Welcome to the FoBS section of our website

What Does FoBS Do?

In the 2020-2021 school year FoBS raised £9,000. Whilst this is lower than previous years, this is an incredible achievement, given the restrictions on events due to the Covid-19 pandemic. We made donations or committed to spend £7,700 on resources and fun activities for the school including maths resources, the year 4 music scheme, PGL contributions and Egyptian Day.  Again this was lower than usual due to the restrictions on activities which FoBS would usually fund.

We are delighted to have had the opportunity to offer some fun events at Christmas, whilst fundraising, including: the Christmas Shop; Santa Sleigh (in conjunction with Wallingford 1155); Christmas cards / mugs; wreath making packs; as well as the raffle and silent auction. This could not have happened without so many fantastic parents getting involved.  So, whether you helped to organise an activity, helped out with an event, or showed your supported, we are extremely grateful.

How Can You Get Involved?

Our school is getting bigger and with this, the funding requests from the school are growing.  We always need more members with new ideas and energy to join the team.  Please do consider giving up a little bit of your time to help us help the children and the school.

Join our two Facebook groups, ‘Friends of Benson School’ and ‘FoBS Committee’. Have a look at what we do and have a think about how you can help.

We have lots of exciting events coming up over the summer term, so if you would like to get involved, let us know.  Perhaps you would like help out at our first ever Cirucs, organise an online Chocolate Bingo night, be in charge of second hand uniform or have idea for new events?  You can get in touch with us at fobsbenson@gmail.com

The FoBS Constitution

FoBS is updating the constitution to ensure we have a fully comprehensive constitution in line with The Charity Commission's expectations.  This will be signed off at the AGM in October 2022.  In line with regulations, a draft copy of the constitution is available below to be viewed for minimum 21 days before the AGM.  If you would like to pass comment on this, please do so before the meeting.

Fundraising

As well as running our own second hand uniforms, FoBS recently donated a huge amount of unwanted uniform to The Nasio Trust, a charity based in Abingdon who do work in Kenya to break the cycle of poverty by providing education, improving health and developing commerce. 
 

We received the following message from The Nasio Trust :

I’ve just been sorting through the clothing that we are shipping in October. On behalf of our 350 children thank you so much. What the school have donated is just what we needed and they’ll be wearing them by Christmas.  I’ll ask for photos of the children receiving but it doesn’t always happen. I’ll be going next year and I’d be happy to visit the school.

Thanks again
John x🇰🇪

Year-Round Fundraising

Printer Ink recycling

Old used printer inkjet cartridges are collected at the office and we send them off for cash back. You can donate cartridges throughout the year. 

Yellow Moon/Baker Ross

FOBS get cashback from your craft supply purchases. Add Friends of Benson School as your nominated organisation when purchasing online. www.yellowmoon.org.uk

Name Labels

We know how annoying it is when your child loses something at school. Labelling everything really helps you to be re-united with your child’s belongings. Easy2Name provide 20% cashback to FOBS for all orders placed. Just select Benson CofE Primary School OX10 at the checkout. www.easy2name.com

The Giving Machine
TheGivingMachine is a fundraising charity set up to help other charitable causes raise money online. By signing up and shopping online via TheGivingMachine you will generate a free cash donation for us.  With over 2,200 retailers, including Amazon, Ebay, M&S, NEXT, Tui, Sainsbury, John Lewis & Waitrose, you are bound to find what you need and generate a donation.

To start raising free donations go to https://www.thegivingmachine.co.uk/causes/benson-c-of-e-primary-school and join – it’s that easy. You can even send this code onto your friends and family to ask them to fundraise for us.
You can also download the free desktop reminder app to help you remember to always shop online via TheGivingMachine https://www.thegivingmachine.co.uk/shop-and-give/

Our Aim

How Does FoBS Support the School Community?

We are fortunate at Benson Church of England Primary School to have a PTA that is an integral part of the school and wider village community. The strong support network has enabled us to raise thousands of pounds that are spent on school facilities, equipment and resources to enhance our children’s experiences at school.

FoBS is about much more than simply fundraising. We exist to provide closer links between home and school, and it is an excellent way to bring staff, parents and friends together socially in support of the school, working towards a common goal. It is a fun and positive experience because we all care and we enjoy each other’s company.

All families are automatically members of FoBS when their child joins the school. No family is required to be involved in the organisation of events; we simply encourage parents and members of the school community to become involved in whatever capacity suits. We understand how busy family life can be, so we aim to make any involvement an enjoyable experience.

FoBS is extremely conscious of the ethos and diversity of our school, and we try very hard when organising and planning events to respect this. Many of our fundraisers are run with the aim of giving the children a good time, and as a way of thanking families for their continued support.

What FoBS Means to Benson School

Since FoBS involves the whole school community, we thought you would like to know what others think of what we do.

From Helen Crolla, Headteacher of Benson School:

“FoBS provide tremendous support to the school. As a group of willing volunteers, their enthusiasm, creativity and dedication to the business of fund raising has enabled children in all years to benefit from extra equipment.”

Significant purchases like interactive whiteboards and sets of reading books have had a positive impact on learning and contributed to the School's improvement priorities. The plan to fundraise for larger projects has enabled the school to consider improvements to the overall learning environment, ensuring that all children have access to high quality provision whilst they are at Benson.”

“There is also the commitment to pursuing grants and funding from other sources, which enables the school to embark on specialist projects. These provide the children with memorable experiences and allow children with talents to shine.”

“As Headteacher, I value the partnership that exists and the child-centred approach promoted by all members of the FoBS team.”

From Jo Chapman, Chair of Governors, on behalf of the Governing Body of Benson School:

“With the ever-growing pressures on our school budgets, FoBS are instrumental in enabling us to provide the resources, equipment and rounded learning experience that our children deserve.

The FoBs team are a dedicated, passionate and innovative group of individuals who raise considerable amounts of funds through organising a range of fun social events that really do bring the community together in supporting our school. They are also proactive in identifying and managing many other fund-raising initiatives such as cartridge and clothes recycling, frozen fridays, giving machines and film afternoons, all of which the monies raised goes towards supporting our school.

FoBS have also done an outstanding job in securing grants such as the recent music grant which will enable our children to have access to Ukulele lessons for a full year. This just would not be possible without FoBS’ on-going commitment and support. They truly make a positive difference to the children of Benson Primary, and for that I am extremely grateful.”

From Parents of Benson School:

· “FoBS has made a huge difference to how quickly my family has settled into the school and the Benson community. Such a friendly, approachable group of parents; so welcoming and supportive. It is evident that they care greatly for all the children of Benson School and their families.”

· “As a working mum FoBS has given me the opportunity to still feel very much involved in school life. I have met a great team of parents and teachers all wanting to contribute, where they can, to raise important funds for our children. FoBS make a big difference and I am very proud to be part of that.”

· “My children have both recently joined the school and have loved every minute. The school is friendly and inclusive and that is echoed in the Parents, especially at the FoBS meetings. It’s a great combination of kids, parents and teachers coming together to make the school a fun and successful place to learn!”

· “I love being a member of the FoBS team, as well as all the fundraising it is a great chance to meet parents from different year groups around the school, understand more about the school and build quicker relationships with the staff. The FoBS team welcome everyone and there is never any pressure of do more than what you want to. Whether it is just coming along to a meeting or maybe doing a small job, you can dip in and out depending on your current work/home load. The Primary years for our children go by in a flash and I will be glad when I look back to think I saw my children in their school environment, made friends, raised money and did my bit.”

From the Children of Benson School

Connor, Year 5:“They help all the children and help us to do more activities by giving us resources for learning and play, such as playground equipment.”

Jasmine, Year 3:“FoBS are really hard-working and very kind-hearted. They set up amazing events. My favourite would be … oh, there are so many – the school disco and the summer fayre, I think!”

Lucy, Year 3:“They get more resources for the classroom by raising money for the school. My favourite event is the chocolate bingo as everyone in the family can take part.”

Ben and Evie, Year 6:

Ben: “They raise a lot of money for the school. The fayres attract lots of people from the local area, who see the school and then want to come here. More people in our school is better because you have opportunities to interact with more people socially and in the classroom.

Evie: “Yes, and they are very helpful, raising funds for school trips and school plays.”

Ben: “And they help the community by inviting them to school events. They invite the elderly to the Christmas performance and serve them tea and cakes, so they can enjoy other’s company. That’s a really kind thing to do.”

Hayley, Year 4:“FoBS make school more fun. The fayres are always fun, and I really like the movies. They buy lots of lovely things to improve the school, such as the plants at the entrance.”

Lilly, Year 2:“FoBS is the helping hand for the school and the children!”

Ollie and Oliver, Year 3:

Ollie: “The discos are brilliant – you get prizes!”

Oliver, starting to dance: “Yes, I won last year!”

FoBS Welcome Handbook

If you are new to the school or just want to find out a bit more about what FoBS do or how you can get involved, please take a look at our handbook, below or get in contact with us!

Getting in touch

Contact us via:

· email: FOBS@benson.oxon.sch.uk

· Facebook: join ‘Friends of Benson School’

· or leave a message at the school office