Student Leadership

At the heart of our school community are our Student Leaders. Representing our diverse student body and driving forward real change in the everyday life of our school, our Student Leaders are creative, versatile and enthusiastic. Opportunities to lead at Parrs Wood are varied and available to all.

Form Captains

At the start of each academic year, every form group across the school elects a Form Captain. The Form Captain is responsible for being the voice of the tutor group. Form Captains attend regular meetings with the Senior Student Leadership Team and members of the staff Senior Leadership Team. From here, action plans are created, implemented and reviewed based on student voice.

Charity Champions

Pupils from across the school, who are interested in leading projects to benefit others, can do so by becoming Charity Champions. Organisations that have benefitted from in the past include Reuben’s Retreat, a charity working to support the families of terminally ill children, and the Cash for Kids incentive – Mission Christmas, which looks to provide gifts for families from across Manchester.

Additionally, at the start of each new academic year, students vote for a charity they would like to support for the academic year. The chosen charity is voted for by students as part of International Day of Democracy. Students work tirelessly throughout the year to raise as much money as possible for their charity. This year’s school charity is The Christie, Manchester.

Charity Champions play an integral role in raising money for our local food bank in Burnage, as well as for school community events such as the Year 11 and 13 proms, where money raised is used to support disadvantaged students.

Faculty Leaders

Each faculty has a group of Student Leaders who are passionate about their subject. These students are selected by faculty staff to promote their subject across the wider school at open evenings, on transition days, during enrichment fairs, as well as supporting with faculty competitions and clubs.

Sports Leaders

Many of our younger pupils enjoy sports and some of our junior leaders develop this passion by leading activities with other pupils, both at Parrs Wood and at partner schools. The junior Sports Leaders have been called upon to facilitate and referee primary school tournaments, lead inter-form competitions, and visit other schools to coach their pupils in specific sports. Further up the school, there are opportunities to lead during the school’s sports day at the Etihad Stadium, visit local primary schools to deliver assemblies to the pupils on the benefits of different sports, and become involved in city wide sports leadership.

Eco Leaders

Students with a passion for the environment have the opportunity to make Parrs Wood even greener! Working with our Sixth Form’s successful student ‘CO2 Team’, as well as dedicated teaching staff, pupils research, plan and implement changes to our school community to make Parrs Wood even more environmentally friendly.

Peer Mentors

In KS4, students who have an interest in developing their leadership skills can apply to become a Peer Mentor. Following a successful application, students are trained in small groups to become effective mentors who create positive change in our school community. This training has been guided by Manchester Healthy Schools, but we have adapted this to best suit our setting here at Parrs Wood. The Year 10 and 11 mentors are then paired with Year 7 and 8 pupils (all selected by Form Tutors or Heads of Learning) who need guidance with their academic and/ or social school lives. The mentors meet with their mentee once a week throughout the year and the mentees are able to play games and discuss anything they feel is troubling them that week or complete any homework they are struggling with. Each of the sessions is closely monitored by dedicated staff and has had a huge impact on both the mentor and the mentee.

Year 11 Senior Student Leadership Team (SSLT)

Students in Year 11 have the opportunity to become a member of our Senior Student Leadership Team (SSLT). Here, pupils are encouraged to develop their own initiatives within specific areas of school life. The core groups reflect our school values of Community, Creativity and Achievement. The role of the SSLT is to identify issues faced by our students and then develop their own creative solutions to them. As part of their role, students are expected to support in all aspects of whole-school life including open evenings, transition days, the extra-curricular programme, celebration events, assemblies and parents’ evenings. The position of Senior Student Leader is a coveted one and successful candidates take their role incredibly seriously, leading with confidence, pride and integrity.

Sixth Form Leadership

Over the past few years, many of our Sixth Form students have taken on a leadership role in the CO2 Team, a group dedicated to developing the sustainability of our school both in terms of energy and waste management. Together, they have contributed to improvements in the school’s overall energy use such as more efficient lighting, streamlining our heating system, and fitting timer switches. They were instrumental in a project to reduce our carbon footprint with the fitting of solar panels to the roof of the school. They have also reduced the use of single-use plastics in the school, reduced the amount of water we waste, and improved our recycling capabilities.

Student Council

Our Student Council is at the heart of our school community. Pupils from Years 7-13 play a pivotal role in ensuring our students’ voices are heard. Our Student Leaders (across our main school and sixth form) meet every half term as a wider group, as well as with their Heads of Learning and the Senior Leadership Team. Here, students share strengths of the school with staff as well as any concerns and areas they feel can be developed. Action plans are then created and shared with stakeholders, who endeavour to implement any positive and realistic changes in a timely manner.