Friends of Grasmere School

FROGS is a parents/teachers organisation that organises fundraising activities and social events for families and carers of children who attend Grasmere Primary School and the local community in Stoke Newington. All parents and carers of the children who attend the school, and the staff who work at Grasmere, are automatically members of FROGS.

Money raised by FROGS helps supplement a wide range of extra-curricular activities for the pupils of Grasmere such as music lessons, school and class trips, art workshops, improved cooking facilities, and dance/drama classes. Support, both financial and in kind, is also offered to help maintain and improve the school premises, garden and grounds.

FROGS also helps build a sense of community by organising social events such as school discos, Winter/Summer fairs and Jumble sales. Events are always well attended and are a great way for families, carers and staff to get to know each other.

FROGS is a registered charity (No 1053981); you can find the Friends of Grasmere Constitution here.

HOW WE WORK

We work together with the school to identify which areas we can help with and we respond to any request that the school staff might have regarding possible spends. As a parent/carer you are automatically part of FROGS and can voice your opinion and suggest ideas at any of our meetings, or if you can’t attend, via email on frogs.grasmere@gmail.com, or via our school reps. Please take some time to read our newsletter and meeting minutes to learn more about our recent and upcoming projects.

The FROGS team

The FROGS team is a dedicated bunch of parents and carers who meet regularly throughout the school year to plan events, identify new projects and come up with ideas to improve the school. We are always looking for new recruits – please get in touch with us if you would like to help. Without FROGS’ fundraising and hard work, Grasmere School would look very different: there would be no refurbished playgrounds, creative room and library, and no laptops for our pupils.

The committee

At the beginning of each school year, FROGS holds an AGM when the Chair(s), Treasurer and Secretary are voted in. The current members are:

Chair: Léa Treasurer: Magnus Secretary: Caroline
Trustees: Léa, Caroline, Magnus, Neela
Committee members: Veronika, Nicola, Gill, Jay, Luke

THE CLASS REPS

The other key members of FROGs are the class reps, who liaise with the parents. Their role involves passing on key information from the FROGS committee (new projects, help needed etc) to the Whatsapp parent groups, and relaying to FROGS any problem, query, or fundraising idea mentioned by the parents. Usually, they would also help organise 1 cake sale a year; 1 stall at Christmas fair; 1 stall at Summer fair, as well as find volunteers for our other annual events.

The current class reps are:

Nursery: Firuze & Jay Reception: Rob Y1: Magnus & Émilie Y2: Aifric Y3: Caroline & Léa
Y4: Gill & Nicola Y5: Chog & Megan Y6: Tom & Lizzie

MEETINGS

FROGS meetings are held twice a term and are open to all parents/carers – just turn up. At the meetings, fundraising and social events are planned and those attending also decide on which proposed projects are funded. FROGS always welcomes new ideas and volunteers. Please take a look at our Calendar to find out when the next meeting is scheduled.

You can follow us on Facebook, but the best way to keep in touch is to subscribe to the Newsletter:

The FROGS events

FROGS organises events throughout the school year, to raise funds for the school but also to provide a chance for families to socialise and get to know each other. Please take a look at our Calendar. Our annual events include:

Jumble sales

Jumble sales are held twice year. The event not only raises funds for the school but also provides an essential community service and help us reuse and reduce our impact on the environment. Stalls include books, toys, bric-à-brac and clothes. We also sell drinks, soups and home-made cakes.

cake sales

Each class organises one much-anticipated cake sale per year, on a Friday afternoon after school, to raise funds for a class treat. Occasionally special cake sales are organised, to raise fund for specific projects.

WINTER/SUMMER FAIRs

Summer fair stalls typically include tombola, bingo, lucky lolly, slack lines, hook the duck; while Winter fair stalls include Santa’s grotto, homemade gifts and crafts, and decorate your gingerbread man.

SCHOOL DISCO

We try to organise a school disco once a year; our next one is on 9th March 2023.

CINEMA NIGHTS

Children and their carers are invited bring a cushion and blanket and enjoy our “cinema” in the hall, with popcorn, drinks and other treats. Past screenings included Ponyo, The Secret Life of Pets and The Bad Guys.

Please check our Calendar page and see below to learn about our upcoming events for 2023/2024.