With Autumn Term in the books, and an interesting Spring Term already underway, we wanted to take some time and reflect on all the things that have happened in the past few months here at Smart School Councils.
When schools returned at the beginning of last term, there was a lot of uncertainty. Educators across the country were trying to find the best, and safest, way to bring students back into the classroom. September and October were very stressful times in schools, and a very stressful time for teachers and students as they adjusted to this new normal. The adjustments made in schools was truly a testament to the adaptability of teachers and the resilience of young people.
At Smart School Councils, Autumn Term was huge in terms of our growth as a charity. We’ve tried our hardest to distill the big changes here and also highlight some of the amazing things our member schools have done over the course of the term, as well as taking a look forward to what this term is going to entail. So without further ado, here’s our Autumn Term in review 😊
- Sixty-four (64!) new schools joined our programme and launched last term! The pupil voice revolution is well underway across the country!
- We launched a brand-new version of Home Debate Club! We made it so Home Debate Club was no longer a live event, but rather one that young people can participate in whenever suits them over the course of the week. This allowed those who wouldn’t have been able to get involved under the old version to flex their debating skills and take part in a national discussion!
- Our team grew! The Smart School Councils team went up by one - as Kyla (that’s me!) joined on as Membership Manager. Kyla acts as the first point of call for all our members and helps deliver various aspects of our different programmes. We also welcomed two interns in December from the University of Notre Dame. Jack and Megan are helping in such fundamental ways here at Smart School Councils. We can’t wait to share details of their work with you soon!
- We launched our new Team London Young Ambassadors (TLYA) programme! We’ve partnered with Volunteering Matters and the Mayor of London to bring about a new programme supporting pupils in Alternative Provision, Pupil Referral Units, and Special Education Needs schools. It will support pupils to develop youth social action projects to drive change in their lives, inform system change and address inequalities through the power of their voice.
There were five schools who rose above the rest, holding near weekly Class Meetings to engage their pupils and ensure that each was being heard. Our top schools of the term were:
- Valence Primary - 15 Class Meetings
- Lime Academy Larkswood - 14 Class Meetings
- Hardwick Green Primary Academy - 13 Class Meetings
- Bronte Girl Academy - 13 Class Meetings
- Danecourt School - 12 Class Meetings
Our members were super active last term - with over 500 Class Meetings held during the term! Talk about involving every voice! Class Meetings this past term covered plenty of different topics, from health and safety during the pandemic, to school improvement questions, and everything in between. Our members covered a lot of ground. It was difficult to narrow down our favourite questions, so after much thought we decided to highlight these:
- How can we support each other in school? - St Gregory's Catholic Primary School
- During 'lockdown' you all spent lots of time learning at home. Thinking carefully about the different work you were set by your teachers, which of these did you find most helpful? - Julian's Primary School
- Which mindfulness activity do you like to use the most to support your wellbeing? - Sankey Valley St James CE Primary School
- Playtime activities need to be redesigned due to the current situation. What do you think should happen? - Blackheath Prep
- What most concerns you about there being 'high expectations' of you? - SHSG Student Voice
What we would have given to be flies on the wall while pupils discussed these! We especially liked to see schools ask wellbeing questions, and questions which asked pupils to reflect on their school experiences which have been so different this past year!
Twitter provided a great way for us to see how our member schools were supporting pupil voice during the term, and really showcased the amazing things pupils are doing around the nation to lead change within their schools and communities! Again, it was tough to narrow down our favourites, but here are some of the best Tweets from last term:
Our Student Council homelessness action group have organised & collected 3383 items of food over December!!!! 60 hampers went to Cornerstone yesterday, the rest go today @MU_Foundation @SSCCTY @SkillsForLife @loretochorlton pic.twitter.com/WoCNPfR49A Loreto Citizens (@loretocitizens) December 16, 2020
Catch up with our Key Stage 5 pathway students in this week's blog, they've got lots to tell you#oldhamhour @pointsend @HawthornsTweets @Every1Learning @DavidLloydUK @SSCCTY pic.twitter.com/CQWIarBmCv
NEW BRIDGE GROUP (@newbridgegroup) December 13, 2020
This week’s class council meeting has really sparked a debate in 6OH 🤔@SSCCTY @HGPAMrsVernon pic.twitter.com/jJD06zAJzs HGPAMissHenderson (@HGPAMsHenderson) November 3, 2020
The SSCCT recorded their podcast this morning - there was definitely some clear political views on display and as usual we had a great laugh with some warm beverages! (I even managed to spill mine it was so exciting!) I’ll be busy editing it over the weekend 🎤@SSCCTY pic.twitter.com/G83pH2j91i Woodheysprimary (@woodheysprimary) October 15, 2020
Today, our Year 6 School Council representatives met to discuss their first project. They will be contacting the other members of the School Council (virtually) to discuss this further and make decisions. Watch this space for further information😊 @SSCCTY @Broadoak_PS #PupilVoice pic.twitter.com/ZRTlCbufim BroadoakPupilVoice (@BroadoakPupil) October 14, 2020
Here’s a bonus we couldn’t leave out :
Our y7 Student Council BLM action group have produced posters of inspirational British people of colour, to move away from the focus being in October to all year around @SkillsForLife @SSCCTY @loretochorlton @mcrhealthysch @mycthehive pic.twitter.com/BqGpmw12bN Loreto Citizens (@loretocitizens) December 16, 2020
This term has started off in a far cry from what we’re sure anyone wanted. Going back into a lockdown and schools around the nation closing to help stop the spread of the virus presents a lot of challenges. We still remain committed to supporting pupil voice even while in lockdown. We’re working closely with our amazing members to ensure that when schools reopen Smart School Council programmes are ready to re-launch stronger than ever. We’ve also got a great CPD series planned to support this. We’re also taking this time to grow our membership and reach out to schools and teachers who are looking for a better way to run their school councils.
Home Debate Club will also be going strong throughout the term to bring debate and discussion to homes around the country. Each week a new, topical debate will be posted. We’ve worked hard to make the Home Debate Club experience better than ever before and are excited to see that within the first day of launching our new format that over 500 young people and their families have already taken part!
Like all of you, we’re hoping for a swift return to schools being open after half-term, but until we can return to schools safely our whole team is here to support pupil voice and support educators during this time and beyond. 2020/2021 has been a school year of ups and downs, but one thing we are for certain is that we will all get through this together.
Thank you for an amazing Autumn term - the best of the 2020/2021 school year is yet to come. Stay safe, stay healthy, and stay connected ☺