“There are no strangers in here, just friends you haven’t met.” – Roald Dahl
The Friends of Rydes Hill Preparatory School (“Friends”) is an association mainly of parents, but also includes the Headmistress, a School Governor and key staff members. In fact, all parents automatically become a part of Friends when their child joins Rydes Hill. The Friends support and help facilitate the overwhelming sense of community present at Rydes Hill. The Friends have two primary aims: 1) to promote and foster close relationships between the families within the School community; and 2) to organise fundraising activities for items and experiences that will benefit the School community as agreed to by the School and Friends.
Over the years, Friends have raised thousands of pounds which have been spent on various projects and items including a new piano and drum sets for the Music Department, a new Adventure Playground, bespoke tiered theatre style seating and a fabulous lighting system in the newly renamed Friends Hall!
This year Friends is supporting the School’s new Forest School Project, the purpose of which is to foster the development of a relationship between the students and the natural world. Friends have contributed funds for an initial purchase of supplies and equipment for the Forest School. The next target will be improving the School’s ICT by fundraising for tablets.
In addition to fundraising, the Friends plan and host a number of social events throughout the school year. The main events for the academic year are the Christmas Fair, a Quiz Night and the Summer Fair. Friends also organise smaller, more intimate gatherings such as coffee mornings, parent dinners and mums/dads’ nights out. These social events throughout the year help provide a connection between the children, their families and the School and foster a sense of community that endures even after the children have finished the School.
At Rydes Hill, we are fortunate to have a very active parent body that is an integral part of the School community. We hope to have given you a snapshot of life outside the classroom at Rydes Hill. Should you want any additional information, or if you have any ideas or suggestions, please feel free to contact the Friends via frhpscochair@gmail.com or frhpstreasurer@gmail.com
Empties Please
Friends have joined the Go Green scheme by becoming members of the ‘Empties Please’ fundraiser. Parents can now drop off all of their used/unused/unwanted ink cartridges and toner in the School Office. In return, Friends will receive a number of ‘Green Points’ per collected item. The Green Points can then be used to claim a free prize once a certain number have been collected.
Easy Fundraising
We have teamed up with Easy Fundraising, www.easyfundraising.org.uk, to provide one of the simplest, easiest and quickest methods for raising extra funds for Friends. By simply completing a one-time online registration and a few extra mouse clicks, Friends can receive money whenever you make an online purchase with the 2,700+ retailers that contribute to the scheme – including Amazon, Waitrose, John Lewis and The Book People.
There is no additional cost for signing up and no security risk to your purchases - your online shopping is done in exactly the same way - the only difference is that if you go to easyfundraising.org.uk first, then select the retailer that you want. The retailer will then donate a percentage of your purchases to Friends.
More information is available from the School Office or from Treasurer Hannah Fry - frhpstreasurer@gmail.com