Gusford has a PTA (Parents & Teachers Association) that helps to raise vital funds for the school. This group is called 'Friends of Gusford' (FOG).
Friends Of Gusford Committee names and roles:
Chair - Liz (Year 2)
Secretary - Laura K (Years 4 and 5)
Treasurer - Samantha C (Years 2 and 5)
Media & Communications Liaison - Helen (Year 2 and 5)
Deputy Secretary - Gemma (Reception)
Dear Parent/Guardians,
Hi everyone, I am Liz Dubbeld, the newly appointed Chair of Friends of Gusford (FoG).
I am mum to a son in year 2 at Gusford, and daughter in year 8 at Chantry. I’m very excited to have direct involvement in our school community going forward. I am relatively new to Gusford and this is my first time in a PTA role, so I hope I can keep up the great work the team has achieved so far!
Firstly, I would like to say a big thank you to Natalie Cooch for all her hard work in the last two years as the FoG Chair. I am also very lucky to have the following dedicated team to work with, three of whom have several years of experience doing this important work. I'll let them introduce themselves:
Secretary: 'Hi - I’m Laura K. My two children are currently in years 4 and 5 at Gusford. I joined the PTA as Secretary as I wanted to help raise funds for our school and also be more involved in putting on some exciting new events. Since joining we’ve put on our first summer fete and reintroduced the Christmas Fayre both of which were big successes! We LOVE hearing new ideas and seeing new faces so don’t be afraid to come along to one of our meetings and get involved!'
Treasurer: 'Hi, I’m Sam C. I have a son in year 5 and a daughter in year 2. I’m treasurer and trustee and have loved my time with FoG so far. I’m also a parent governor for the school. It’s been amazing to put on new events for the children and families, the Christmas Market and Summer Fete have definitely been the highlights. We get to see the children have fun at events, get extra resources into classes and provide funding of new experiences for the children. We are always happy to have new ideas and faces so get in touch if you’d like to join'.
Media and Communications Liaison: 'Hi, I’m Helen J. My daughter is in year 5 & my son is in year 2 at Gusford. I’m vice treasurer, trustee, head of social media & always the crazy one everyone sends to do the most random stuff. Since joining FOG I have loved watching the children enjoy all of the events we have managed to put in for them whilst also raising funds to enrich their time at school. My favourites have been the Summer fayre & the Christmas market and I’m sure there will be many more exciting activities to come. We have great fun as a team & welcome new faces to come & join in. We look forward to welcoming you to FOG.'
Deputy Secretary: 'Hi, I'm Gemma and my daughter is in reception. I have just joined the committee so this is all new to me. But I am looking forward to being a part of this in helping with events and activities to fundraise for the school and the children.'
Despite the challenges of Covid restrictions we have lots of exciting events we’d like to run over the rest of this school year and into the next one. We have started discussing and planning these (see our newsletter for more details) and we would really love for you to join us.
How do you join FoG?
We have a small committee, but we’ll always need volunteers to help organise or run events to benefit the kids, teachers and the wider school community. If you are able to help and would like to be on our contact list for meetings and volunteers let us know through our Facebook group or by sending an email to fog@gusfordprimary.net. Don't be worried about being unable to give FOG a regular commitment, any help you can offer is always gratefully received - even half an hour at one of our events is like gold! We are a friendly and fun bunch all wanting the best for our kids, and you are guaranteed to enjoy yourself and feel part of something worthwhile if you pitch in!
You can be brand new at all of this (like me) or come with loads of skills and experience. Everyone is welcome.
The minutes of the meeting electing the new committee were sent out to you all previously where we have discussed some of the activities we have planned. We are also working to make sure that the money raised to date will go to worthwhile causes and are hoping to give parents a direct voice in how we best use this money. Your opinion matters!
I am looking forward to meeting so many of you in the months to come!
All the best
Liz
