What is a PTA or Friends of?

PTA stands for Parent, Teacher Association.  Other names can include PA (Parent Association), PTSA (Parent, Teacher, Staff Association), PTFA (Parent, Teacher, Friends Association).

Friends of includes Parents/Carers/Guardians, Teachers and Staff and any person over the age of 18 offering appropriate support who is accepted by the committee as a member. Each organisation can choose their name to reflect accurately the members that are involved.

A PTA works alongside but is not governed by the school they are raising funds for.

If a PTA raises £5000 or more in a year, they have to register as a charity with the Charity Commission (and then have a charity number).  Some PTAs choose to register as a charity even though they raise less than £5000 a year because of the benefits that come with being a charity.

PTAs primarily run to raise additional funds to be spent on specific projects such as play equipment, funding trips, requested by the school and agreed by its members. However, each PTA has their own set of aims and specific goals.

Friends of Stoke Park Primary:

Friends of Stoke Park Primary is run by volunteers and operates as a Charitable Organisation and at this time is not registered with the Charity Commission.  Please note that each year we review this decision.

Our main objective is to bring the school and children together with fun, social events whilst raising funds to put back into the school to enhance and support experiences throughout their years at Stoke Park Primary.

About us:

Our volunteer committee (re-elected July 2023) consists of 2 members, Cat Foley (Chairperson) and Lisa Clark (Treasurer) plus several Ordinary Committee Members who are all parents/carers of children currently attending Stoke Park Primary.  All committee members have voting rights on decisions within the PTA.  

General members such as parents, carers, teachers and staff are also equally as important, and all opinions are considered when making decisions.  Members are encouraged to give feedback, suggest fundraising ideas as well as chaperoning a disco or running a stall at our fairs.  We also value the members who collect/donate items and share our public events as this is a huge help.

We are lucky enough to have our own space, the PTA Brickshed on the playground, feel free to pop by and have a chat or see what events and sales we have coming up, we are usually in there from 3pm-3.30pm.

We have a private Facebook Group for parents, carers and staff – www.facebook.com/groups/friendsofstokeparkprimary where you will find information on all our events and fundraising.  

As well as a Facebook Page for all public events and information – www.facebook.com/friendsofstokeparkprimary

What we do:

We hold fun events such as School Discos, Fayres and a gift shop for special occasions, as well as sell pre-loved uniform and ice creams in the summer. 

What we use the money for:

Money raised at our events will be used for various enrichment projects and equipment throughout the school.  Each year we review how funds raised will be spent for that year.  

It is not all about how much money we can raise, we operate to give every child the opportunity to enjoy social events within school.  We are currently working towards getting more involved with the community and joining forces with local organisations.

What you can do to help:

As a parent or carer of a pupil you are automatically a general member of the PTA, Friends of Stoke Park Primary.  You can help us to put on events and raise money for projects that benefit the children and bring our community closer together.  

We are also registered with Easyfundraising, which turns your everyday online shopping into free donations for Friends of Stoke Park Primary - www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/friends-of-stoke-park-primary 

Why not join our 100 club?  It costs just £1 a month and you can join at any point in the year, details/form can be found on our Facebook Group or drop us an email.

If you have any queries, questions and ideas please do not hesitate to contact us at friends@stokeparkprimary.org 

Cat Foley & Lisa Clark

Friends of Stoke Park Primary Committee