Parents Association
When your child joins Crabtree Infants’ School you will automatically become a member of the Crabtree Parents’ Association (PA). The PA is run jointly for the benefit of both Crabtree Infants’ and Junior Schools. The aim of the Parents’ Association is to provide social links for parents and carers and to raise money to benefit the children in the schools. Annual events include a firework display, Christmas Fair, Summer Fair along with quiz nights, dinner dances, children’s discos, plant sales, sponsored walks, fashion shows, black tie balls, etc. Money raised has been spent on a variety of items and services that benefit the children and include such things as, the transformation of the infant school library, the new climbing equipment in the back playground, the shade sail and artificial grass in the infants’ area, computers, laptops and iPads, games, equipment, books, listening centres, workshops and visiting authors.
The PA raise money to benefit the children in both the Infant and Junior Schools and have a really good time while we’re doing it! We hope that you like the sound of that and would like to get involved.
Fund Raising
Each year we organise several events, both large and small, to help us in our fund raising. Some of these are held every year; the largest being the Fireworks Display, the Christmas Fair and the Summer Fair. Other activities offered by the Committee raise less money but are geared more to promoting social links between parents and children these include Quiz Evenings and Children’s Discos and to providing a service, for instance, the sales of school uniform (in “about us” on the website) and garden plants.
As a result of the Association’s efforts, the amount of money raised for the Schools has risen to a substantial figure over the last few years. These sums are spent on a variety of items and services that benefit the children and include such things as, the transformation of the Infant School Library and Playground, the refit and automation of the Junior School Library, the cost of purchase and/or lease of computers for both schools, games equipment, books, listening centres, technical packs and the subsidising of the Schools’ Christmas celebrations, visits by authors, artists, drama and scientific groups.
Association Events
Although not cast in stone, the Committee organise the events in a regular pattern throughout the year. We start the year with a New Parents Evening (at which we introduce ourselves and our activities in a casual and informal fashion) and this is followed by the Annual General Meeting. After the October half term come two of our most demanding a profitable events, namely the Fireworks Display (of which we are inordinately proud) and the Christmas Bazaar.
Over the years we have hosted many different events throughout the school year including wine tasting, quiz nights, dinner dances, children’s discos, sponsored walks and fashion shows to name a few.
The summer term ends in a flourish with the Summer Fair. This is a great family day out and one not to be missed.
The Association Needs Parents!
All the events arranged by the Committee depend very heavily on parental help and support. We are fortunate at Crabtree that this has always been very good. However we are always looking for new volunteers to spread the load and to succeed those parents that we lose each year as their children leave the Schools. We are always open to new ideas and suggestions and for more “hands-on” help in a number of areas.
Help can cover a huge range of activities involving more or less of your time and energy. The Committee is made up of approximately twelve members and we have numerous other parents who run certain activities for us, as diverse as organising the firework display to managing the uniform sales. Periodically the Committee ask for help in respect to particular events from acting as a “bouncer” at the Children’s Discos to baking cakes and building Grottos at the Christmas Fair. Whatever your talent or interest or your business connections, however modest you deem them to be, we will be able to find a use for them!
Please do volunteer to help at our events, don’t wait to be asked and you will be greeted with enthusiasm and delight. If you wish to help in any way, please contact any member of the Committee and we look forward to seeing you at our events.
Associated Links.
