Who are the Pupil Governors?

In September 2018, we decided to change the way that the children were able to share their thoughts and opinions on how the school was run. We wanted to provide the children with a more active role in the running of the school and so we moved away from having separate school and eco councils and instead decided to create the Pupil Governors.

Our idea was that the Pupil Governors would have a more active role in the decisions that are made around the school and that they would work closely with the School Governors, therefore allowing the children greater responsibility and ownership.

In order to become a Pupil Governor, the children had to complete an application form outlining why they wanted to take on the role. They also had to decide which of the Pupil Governor teams they wanted to join and what qualities they felt they would be able to bring to that particular team.

The teams are:

• Health and Well-being
• Teaching and Learning
• Grounds and Maintenance

The response was overwhelming and we were able to choose three teams of six children from Year 2 through to Year 6. As well as the three different teams, Years 5 and 6 were also able to apply for the positions of Chair and Vice Chair of Pupil Governors. These two children would be in charge of running the meetings and also presenting to the school governors.

What do the Pupil Governors do?

When we first set up the Pupil Governors, the children decided they wanted to create a pupil SEF (Self Evaluation Form) in order to allow all children in the school the opportunity to share their thoughts and opinions about Seaside.

The form asked the children about what they felt was going well and what they would like to develop further at Seaside. After asking children to complete the questionnaire, the Pupil Governors then spent time collating and analysing this data.

From this, they were then able to think of projects which they would like to work on over the coming year. After presenting their findings to the School Governors, the children were told that they had a budget of £1000 in order to put some of their project ideas into action.

These are some of the upcoming projects that the children will be working on:

• To create a nature area at the back of the field which will be used for after school clubs as well as a learning resource.
• To design signs in order to make the roads safer during pick up and drop off times.
• To create a chill out area for those children who do not always enjoy running around outside and would prefer a quiet place that they can read a book or do some drawing.