FRIENDS OF W.I.S.

H NEWSLETTER

Issue 1

Friends of W.I.S.H
Whitbourne C of E Independent School & Hub

Newsletter

1st August 2013

Watercolour by Cynthia Waterman IN THIS ISSUE

Welcome to friends of WISH

Welcome to the very first edition of the Friends of W.I.S.H newsletter! Friends of W.I.S.H is now the official name of the group that formed back in March 2013 to try and find a way of preserving a school in Whitbourne. W.I.S.H stands for Whitbourne (C of E) Independent School & Hub, and it is intended that this school will bridge the gap following closure of the existing Local Authority maintained school and the opening of a government maintained Free School. W.I.S.H. will operate as a non-fee paying independent school as everyone involved in the project passionately believes that education should be available to all and no child should be excluded on the basis of affordability. The Friends of W.I.S.H association has been set up to support the development, registration and ultimately the running of the new school. It will also provide a link between the school and the local and wider community membership of friends of W.I.S.H will be open to anyone wishing to support the association and W.I.S.H, and will be automatic for all the parents of children attending W.I.S.H. Subsequent editions of this newsletter will be delivered to members of friends of W.I.S.H only (though it may be possible to pick one up from various places e.g the village shop). If you would like to stay informed about the schools progress, please sign up to become a member. We can be contacted via email at info@friendsofwish.co.uk, on the contact page of our website www.friendsofwish.co.uk or you can do it the old fashioned way by returning the form at the end of this newsletter!

Introducing the committee

Find out more about who we are and why we are involved in the project.

Page 2

Our vision for W.I.S.H

The ethos we want to create, the opportunities we want to offer and the children we want to enable

Page 3

Events and Getting Involved

What we are planning and how you can help keep the 215 year history of a school in Whitbourne going

Page 4

**STOP PRESS!!**
A Massive thank you to everyone who came to the information & coffee morning on Saturday. We raised 141.20 An extra thank you to those who helped out on the day and donated cakes or raffle prizes. More events are being planned watch this space!

LIKE US ON FACEBOOK
https://www.facebook.com/ FriendsofWISH

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Introducing the Committee

MATTHEW BENNETT
I am a primary school teacher with a passion for the great outdoors. I enjoy a wide range of sports and studied Biology at university. I trained as a teacher in Bristol city centre and have since moved to Bromyard, living there for the last 2 years with my partner Aisling. I have a particular passion for creating things and love to share my skills and learn from others as often as possible. I have been inspired over the past few years to think about education from a different viewpoint; from that of the child and their readiness to learn. I believe that too often we are aiming to cram knowledge into our children rather than build them up with the skills and confidence to go and learn that information for themselves. If we listen to their needs, have a broad world-view ourselves and are prepared to discuss and not shy away from the big and small things, then I think education can be immersive, exciting and most-of-all inspiring. This is my aim, where I come from and what I would like to try to create

SHEENAGH DAVIS
I was born and live in Bromyard, I'm a mother of three sons and Grandmother to two year old, Noah. I started my professional life as a helper in the local playgroup, went on to gain qualifications through the Pre-School Learning Alliance to become the playgroup supervisor and ran it for seven years. In 1990 I attended Worcester University where I gained my B.Ed degree, st graduating with 1 class (Hons) and went into primary teaching. I was then invited back to Worcester University to undertake a Ph.D in Early years researching four year olds dispositions to master learning. After just two years a personal tragedy meant that I could not finish the degree and it waits to be completed! In 1999 I was invited to meet some young parents who had been part of the Youth in Bromyard project which I had helped to set up. The project was about to fold due to lack of funding but the parents were keen to carry on in some form. This was the start of Holistic Opportunities for Play and Education (H.O.P.E.) for Children and their Families. H.O.P.E. provides care, support, education and training for children, young people and their families. I am now the CEO of H.O.P.E. with a team of 47 staff and 12 regular volunteers and spend my time running the charity with a particular involvement in raising funds and developing new income streams. I see the new Whitbourne School venture as an extension of the ethos of H.O.P.E. which is to provide a place where children and their families are valued and we share together, play together, learn together and laugh together. I am interested in the new movement of schools teaching a skills based curriculum enabling children to 'learn how to learn'. The vision for the new school is to work alongside the children with their families to role model life-long learning and learning for life.

DEB WALKER
I was born and brought up in the village and have two children, aged 5 and 2. Being brought up in such a beautiful village really made me appreciate the countryside and the sense of fulfilment it can bring. I truly believe that forming a relationship with nature and becoming involved in being responsible for their surroundings can give children such a good grounding for life. I have always wanted my children to have such a relationship with the countryside, this is the main reason we chose to live in the country. This is something I would like to be continued within their education and feel very excited that this is going to possible at Whitbourne. I absolutely believe that children can learn so much more through true life experiences and these memories will remain with them for a long time. I am very supportive of each child being an individual and having their own learning patterns and having an education tailored to individual needs is very exciting and needed in an ever changing world, and something that I look forward to my children being a part of.

EMMA STAPLEY
I have recently moved to Bringsty Common from Bromyard with my husband and eighteen month old son. I am new to the group but am very excited by the proposals set for WISH, particularly the links with the local environment and community. I have taught for twelve years at primary schools in Bromyard and Malvern and look forward to using this experience to support the planning of the curriculum for the school. Prior to taking my teaching qualification I gained a degree in Countryside Management and subsequently became an Environmental Education Officer.

ANNA MARSHALL
Ive lived in Whitbourne for over 9 years, Im married and have 2 children and 2 step-children. Our two youngest have attended Whitbourne Primary School until now. I was born in Poland and lived there until 2004. I love being in the countryside, most of my childhood was spent roaming in the fields and playing outdoors with friends. I believe that children need the right environment and space to develop, and that they are all different, and should be allowed to learn at their own pace without the feeling of being left behind. Im excited to be part of the WISH team, and very grateful for this opportunity to build something really important, not only for our children, but also for the future generations.

REBECCA FINCH
I am a married and have two children. I am a full time working mother. We have recently moved our family to Whitbourne although my husband spent his childhood on the Whitbourne Hall estate and attended Whitbourne Primary School. We have both been brought up in the countryside and want nothing more than to give our children the same opportunities that we had when we were their age. We had hours of fun, worked hard and played harder. Our youngest daughter is starting reception in September.

FRIENDS OF W.I.S.H NEWSLETTER | Issue 1

ANNA ADSHEAD
I am a resident of Whitbourne and moved here 6 years ago with my husband Rob. We have a 4 year old son (who will be starting reception in September) and a 2 year old daughter. My family moved to Hong Kong when I was 2 years old, where we lived for 12 years because of this I was privileged to be educated in one of the best educational organisations in the world, as well as by some of the most creative and inspiring teachers. My mother was a primary school teacher for over 20 years. My own educational background and my mothers experiences (along with a 4 year old who has already stated that school is boring because he doesnt like to sit down!) have made me look around for an alternative to the mainstream. I am very excited about the proposals for education at Whitbourne and feel privileged to work with such an inspiring and enthusiastic team.

TRISH GARNESS
I manage a local nursery and preschool In Whitbourne, which was originally established over 45 years ago by my mother in law, we are based on a farm, with a wooded area, and orchard area, with much of our play being outdoors, I have 3 children, and have been married for 14 years. I have recently completed my early years degree in childcare, through Worcester University and completed my level 3 in childcare in 1994. I am always updating my training through the local council of Herefordshire to keep up to date with changes. I am working with WISH to help parents be more aware of the school, and invite them to take a look. We work very closely with the HOPE centre already and have done so for many years, I am very excited about the new project.

FRIENDS OF W.I.S.H NEWSLETTER | Issue 1

Fundraising & Future Events

And how you can get involved!
Right now, the most pressing need for the association is to get the funds in place to be able to open in September and keep the school running for at least two years. We have been offered a considerable sum as a start up grant (more about this in the next edition I hope!) which will enable us to get W.I.S.H started, but we will need additional funding in order to be able to maintain the school. We would love some of this funding to come from personal contributions from the community. We have already had several pledges of financial support, for which we are extremely grateful, but we need more! Not only will this help sustain the school in the longer term, but it will also effectively illustrate the communitys commitment and desire to keep a school in the village. A regular donation of 10 per month from 50 people would be better in this regard than the equivalent 6000 as a one off donation from a single individual (though if anyone was in the position to offer this we would hardly refuse it!!) With this in mind we have decided to offer an advanced level of membership of Friends of WISH for everyone who is prepared to support the association with a regular monthly or one-off donation. This will give these individuals a discount for any of the events we organize and also the right to vote on how the Friends of WISH funds are spent on the school. We will be organizing a variety of events over the next few months. On Thursday this week we had a childrens activity day down at the school allotment site and on Saturday we are holding an Information & coffee morning at 10am. We hope that everyone who has an interest in the village school will come along and show their

Friends of W.I.S.H
Whitbourne C of E Independent School & Hub

Watch this space for more fund raising events If youd like to hold an event for us please contact Deb Walker Via info@friendsofwish.co.uk

support. There will be plenty of delicious cakes to eat, activities for the children, a raffle and members of the committee will be available to discuss the plans for the school. For anyone who would like to support the school by donating either time or money, there will be details of how they can do this.

BUY A LIMITED EDITION SIGNED PRINT AND HELP RAISE FUNDS FOR THE SCHOOL!!
The beautiful watercolour painting of the school that features on the front page of the newsletter is by local artist Cynthia Waterman. Cynthia has kindly offered to do a limited edition print run of her painting, with proceeds going towards W.I.S.H. There will be the opportunity to buy both framed and unframed, mounted prints which will be signed by the artist. Prices are expected to be about 30 for a framed print and 23 for an unframed one. If you would like to take advantage of this exclusive and limited offer please contact Cynthia at info@cynthiasfineart.co.uk or through Friends of W.I.S.H via any of our contact options.

COMING SOON!

QUIZ NIGHT BALLOON RACE THE GREAT WHITBOURNE TREASURE HUNT

AND MORE!!!
Keep an eye out for details being advertised in the near future. If you have an idea for an event we could run, or would like to help us organise one, please get in touch info@friendsofwish.co.uk

Friends of W.I.S.H

Newsletter

Dene Hollow, Whitbourne, WR6 5RN