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    • Pupil Leadership

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    Pupil Leadership

    We want pupils to play an active and positive role in all aspects of school life, where children take on key leadership roles and ensure that their voices and opinions are heard and valued.

    We believe that all pupils should be given the opportunity to lead an initiative or hold a position of responsibility that impacts the school, so we offer a wide range of leadership roles.

    The pupils of Mary Dean's C of E Primary School can be part of the following pupil leadership initiatives:

    • Digital Leaders
    • Lunchtime Monitors
    • School Council
    • House Captains
    • Sports Leaders
    • Eco Warriors

    Each area of leadership has a linked teacher who works closely with the pupils to develop new projects, arrange events and help the children to contribute to the voice and vision of our school. We are actively moulding our pupils to be proactive citizens.

    Mary Dean’s School Council

    Our council is made up of children from Year 1 to Year 6. Our Chair speaks with Reception children in the summer term to inform them of what it is we do, ready for their input in year 1.

    After nominations and successful campaigning, our new members are announced in September. School Council elections form an important part of our school democratic process.

    Responsibilities of the elected members are:

    • To be positive role models in all areas of the school
    • To share their thoughts openly and honestly, whilst being respectful
    • To give feedback to their classes 
    • To share the ideas from their class with the council
    • To help make positive changes to the school

    Achievements/responsibilities include:

    • Organising fundraising activities 
    • Responsibility for improving the school grounds and curriculum for the children in school
    • Being involved in staff recruitment
    • Supporting events at school 

    House and Deputy Captains

    All pupils at Mary Dean's represent one of our four houses -Apple, Pear, Cherry and Plum - and earn points for their house by demonstrating outstanding learning behaviours, competing and by serving the school community. 

    As part of our Pupil Leadership offer, we believe that children need to experience the duties and responsibilities that come with being a member of a community in order to help them prepare to play an active role as citizens in the wider world.

    At Mary Dean's, the role of the House Captain is very important to the day-to-day organisation of our school. Only our Year 6 pupils are allowed to apply for the position of House and Deputy Captain as we believe they demonstrate the maturity and responsible attitude needed to fulfil the role. They are more than just a title and badge –they are role-models for our school and require dedication and commitment for an entire year.

    The positions not only allow the Year 6 pupils to lead by example and demonstrate their responsibility, they also enable the younger children to learn from a good example.

    Each child in Year 6 is given the opportunity to apply for the job. They prepare a manifesto to share with the children in their House group and then those children vote in a formal election. 

    Once their application has been successful, the roles are announced in a whole school celebration assembly.

    Characteristics of House Captains:

    • Polite and well-mannered
    • Organised and committed
    •  A confident speaker
    • Well-presented in uniform and appearance
    • Able to liaise and converse with staff, peers, and the wider community
    • Desire to act responsibly and to be a role model for other students
    • Be caring, mature and honest
    • Inspirational

    We expect you:

    • To be a positive role model and ambassador for the school, demonstrating our school values.
    • To be enthusiastic and committed to the House System at Mary Dean’s C of E school.
    • To be friendly and positive with all students, particularly within your House.
    • To be part of the team of House Captains who work together to achieve success for all.

    Role Description

    Duties:

    •  Lead and support the children of your House in a variety of House competitions and whole school events.
    • Work closely with the PE department and Year 6 staff, providing ideas and support for competitions and House related activities.
    • Collect, monitor and announce House Points.
    • Attend regular meetings with key members of staff.
    • Inspire and motivate the children of your House and lead House assemblies.
    • Be an excellent role model in behaviour, attitude and dress at all times.
    • To support the dinner staff with the running of school lunch times.
    • Showing visitors around the school.

    Year 6 Monitors 

    In Year 6, everyone is expected to take on a monitoring role, helping with the younger children. It is intended to help make us good citizens and role models. Roles include:

    • Library and cloakroom monitors
    • Lunchtime play buddies in Foundation and KS1
    • Lunch hall monitors
    • ICT monitors in the hall for assemblies
    • Chair and bench monitors in the hall

    The EMPOWER Group

    The EMPOWER is a group of children who have been trained by the NSPCC to evaluate PSHE lesson plans and resources.  They took part in using a numbered scale to evaluate different parts of a lesson, and shared their feedback on what they thought was good, and what could be improved further.  The EMPOWER group recently evaluated our puberty lessons, and will shortly look at our Y6 relationship lessons.  As a school, we value the pupil's voice and embed it into our provision; by listening to pupils, we are able to improve our practice.

    Sports Leaders

    Sports Leaders and Sports Captains are trained to lead PE in the school at a peer level. They are trained to lead warm ups, ensure children are completing ‘Personal Best’ competitions such as skipping and boxing. They lead a Change4Life dodgeball club at lunch time one day a week. These children also act as a school voice and help to guide and develop PE, school sport and physical activity. During a recent Sports Leaders meeting, the Sports Leaders chose the sports equipment we bought with the £1600 raised in October as sponsorship money for the event day with Paralympic athlete David Hill. They chose sports equipment to improve our break times, PE lessons and provide us with new after school clubs! In the Summer term this year, Argyle started running an archery after school club and a badminton after school club with our new equipment. Children in year 3/4 have already enjoyed using the new rainbow ribbons in their dance lessons.   The Sports Leaders, who meet with the PE Co-ordinator termly and discuss events, the curriculum and potential developments to our active school. These children act as a voice and help drive PE. Children are therefore able to voice their experience of PE in our school and influence its direction. These children have chosen to spend Sports Premium money on a bike track, climbing walls, playground markings and basketball hoops in the playground to encourage active break and lunch times. They have chosen to spend sponsorship money on archery and badminton equipment to improve the variety of after school clubs Mary Dean’s offers. Sports Leaders help the PE Coordinator to plan Sports Day and help to set up and put away equipment needed for the event. Sports Leaders are used to get out equipment for PE lessons from the PE cupboard and put them away tidily.