What is S.M.A.S.H ?
Most schools have a Parent Teacher Association (PTA), which is an organisation of parents and staff. Its role is to encourage closer links between home and school. PTAs are best known for their fundraising work, but they have a useful social function too. Fundraising events provide an opportunity for parents, staff and pupils to get together. Gomersal St Mary’s PTA is called SMASH which in turn stands for St Marys Association of School and Home.
How is SMASH organised?
A committee is elected to run the SMASH – usually consisting of a chair, a vice-chair, a treasurer, a secretary and ordinary committee members. These ordinary members can include parents, grandparents and carers who are associated with the school through their children.
SMASH Chairperson: Emma Burrow
SMASH Secretary: Melanie Hughes
SMASH Treasurer: Zoe Dransfield
PTA committees usually meet once a term and set up smaller working groups to organise individual events.
How is money raised?
SMASH and most PTA’s raise money through events. SMASH often hold one main event each school term – for example, a stall at the Christmas fair in the winter, an Easter themed disco in the spring, and a BBQ event to coincide with the summer concert. Other SMASH events include Race Nights, Film Nights, Krispy Kreme Donut sales etc, but they’re always looking for new fundraising ideas.
How is money spent?
Funds raised by SMASH are intended to provide ‘extras’ not already provided by the school’s main income – often ‘fun things’ that make learning more interesting and exciting.
The SMASH committee and head teacher decide how to spend the funds. Common items include computers, playground equipment and smaller purchases. So far SMASH have purchased disco lights, playground markings, new art equipment, leavers’ hoodies and most recently cameras for each key stage. SMASH has also helped contribute to residential trips and refreshments at the Christmas pantomime excursion, and every term provide the SMASH trophies presented to the children who have contributed to their class and the school as a whole.
How can I be involved in my SMASH?
There are many different ways you can help, whether you have lots of time to offer or not.
Some of the roles are time-consuming, although also rewarding. If you can’t commit to a big job, look out for things you can do less frequently (e.g. running a stall at the summer fair, baking for a cake sale). And you can always support SMASH events by simply turning up.
