The Friends of Horsmonden Primary Academy (FoHPS)
All parents and guardians of children who attend our school are automatically members of the FoHPS or Friends Association. Kerry Clark and Gemma O’Malley are currently the joint Chairs and the Treasurer is Tracy Belton.
Other committee members are: Sam Watson, Hannah Baxter-Smith, Charlotte Bellingham, Stephanie Currall and Olivia Pullen.
FoHPS is run by a committee made up of teachers and parents who organise a variety of events throughout the school year. The events are split into two broad categories – those whose main aim is to raise funds to provide “those little extras” which help to enhance our children’s experiences at school, and those whose main aim is for the children to have fun. The committee is ably helped by class representatives – a familiar and friendly face for all the parents, helping to ensure that parents’ views and concerns are passed on to the committee.
In all the events carried out we rely on an immense amount of support from all parents – and it is this valuable support which has helped to make our events such a success in the past. If you are interested in getting more involved with FoHPS, please speak with your class rep or with any member of the committee – we are always ready to welcome new members. If you have a great fund-raising idea which you’d like to pass on, please email us fohpsinfo@gmail.com!
FoHPS Protocols for Events
At the start
- Door to be locked prior to start time so we can set up the event without having to mind children who arrive early.
- All volunteers and volunteers’ children to be signed in so that we know who is here, for Health & Safety reasons.
- Volunteers asked to arrive 10 minutes before start time so that adults are in place right from the start to ensure children are safe throughout, and so they can be briefed if necessary.
- No ticket sales on the night; places are not transferable. This is so we can make sure that we have sufficient adults to supervise the children, and so that we can make up registers of attendees beforehand – in case we need to evacuate the building.
- Only children who have tickets and who attend Horsmonden Primary Academy to attend events. No pre-schoolers allowed. This is so we can ensure we have the right ratio of adults to children in order to run the event safely.
- Parents not allowed into the hall before/during the event unless signed in as volunteers, so that we always know who is in the building during our events.
- For discos – the price will be an inclusive cost to include a party bag on arrival (sweets, crisps, token for glowstick and tattoo). This is so that children do not risk losing their money or have to worry about where to keep their money. This is also to lessen the time they spend queuing for sweets, and to make our discos healthier for some children! It enables a clear, known cost for parents for the event and ensures that sweets are not sold to younger children at inflated prices.
During event
- Unlimited drinks will be available throughout, free of charge to ensure the children keep hydrated properly.
- Children can trade in a token for a glowstick and for a tattoo. Everyone gets the same, but they can choose the colour or design.
- Fire evacuation procedure same as school evacuation procedure (into playground in classes). The process is familiar to the children who will follow a known routine in the event of an emergency.
- A register of attendees will be kept up-to-date if people leave early, so we always know who is in the building during our events.
After event
- Children will gather in their year groups and will be asked to sit down. Parents collect from year groups, and sign register upon collection. This is so children can be collected in an orderly way, and so we know which child has left with whom.
- There will be a volunteer on the door to prevent children leaving without an adult.
- There will be a volunteer register at the door, so that volunteers can sign out as they leave.