Social Action at St Peter's

At St Peter's, we believe that education extends beyond the classroom. Integral to our curriculum is the emphasis on social action, where every year group engages in a dedicated project each academic year, led by the children themselves. This approach is not simply an extracurricular activity; it is a fundamental aspect of our school vision of 'Living life in all its fullness'.

By instilling the importance of social action in our children, we are preparing them to become empathetic leaders, proactive citizens, and advocates for change. The skills, values, and understanding they gain through these projects will not only benefit them personally but will also contribute to building a stronger, more compassionate community for everyone. Through social action, we empower our children to lead with purpose—today and in the future.

Taking part in social action has many benefits:

1. Fostering Empathy and Compassion

2. Empowerment and Leadership Skills

3. Understanding Community Dynamics

4. Developing Problem-Solving Skills

5. Promoting Collaboration and Teamwork

6. Instilling a Sense of Global Citizenship

7. Encouraging Lifelong Values and Action

Engaging in social action at a young age instils lifelong values of kindness, service, and social responsibility. By embedding these principles into their education, we aim to nurture future generations of compassionate leaders who are equipped and motivated to make a difference. The lessons learned from social action projects can inspire students to carry these values into their adult lives, ensuring they remain active, caring members of society.

2024.25

Year 5 Social Action update

Year 5 were the first class to carry out their social action project, and did so at the end of the Autumn term. As it was so close to Christmas, we wanted the gift of giving to be a central theme to our project. Here at St Peter’s School, we have volunteered at the local nursing home, Athlone House, for a number of years so already have a fabulous relationship with them. We decided as well as visiting the residents and volunteering our time, we wanted to go that extra step further to give them something a little more personal. We gathered information about some of the residents from Cynthia, a care worker and social events organiser at Athlone, where we were then able to learn a little about their lives; where they were born, their families, growing up; hobbies; and what their careers were. It was lovely to learn and discuss how different the residents lives were from one another and discover what they loved growing up. We wrote personalised letters and hand decorated them all ready to give to the residents when we met them. We spent an afternoon at Athlone house where we read our letters to the residents and their families, helped served 2pm cocktails and sang some Christmas songs, including the one we wrote and recorded with Westminster School. It was a really excellent afternoon and the children and residents alike loved chatting to each other. We left hoping to do more things this year to strengthen our bond with Athlone House and its wonderful residents.

Children at St Peter's Church of England Primary School have the opportunity to undertake the Young Leaders Award.

Young people have the power to change the world.
We’re passionate about empowering Young Leaders to transform
society and to inspire others to do the same.

The Young Leaders Award (YLA) is a leadership and character education programme designed to be delivered by teaching staff within the classroom.

St Peter's children will:

• Explore the concept of leadership
• Investigate the stories and impact of great leaders in society
• Consider the importance of serving others
• Examine how to bring transformation to communities
• Take action to ‘be the change you want to see’

On Friday 18th November we launched our Young Leaders Award Programme which we are very excited about.

Key Stage 1 children have been given a special passport and have been learning all about the importance of kindness and the positive impact it can have. The children have been talking about random acts of kindness and coming up with ideas on how they can show kindness in school, at home and within the community. Please let us know if your children show you any random acts of kindness at home. In Key stage 2 they have been looking at the qualities needed to be a good leader and have been thinking about their own character traits. Over the next few weeks they will be learning more about inspirational leaders who have made big changes in the world. They have been given a special scrap book to record all of their work.

The children are going to be working on the award every Wednesday so please ask your child what they have been getting up to.