After an action-packed first term, the Head Student Team are now looking forward to implementing more of our plans in the year ahead. With our plan to focus on specific areas (Diversity & Inclusion, Charity, Sustainability, Wellbeing and Fundraising), we want to encourage yet more positive change among students and our community. 

One of the fundamental issues is, of course, sustainability and we will be reinforcing this throughout the year by organising, amongst other things, exciting fundraisers and informative assemblies. This is not just a school issue, but a global one.  

In tandem with this, I answered the question ‘How can charity shops be used to tackle consumer culture in Britain, and how important are they in our society today?’ for my Extended Project Qualification (EPQ). This helped me realise the importance of sustainability and buying second-hand clothing from charity shops. Not only does this help support people in the local community, but also people all over the world. For example, the charity ‘Traid’ works to ‘improve conditions and working practices in the textiles industry.’ 

Writing this EPQ has really inspired me within my role in the Head Student Team and beyond, allowing me to focus on making more sustainable choices, as well as attempting to help my local community. I have been volunteering at St. Christopher’s Hospice charity shop every weekend, which has taught me a lot about the working in retail as well as many other skills.  I was also a key coordinator for the preloved clothing sale which raised over £500 for the Disasters Emergency Committee (specifically for the Turkey Syria Earthquake appeal).  This sale was ideal for making sustainable shopping accessible to students, as well as encouraging everyone to bag themselves a bargain and have fun in the process! Hopefully this event has encouraged more students to shop second-hand regularly and is an event we hope will run for many years to come. 

In preparation for next year, we have come up with plenty of ideas to promote sustainability within our school. One of these ideas is having a Sustainability Week, which also doubles as a House competition. For this event, students will be able to document and complete tasks that they feel has benefitted the environment, for example cycling to school instead of taking the bus. Along with this, we could even look to organise an upcycling workshop and fashion show. The sky’s the limit! 

Written by Lara, Year 12, Head Student Team