Papdale Primary School community to come together again

The bairns have returned to the classroom following the Easter break and now it’s the turn of the wider Papdale Primary School community!

The doors will be open once more and anyone with links to the school – whether a parent, carer, or relative of a pupil – is being invited to come along for a social event with a twist.

Papdale Primary School Head Teacher, Wendy Bowen, and Papdale Parent Council have joined forces in a bid to arrange a friendly get together for the  whole school community to meet up once more. That’s not all, however, as there will be help and support available from a variety of agencies who will also be present at the “Wellbeing and Learning” event within the school on Wednesday 4 May from 1-4.30pm.

The Chair of the Parent Council Lynne Spence explained that the initial idea came about from some parents who were keen for an opportunity to visit the school and meet with other parents and available staff face to face within the building itself  – something which hasn’t been possible for the past two years and now it is the time that we all need to support each other.

“Social interaction was restricted for so long that as we have opened back up, many feel it would be very beneficial for them to visit the school and meet others. For some they have never been inside or met with the teaching staff or know who their child’s classmates’ parents are for example – things that we took for granted before the pandemic.

“It will be a very informal afternoon – folk with links to the school can stop by via the bottom door to the infant school at the Willows and we will have tea, coffee and cake and the chance for folk to meet up again and have a chat. Come along and find out what’s going on in the school, what the staff and bairns are working on, and maybe even be able to find out a bit more about the advice, help and support that may be out there for everyone who has faced challenges during Covid.”

There will be around 20 different agencies within the hall to offer up valuable advice and practical advice around education and wellbeing. For example, THAW will be present to offer support in terms of escalating energy bills, the Orkney Citizens Advice Bureau can provide advice on a range of challenging subjects, such as debt, the Community Fridge will be sharing details of how folk can access it, Social Security Scotland will be present to share the range of benefits that people may be entitled to.

Also attending will be, Child Smile, school nurses, Relationship Scotland, Orkney Library, Early Learning, Sleep Scotland and Inclusive Orkney plus more.

Mrs Bowen explained: “This is not a one-off event, we do hope to make a rolling wellbeing and learning programme for parents and improve our links with agencies such as those already mentioned. The senior leadership team will be on hand to talk about ‘Sounds Write’ and the ‘zones of regulation’ and folk from the nursery will also be there.”

Given the period of restrictions and changes in terms of how services are now offered and, indeed what they may offer, we hope that new opportunities may be opened up to people who weren’t aware of the support that may be out there – and we all need support now and again.

The school has already been working on schemes that are environmentally sensible, recycling and reusing items, whether that be books or clothes – every little helps in terms of keeping items from becoming a waste product.

Mrs Bowen added: “At this event we  want to share schemes that we have been running for some time in the school and add in new ones. For example we run a ‘top swap shop’, we are looking to expand this to include coats and other items. We run a ‘book neuk’ with free books for bairns and are looking at the possibility of a welly boot exchange! This means folk take along a pair of boots their child has outgrown and swap for the next size up. It just makes sense to recirculate goods and save them from the bin! We want to educate children from a young age on the importance of looking after our planet.

“Please come along and enjoy a cuppa, cake and some chat and let’s hope this is the first of many community-based events here within the school once more.”