At Freegrounds Junior School, we are passionate about instilling a culture where children know they are listened to, and that their thoughts and ideas have impact and can drive change. Key members of our staff work alongside nominated children (to form our school council, learning council, pupil librarians, house captains and sports leaders). These roles are accompanied by additional responsibilities which see the children attend meetings, complete projects, lead assemblies, feedback to their peers and much more.

We feel that children having a contribution in regards to changes and improvements in our school is an important value in instill and, as such, we also feel that many benefits arise as well. Whilst pupil voice is important to drive change, we also recognise many other benefits, such as:

• Developing pupil confidence through collaborating with staff and their peers
• Establishing effective communication skills through attending meetings and feeding back on these to their classmates
• Instilling learning behaviors such as reflection, critical thinking and independence
• Developing leadership skills
• Increasing pupil participation and their intrinsic motivation

Please have a look at the school council, learning council, pupil librarians, house captains and sports leaders to see these roles and some of the projects that they have been working on in more detail.