Pupil Voice
At Silverdale St John’s we value Pupil Voice greatly. This is a place for children and it is very important that their thoughts and opinions are heard and matter.
There are many different ways we ensure pupil voice is heard in school. First and foremost, our children contribute to the direction of their learning. Teachers encourage them to pose questions at the beginning of topics in order to find out what they want to learn about. This then forms the basis of the topic throughout each half-term.
We have an active School Council that is elected at the beginning of each school year. They help the Head Teacher evaluate the school and put forward ideas for school development. They effectively communicate the opinions of the pupils and ensure these are heard by those who need to listen! There is a box for all children to put their ideas for how to make school even better, which is checked by the school council and then feedback given to classes on decisions made after the meetings.
We also have a Worship Team which helps to develop Collective Worship. Members of this group meet regularly to discuss ideas for Worship with Mary and occasionally organise leadership. Since forming the Worship Team, members have attended a Lancashire conference for Collective Worship and have brought back some great ideas.
Four members of the Harriers’ class are chosen to represent the school in a local school Pupil Parliament. They work with children from many other schools on a range of different local, national and world wide issues. They have brought back ideas and activities into school e.g. arranging a litter pick and plastic waste challenge. They have also been involved in the very exciting project – The Eden Project North.