“Friends of Dormston Community”

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“Friends of Dormston Community”

Would you like to join a group of like-minded parents in order to contribute towards supporting Dormston School and its place in the local community? If the answer is “YES” then why not join “Friends of Dormston Community?”

“Friends of Dormston Community” was launched in November 2019 and currently has a group of 15 parents/carers who give their time and effort freely for the benefit of the students at Dormston School.  None of us knew each other before forming but we have ended up becoming pretty good friends, because… that’s what it’s all about!  We really enjoy working together towards a common goal, in a supportive, fun and friendly atmosphere.  If you fancy joining us, rest assured you will be made to feel very welcome!

The choice of projects and how any monies raised are spent in school is decided directly by ‘Friends of Dormston Community’ in consultation with all our parents/carers.  There are not many groups of this type in Secondary education and it is a really great group to be part of.

Please contact Karen Otton, our Parental Communication Engagement Lead on 01384 816395 or kotton@dormston.dudley.sch.uk if you are interested in finding out more information about Friends of Dormston Community.

Latest News – Our Story so far!

Our Aim is simple; we just want to support Dormston School, its students and their parents/carers in any way we can.  This is NOT just about raising funds but also about generating community spirit and connection.  As you may know, we formed very shortly after lockdown happened in March 2020 which put a lot of our plans on hold for quite some time, but as things are moving forward, rest assured FoDC are moving forward too!

We are currently in the process of planning an  End of Summer Term Celebration Event There are also lots more events in the pipeline such as; Comedy Nights, Quiz Nights and much  more so please do watch this space! 

We plan to send out a very short survey to you all soon to find out if you like the opportunities that we have offered and gage what our next steps should be.

 

Below are some of the things we have done since setting up

 

The Staff v Student Fancy Dress Football Match saw our staff dress up in Fancy Dress and take on the students in a football match.  The match was a sell-out!  The sun was shining, ice-creams and burgers were available and it was an absolutely lovely atmosphere.  The staff won, very much to the student’s disappointment and a re-match is most definitely on the cards!

 

Our Christmas Candy Cane Delivery Service spread a little Christmas Cheer as it saw some very kind-hearted staff dress up as Christmas Elves and surprise students with Christmas Candy’s that had been sent to them from their parents/carers.

 

We held a Year 7 & 8 Valentines Disco – this was the first disco held at Dormston School in well over 10 years!  We decided we wanted to do something nice to allow some of our younger students to have some well-deserved fun after a very difficult time.  The evening was a HUGE success and feedback has been great, so we will look at potentially doing another Disco in the future.

 

We also played cupid and offered a Valentine’s Day Chocolate Delivery Service. This saw over 500 bags of heart shaped chocolates circulating round the school on Valentine’s Day. 

 

We have also had a few lovely Raffle Opportunities.  Our latest Raffle saw some absolutely amazing prizes which were all kindly donated by local business and included:

  • West Midlands Safari Park Day Out – 2 Adults & 2 Children (worth £146.00)
  • 2 x Tickets for Aladdin on Saturday 3 December 2022  Wolverhampton Grand Opening Show –  Great tickets!
  • £30 Spices Curry House Voucher
  • Beauty Lounge in Coseley – Gift Voucher for a Shellac Nail treatment
  • £30 Voucher from The Enchanted Florist
  • Dinner Service
  • Treats & Sweets Hampers x 3

 

 

We have also launched our #Pre-Loved Uniform Service – this is a service for any parent/carer to purchase #Pre-Loved School Uniform at the fraction of the cost.  We work on the simple basis that we never sell anything we wouldn’t be prepared to buy ourselves.  We have already helped lots of families in the Dormston Community.  You can donate any unwanted, good quality uniform to Friends of Dormston Community at any point during the school year. We also hold key days during the academic year where we have a Uniform Drop Off Day.  A very reasonable price list is in place for items but we never turn any parent away who is in need.

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We are members of 'ParentKind' and you are welcome to become involved as little or as much as you want.

Friends of Dormston Community – Meeting Papers

Friends of Dormston Community meet regularly to discuss their plans and ideas.  In order to keep you informed of the group’s ideas and plans, please see below our Agendas and Minutes.  We also now email these out to parents/carers.   If you want to find out more details about the events and ideas we are planning or if you have any ideas for events or areas where you would like to see any fundraising spent please contact kotton@dormston.dudley.sch.uk who will pass these details on to us.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER – PLEASE READ THIS

  • Friends of Dormston Community are just a small group of parents/carers who give their time voluntarily.  We hope to make a real difference and develop community spirit so we would really love it if parents/carers would consider working alongside us. 
  • We never seek to purposefully upset parents/carers or students in anything we do, in fact, quite the opposite, but as with all things in life, you can’t please all the people all the time, which we accept.  If you feel strongly, or have any concerns about anything we are doing however you always can get in touch with us at friendsofdormstoncommunity@hotmail.com OR kotton@dormston.dudley.sch.uk.  We would much prefer you do this rather than using social media in order to give us a chance to address your concerns. 
  • Any parents/carers who do not feel they are able to afford any opportunities we offer can always contact friendsofdormstoncommunity@hotmail.com as we will gladly subsidise opportunities wherever possible. 
  • As soon as we are in a position to, we will consult with you all to see how best you would like to see us spend any funds raised.  Please bear with us however whilst we get ourselves on our feet financially.  Just like any organisation, we need to establish a small cash flow first to enable us to fund future larger style events before we can then start redistributing funds for the benefit of the school and its children. If you have suggestions for re-investing monies raised back into school please contact friendsofdormstoncommunity@hotmail.com