Fundraising


‘IN THE FIRST WEEK ALONE, WE SOLD MORE THAN 200 ITEMS’


Run a second-hand book stall to encourage reading and enlist your pupils to make it as exciting as possible. Think about running this as an ongoing fundraiser. Equip it with accessories, such as Fairtrade bookmarks, book covers and cushions.


Simple swaps Be creative about reusing and repurposing materials. Get pupils to think differently about packaging by jazzing up brown paper and cardboard boxes used in deliveries and selling these on a stall. They could also make bunting to use up old scraps of uniform.


Get everyone on brand If your school doesn’t already have an eco council, then work with pupils to set one up. Make sure you help communicate pupil goals across the school and your community. Encourage your PTA to support pupil goals in its fundraising initiatives.


Pre-loved uniform Selling second-hand uniform is great for the bank balance and the environment. The government requires schools to keep uniform costs down, but new items are still a big expense. Yet with children growing out of clothes quickly, there’s a lot of good-quality used uniform available. Setting up an operation to sell pre-loved clothing not only brings supply and demand  sums for school coffers. Do ensure you communicate the


availability of second-hand uniform – and the important sustainability


message that goes hand in hand with reusing clothes. If you collect uniform, provide parents with an easy way to drop off donated items, ideally with a permanent, clearly marked container near the school entrance. There may be a space you can clear


out and use as a permanent shop. Or ask if any parents have an extra room, dry garage space or usable shed. Although you can sell uniform at playground sales, many schools found new ways to get stock to parents during lockdown and have retained these – for example, setting up a rail of clothes somewhere accessible. Alternatively, hold a pop-up sale just before the end of the school day or set up a stall at events. If you have a PTA, enlist its support in making sure items are washed and repaired, labelled by size and hung or folded neatly. Price uniform according to


condition and stock levels to avoid having to store too much. If your school community faces hardship, provide an honesty box enabling parents to take clothes for free, make a donation or give extra if they can.  volunteers, take the operation online. One option is to create a dedicated Facebook group, where parents can upload images of their available items. Set up a PayPal account for donations – either priced or as a virtual honesty box. Or use a one-stop shop such as uniformd. co.uk, uniformerly.co.uk or oldschooluniform.co.uk. PTAs may request only uniform or logo items, but asking for donations of warm coats could help raise extra funds or keep the cold at bay for children of the worst-off families.


Our PTA has collected and sold pre-loved uniform for around five years at pop-up events and online during the pandemic. I approached the headmaster with an idea for a permanent space to collect, store and sell the uniform, and the old PTA storeroom was the perfect place to transform. After drafting plans, I set about


applying for grants. We were very grateful to Bury Council Climate Action Community Fund, who awarded the PTA just under £5,000 for the refurbishment and a new storage container, while builders and decorators from the school community offered their time for free. The shop is open Mondays,


Wednesdays and Fridays from 3-3.45pm and is staffed by PTA committee members and parent volunteers. In the first week alone we sold more than 200 items. Buying second-hand can help


parents save money, and all of the sale price goes straight into PTA funds to help pay for equipment and experiences for our school children. We hope our success can inspire others to do the same. Katie Marsden, chair, Greenmount Primary School PTA, Bury, Manchester (250 pupils)


FundEd SPRING 2023 29


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