachers and Miss Dhillon (PSHCE lead) for their empathetic and sensible nature. Parents are informed by 'phone call due to the sensitive nature of some of the task then sign a letter to give permission for their child to be part of this. Miss Dhillon trains this group in counselling skills and works with them on safeguarding issues. A safeguarding suitcase has been set up so all children can post their worries on a slip and this is then responded to by the committee or Miss Dhillon depending on the nature of the worry. S.A.F.E deliver assemblies; eg PANTS, and write Top Tips for classroom display on safeguarding themes. S.A.F.E committee is identified by their green bar badges in school and S.A.F.E caps which they wear in the playground.
Year 5 and 6 apply in writing to Mrs Davies to be a librarian. We have Senior Librarian and Librarians positions. They work on a timetable to man the library checking and tidying the library, reporting damage, signing out books to different year groups and reading to the younger children. Our librarians can be identified by their green shield badges.
Applicants from Year 3,4,5,6 apply to Mrs Whiting to be a member of The Music Council. They are responsible on a timetable to operate the music and put on the computer in the assemblies, tidy instruments and to arrange musical events..
Applicants apply to Miss Kibble (E Safety Co-ordinator) to be part of the committee, stating why they should be chosen. They produce leaflets and flyers to give to all children promoting subjects such as: e safety, online bullying etc. They meet regularly to discuss actions, resources and ideas. The committee lead assemblies during special awareness events e.g. E Safety Week.
Children from Key Stage Two can apply to be an Eco-Warrior by sending their expression of interest to Mr Hodgkison. The children who join this group are responsible for ensuring the school environment both inside and out are aligned with our commitment to sustainability. They meet to discuss how keep our environment as lovely as possible and deliver assemblies about key messages e.g. conserving water on World Water Day.
The No Outsiders group work on embedding the protected characteristics throughout the school, ensuring that everyone is treated fairly and respected no matter who they are. They ensure that Redhill is known as a school where everyone is welcome. They regularly present assemblies and speak to visitors about the work of the No Outsiders group.
By Charlotte Bentley | Telford | Education | Published: Oct 25, 2019
School children from Telford learnt the value of gardening as they took part in a 'little daffodil' scheme.
Lakeside Plant Centre in Priorslee has launched a scheme which offers children the chance to get green fingered as they can plant daffodils in their own plant pot and take them home to see how they grow.
The 'Eco-Warriors' from Redhill Primary Academy attended the plant centre on Tuesday to learn about gardening from experts who encouraged them to think sustainably. Lydia Cartwright, Deputy Headteacher at Redhill Primary School, said: "We have a range of pupil groups here at Redhill. The Eco-Warriors are our newest pupil voice group. They are responsible for supporting the school in being as sustainable and eco-friendly as possible.
"They lead assemblies promoting recycling and saving of energy. They will be soon launching a special project which the school will be undertaking with the British Ironwork Centre in Oswestry.
"We feel that it is great to support the local community in whichever way we can and when Lakeside offered us the opportunity to be involved we couldn’t refuse."The children were incredibly excited to be involved and loved every minute. The visit this afternoon reinforced the children’s learning around plants and helped them apply their knowledge in a real life context. "We were very honoured to be asked to take part in such an activity which will inevitably support a worthy cause."The scheme will launch in October half term when any child can pop in and get themselves a free daffodil bulb and personalised pot to take home and plant.It is in conjunction with Lakeside's bulb supplier, Taylor's Bulbs. Through buying the bulbs, Lakeside have given a donation to the Green Fingers charity which helps to create gardens for children's hospices. Children will be able to plant the flowers in the coming winter months to then watch them grow in spring time.
By Mat Growcott | Telford | School events | Published: Oct 25, 2019
School children in Telford were given a 'blooming' delight when a new secret garden was unveiled by a special guest.
Redhill Primary Academy, in Priorslee, unveiled their new garden at a special assembly with the help of Mr Bloom, of CBeebies Mr Bloom's Nursery fame, to the delight and surprise of the children, who had no idea the garden had been renovated. Alongside the children, many of the teachers had been kept in the dark about the project. The garden has been named the Groves Garden in memory of Mr Groves, a founding member of the Ironbridge Lions, who loved gardens and died in October 2017. The school has supported the Lions over the past few years with various charitable donations.The restoration was carried out by Redrow Homes Midlands, which transformed the unused, overgrown land into the new garden.Mr Bloom said: “This is going to be a very special place for the children and for the local environment to enjoy and thrive in. I’d love to come back soon and see what animals have settled in.”Mrs Cartwright, deputy headteacher at Redhill Primary Academy, said: “I was delighted when Redrow offered to help bring the garden to life, especially as the ground has been derelict and unused for years. We now have a wonderful area where our children can play and learn.”Pauline Turnbull, sales director for Redrow Homes Midlands, said: “We’re so pleased to have been able to help our neighbour Redhill Primary Academy with this project. Nature is so important, and it is especially vital we teach the next generation to love and care for it."There was a lot of thought that went into making the garden, including using recycled materials, and we’re delighted with how it turned out."
The Eco-Warriors announced in a recent assembly a unique recycling opportunity which we will be completing in conjunction with the British Ironwork Centre in Oswestry. The project aims to educate children about the importance of protecting our planet whilst inspiring them to think both innovatively and creatively in order to help make important environmental changes.On Monday 9th December 2019, we will receive one of the Ironwork’s six colourful giraffe sculptures to fill with either plastic or metal bottle tops right until the end of the term. We are still considering a suitable location within our school grounds for the giraffe live for the three weeks they are staying with us. The Ironworks has chosen the giraffe to symbolise this project as they have recently been reported to have joined the list of endangered species. It’s a common misconception that animals like the giraffe are still in great abundance, but so many across the globe are facing issues that many people aren’t even aware of. We are so excited to see the numbers of bottle tops that our children can collect over the next few weeks in order to fill the giraffe as high as possible!