Welcome to the Friends & Family of Crickhowell Primary School

Friends and Family of Crickhowell Primary School is a home-school association. Membership is automatic for all parents, guardians and/or carers of pupils currently attending the school. Also involved are members of the teaching, non-teaching and support staff presently employed by the school.

The principal objectives of the Friends and Family association are:

·       to provide a closer link between home and school: It is an excellent way to bring staff, parents and friends together socially in support of the school, working towards a common goal for the benefit of the children.

·       to fund-raise: in its time the PTA has raised thousands of pounds for equipment and resources, in addition to those provided by the local authority, to enhance our children’s education experience and the school’s facilities. Recent funds have provided outdoor play equipment, computer equipment and subsidised school trips.

·       to encourage parental involvement in other ways e.g. acting as match referees, listening to children read, volunteering to help on school outings etc.

The Friends and Family association is about much more than simply fundraising – it’s fun and can also be a great way to get to know other parents and people in the local area.

Who are we?

The Friends & Family association consists of the following Officers:

1)      Chair & Vice Chair – 

2)      Treasurer – 

3)      Secretary – 

We also have several other regular committee members.

When do we meet?

The Committee meet on a regular basis usually once or twice per term. The meetings are very informal and are either held in the school or a local pub! We need everyone to get involved in any way they can. Energy, enthusiasm and new ideas are welcome from all our members!

Annual General Meeting (AGM): Our Annual General Meeting is held at the beginning of the academic year and provides an opportunity for all parents to come along and hear in more detail about the work of the Friends, the 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 .

How do we raise money?

1)      Events

Like most PTAs, the majority of our funds are raised through the events that we run. Some of our most popular events are the Summer and Christmas Fairs, School Discos and Quiz nights.

With more support we are hoping to hold further events within the community such as a Fun Run within the grounds of the Glanusk Estate.

2)      Online shopping

It is possible for everyone to raise money for the school simply through online shopping (e.g. the weekly Asda shop or Amazon purchases)!

Easyfundraising is an entirely free service that allows us to earn cash back donations to our school once a purchase is made from certain online retailers.

Donated earnings can be anywhere up to 15%, depending on the retailer and the product that was purchased

All you need to do is log in online at http://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/ search for Crickhowell Primary School Friends and Family, add the link to your tool bar and start making us money and it won’t cost you a penny!

3)      Company matched giving

Company matched giving is very simple.  Companies or businesses pledge to donate to a charity such as ourselves an amount of money relating to the amount that an employee(s) donates or fundraises for us.  We have been helped enormously in the past by this type of donation, and there are several benefits to both ourselves and the company involved:

·       employees’ morale is boosted by having their efforts supported by their employer

·       the company benefits from having charitable donations written off against taxable profits

·       the company can endeavour to get publicity for their giving

·       our PTA benefits from receiving perhaps double what we have raised at an event

If you think that your employer has a matched giving scheme already in operation, or if you would like some more information about charity matched giving or setting up a scheme in your workplace, please talk to us, or ask in the school office.

How we spend the money we raise?

It is at our Committee meetings that the decisions on how to spend the money are agreed.

Usually Mr Francis will have a ‘wish list’ of items that the school would like the committee to consider funding. Sometimes this will be as a result of the children asking for something, (e.g. goal posts). At other times it will be for resources to improve a particular area of the curriculum (e.g. maths resources) or school environment (plants, outdoor classroom, stage curtains).  The PTA 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.

We always endeavour to spend our funds in ways that will benefit all our children across all areas of the school and curriculum. 

How can you get involved?

There are lots of ways you can help and support your child through getting involved with the Friends & Family association. 

We always welcome donations of time, money, items for sale, raffle prizes or offers of services and skills. 

Offering to help before and during 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 e.g. wrapping gifts, preparing raffle tickets etc.  We really couldn’t achieve what we do without the behind the scenes help that we receive.

Everyone is welcome to attend the committee meetings which are advertised via Schoop. If you would like to be more involved you can volunteer to be a Committee Member or you can simply support the AGM and give us your ideas for fundraising events. This is also the time to ask questions or voice your opinion.

If you are interested in helping in any way please contact us through Facebook “Crickhowell Primary School Friends and Family” or by emailing the school office.