School Council
Our School Council's Visit to London
On Thursday 21st September, Parkfield's new school councillors went on trip to London. Here we visited many famous landmarks including Buckingham Palace, Wellington Barracks, St James's Park and 10 Downing Street. We also had an amazing tour around the Houses of Parliament, where we got to walk around the House of Commons and the House of Lords. We then had a workshop about how democrarcy works and how it has evolved in the UK. To finish our visit, we then had a tour of Westminster Abbey (where the royals get married and where many kings and queens are buried, such as Queen Elizabeth I). It was a really long day for the children and the teachers, but we had an amazing time. Please view the video below to see some of the photos of our visit.
What does a School Council do?
At Parkfield Community School, our School Council represents the children in each of our classes. The Councillors have been elected by their classmates, to best express the views and issues that arise in day-to-day school life. The School Councillor’s role is to express the views of fellow classmates and to discuss ideas that have been raised.
In our school council meetings we discuss ways of making Parkfield School a better place to be. After a school council meeting it is our job to feedback to our class and teachers.
Sometimes guests are invited to our meetings so that they can listen to ideas and suggestions from Parkfield's Pupils. At times we are given questions to ask and discuss, and then we share these with our class. We write important things down in our special School Council book and take the book to every meeting.
At Parkfield School, we hope we are helping to develop life skills. We believe that by contributing their views and expressing their feelings, pupils will be able to voice opinions and find solutions to everyday problems as they grow up.
Our School Council realise the role they have is an extremely important one and that they need to try and be a good role-model for their classmates. Therefore it is very important that we always try our best to make good choices and do our best in our learning.
School Council 2017/2018
3DM Tayyibah Hussain
3DM Haris Hussain
3ST Zam Zam Abiib
3ST Ayaan Ali
3T Ali Hussain
3T Safiya Mahamed
3W Fatima Shahzad
3W Aayan Habib
4FM Maryam Abdullahi
4FM Rafat Gillani
4M Rayyan Mahmood
4M Anisah Begum
4O Selina Asif
4O Zeeshan Mohammed
5B Komal Shamim
5B Amna Bibi
5C Reyaan Majid
5C Aaliyah Grittner
5L Ibrahim Ishfaq
5L Daniyal Hussain
6B Ayuub Abdulrahman
6B Zakariya Yasin
6E Ibtesham Sharif
6E Najma Abdullahi
6O Sanah Ahmed
6O Shucayb Warsame
Key roles within our School Council
Chair Person
My name is Amna. I am in Year 5. I was very pleased when I found out I won the election to become the Chair Person to our School Council. It was very close! I am looking forward to my new role as I love meeting new people and working on new projects. I know that we have to work well as a team and I look forward to working with the Vice Chair Person as well as the rest of the School Council and Miss Arif to make our school even better. I will be confident in meetings and with visitors to our school.
Vice Chair Person
My name is Sanah and I am a pupil in Year 6. I was so happy when I found out I got the role of Vice Chair Person to our School Council. I am looking forward to working with Amna, sharing ideas and supporting her to make our School a happier place for everyone. My goal is to develop my confidence while speaking to other children and staff.
Clerk
My name is Zeeshan. I am in Year 4. I was chosen to be the Clerk to the School Council. I think I was chosen because in my written speech I said I am quick at taking notes and good at remembering things. A clerk is like a secretary. I will take notes in the meetings and then Miss Arif can type them up for the school website. I am excited about my new role and being on the School Council.
Promotional Officer(s)
My name is Ayuub. I am in Year 6. I was excited when Miss Arif told us about this new role. I will work with Reyaan to promote the School Council. We can do this on the school website and when we have any events coming up; we will advertise them around school. We have to make sure the website looks appealing.
My name is Reyaan and I am in Year 5. I am looking forward to working with Ayuub as Promotions Officer to our School Council. It is exciting as nobody has done this role at Parkfield before. I will try my best to make the school a better place. We can help with the School Council section on the school’s website and advertise any upcoming events too.
A photo showing our School Council hard at work preparing for their no parking at the front of the school campaign. Read below for more information about this.
Our School Council's Road Safety Campaign
We are really concerned about parking at our school. As part of our school council meetings, we have been discussing what we can do about this. So far we have created a letter for parents, leaflets that we are going to give to parents, a new Parkfield Road Safety Policy, posters and a banner that we are going to use in our compaign.
OUR SCHOOL COUNCIL FUNDRAISE FOR HADRIAN SCHOOL
The School Councillors were extremely upset to hear about Hadrian School (a special school in Newcastle) being vandalised. They decided that we needed to raise money to help the children replace their damaged equipment. A vote took place, and it was decided that a ‘Non-Uniform Day’ would be the best way to achieve this. The councillors worked in groups to write a letter to parents/carers.
We raised £530 for Hadrian School!
FUNDRAISING FOR A DEFIBRILLATOR
Our School Council wanted to raise money for a defibrillator for our school. A defibrillator restarts the heart if it stops working. The councillors felt it would be a valuable asset and could be used on children and adults at school; as well as anyone that may need it in the local community. We all hope it never has to be used, but it was a fantastic idea that was thought of by the School Council. After discussing in groups, it was decided that we would have ‘Non-Uniform Day’ as well as cake sale to raise money for this.
We raised £1,197 for our defibrillator campaign!
SCHOOL DINNERS
We spoke to our classes about what they thought about school dinners; here are some things that came up a few times:
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More lasagne type dishes.
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Being allowed to have squash as well as water.
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Packed lunch children to also be allowed treats on the day school dinner children have theirs.
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* Jelly and ice-cream as dessert
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* Portions too small. Children sometimes are still feeling hungry.
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* Some dinner ladies shout and are not very helpful.
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* We are told be silent and are not allowed to even talk in a quiet voice to each other.
The chef and Belinda (Head Cook) talked to the councillors about each issue raised. Mr Moffat was also there.
* More lasagne dishes the kitchen can provide.
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* Mr Moffat will talk to Mr Williams, but squash is not as healthy as water.
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* Mr Moffat suggested children have a school dinner on treat day so they can also have a treat.
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* Jelly and ice-cream can be served once in a while as a treat.
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* Children are allowed to ask for more food when they are at the counter-but not allowed to have seconds.
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* Mr Moffat, the chef and Belinda were concerned that children felt some dinner supervisors were shouting at them. Mr Moffat has asked for a copy of the concerns and will bring them up with the LTS when he next meets with them.
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* There is no reason why children should have to eat silently. As long as they are not shouting, talking quietly is fine. The LTS will be told this by Mr Moffat.
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The councillors were satisfied with the meeting. Miss Arif will print out a copy for each class so all children know what was discussed.
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OUR VISIT TO KNINGSBURY WATER PARK
On Monday 9th July 2018, our School Council, accompanied by Miss Arif and Miss Smith, went on a trip to Kingsbury Water Park. This was a reward for the children who have worked extremely hard this year in their role as school councillors. The road safety campaign, the defibrillator campaign, raising money for Hadrian Special School and the Dinner Project have all been handled well by the School Council. Miss Arif, Mr Williams and all the staff are very proud of their achievements and so this trip was organised as a ‘thank you’.
We had a great time walking around the park enjoying the scenery. We saw birds and other insects. We loved seeing the Canadian Geese! After that, we enjoyed playing on the play equipment. Just before we came back to school, we all had an ice-cream which was thoroughly enjoyed due to the hot weather. :)
THANK YOU
As we approach the end of the academic year, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the School Council for all their hard work and effort this year. It has been one of the most successful years in terms of projects. The road safety, Hadrian Special School, defibrillator and school dinner projects have all been immensely successful. The School Council have been instrumental in bringing positive changes to Parkfield Community School.
The road safety campaign resulted in banners at the front and back of school. We raised £530 for Hadrian School after it was vandalised. We raised £1, 197 to buy a defibrillator for our school and local community. (A defibrillator helps to restart the heart if it stops working.) The School Council met with The Chef and Head Cook to discuss what their classes felt about school dinners. As a result, there will be a different menu and Mr Moffat (AHT) will meet with the Lunchtime Supervisors to discuss concerns raised.
I would also like to thank Parents/Carers, staff members and families for their support. It has been a pleasure working with the School Council this year. I would like to wish them the best of luck for next year and a happy and safe summer break to all.
Miss Arif (School Council Lead)
Minutes of Meetings
Please click on the links below to see the minutes of our last meetings.