Friends of West Park PTA

Welcome to FOWP PTA!

Our PTA is made up of parents from all year groups, who come together to find ways to raise money which is used directly to buy resources for the pupils of the school.

Even more than this, we are here to create and organise activities and events for all students, parents and the local community to enjoy.

Over the last year we raised a fantastic £37,300 through our events and community grant applications.

£17,050 was raised from our events, such as the Summer and Christmas Fayres, a pancake flip a thon, as well as bake sales, Disco's, Raffles, our Scarecrow trail and Christmas cards designed by the children. The year was finished off with an Outdoor Cinema screening of WONKA.

With the advice of the student council, we were able to provide trim trails for both KS1 and KS2 playgrounds.

We have also donated money to upgrading the outside school signage, we have purchased maths equipment as well as wet play games, a new school website, a book for each child in the school, delivered by Santa's elves and a brand-new home for our school Guinea pigs so that they can move between classrooms and be enjoyed by all the pupils in a safe and cosy environment.

We are also delighted to have applied for and been awarded a £10,000 Community Infrastructure Levy grant from Worthing Borough Council to build the new Rainbow Hub. This will provide a safe and dedicated smaller space for those children who find the playground overstimulating. It is also somewhere that will be used by the community groups who hold clubs and events at our school.

What's coming up?

Watch out this year as our events will be bigger and better than ever! We kicked off Feb with a sponsored pancake flipathon, involving all members of the school. March saw the long awaited return of school discos, followed by pre-loved uniform and bake sale, along with an Easter colouring competition. Over the summer months we will hold our annual Scarecrow Trail, an outdoor cinema event and, to celebrate 70 years of West Park School, our biggest and best summer fare - West Fest!

This year we are raising money for our Food Technology Project. We can't wait to hit those targets and be able to provide equipment which will develop West Park's DT/food technology provision and will be fantastic for the pupils.

How do I know what's happening and when?

To keep up to date with all our news, you can follow us on instagram @friendsofwestpark where, thanks to the wonderful support we receive from the local community, we hold regular giveaways. You can also find us on Facebook as well as every Wednesday we send out our round-up email.

How can I help?

None of this would be possible without the fantastic support that we get from you as parents, so please keep attending those events and spreading the word. We are so grateful for all of your support.

Volunteering

If you would like to help at all, we are grateful for all and any help and time volunteered. The FOWP committee is made up of busy parents, with children at the school as well as full time jobs/ businesses to run. We understand that time is precious and not everyone can commit to coming to every meeting and activity.

We have a volunteer group WhatsApp you can join to keep up to date with different jobs/ events where we need help and you can pitch in as and when it works for you.

Alternatively, if you would like to be part of the committee and help plan events, you can join as a general member at any time or apply for a named role at our annual AGM held in September.

What if I don't have any free time?

There are so many ways you can still help without giving up your time!

Ask your company/employer if they offer matched funding, or if they would be willing to be a sponsor of our events.

Are you a small business owner? A baker/hairdresser/ beautician/ window cleaner etc. you could offer your services as a raffle prize!

You can make a one-off or regular donation to FOWP which will go directly to enriching the experiences of the pupils of our school.

Why should I join the PTA?

It might be hard work at times, but seeing the excitement on the children's faces as they lined up to take a turn on the trim trail, or watching their delight at the fayre or event you put your dedication and soul into organising, certainly gives a little glow in the heart! We do it for the children. So that their time at West Park can be the most enriched and enjoyable as possible.

If you would like any more information or to come along to a meeting and see what it is all about, please contact us on westparkcofepta@gmail.com

Even more ways to support your school!

Sponsor an activity or game at the Summer or Christmas Fayre -for more details contact westparkcofepta@gmail.com

Giving Machine- simple to use when shopping online

https://www.thegivingmachine.co.uk/causes/friends-of-west-park-school

Clothes recycling - Put your unwanted clothes in the recycling in, outside the front entrance

Stikins - buy your clothing labels from here, and they will donate 30% to us

Pre loved uniform donation - if you have any good quality uniform to donate, please contact fowp.preloveduniform@gmail.com

You can also make a regular or one-off donation to FOWP using the following details:

Thanks to

FOWP would like to give a huge thank you to all of you that come along and support our events. All of this would simply not be possible without you.

We would also like to give a huge shout-out to all the generosity we receive from the local community when it comes to sponsorship and raffle prizes - we are always overwhelmed by the support we receive.

With thanks to our sponsors