12 Apr 2025
Forget about bringing in games on the last day of term, one St Albans school recruited their pupils to do something truly remarkable for the local community.
Fleetville Junior School’s inaugural Community Day saw youngsters embark on a variety of different projects.
These included cleaning the outside space at Fleetville Community Playgroup, litter picking on the Alban Way and at Fleetville Recreation Ground, working on the school’s allotment so they can eventually grow and cook food there, making cards and gift packages for St Albans Community Pantry, doing crafts at a local retirement group and being mentors at the nearby infants school.
Headteacher Clare Whitehouse explained: “The idea came out of the fact that we’d been talking about what a good citizen would be like, and how we can become good citizens when we leave school. The children said that we need to help people beyond our school walls and then they started to think of what that looks like and how they can help.
“So it was all about trying to make them understand that there’s a world that’s bigger than the little bit they see.”
The St Albans Times visited the school on the day to see first hand what some of the pupils were doing, starting off in the Year 6 classroom, where a production line of chocolate Rice Krispies cakes is running in one corner while other children are busy working on Easter cards. Pupil Oscar explained: “We’re helping elderly people with their lives. We’re going to give them a card and decorate a shoebox.”
Douglas added: “We’re going to put in chocolate Rice Krispies cakes, all our letters, biscuits and tea bags and then send them to St Albans Pantry.”
Lee was busy making a rabbit card: “These are for the old people who might be feeling a bit lonely. We’re designing some cards and writing some poems as well.”
Izzy added: “They’re for people who might not have family or friends to celebrate with at Easter.”
There’s no time to hang around before we’re off down the corridor and outside into the playground, where the school allotment can be found tucked away in a remote corner.
Clare continued: “We wanted the pupils to have a really productive last day, and they’re all really keen. The Year 5 school council helped to decide some of the things we were going to do, which included playing bingo and taking part in a quiz at the local Methodist church.”
At the allotment we find youngsters transporting logs by wheelbarrow ready to set up an area for planting fruit and vegetables, with the children to eventually take a role in building the planting beds.
Elsewhere, pupils in high-vis jackets are busy clearing rubbish from Fleetville Rec, a popular destination after school – particularly in the warm weather – but somewhere
often blighted by litter.
Isla and Alyssia are discovered digging deep into the bushes, filling black sacks with discarded odds and ends, although largely Lucozade bottles. They are soon joined by Cleo, who didn’t have a partner.
Clare explained: “It’s nice that they’re getting to work together as a team beyond the classroom and developing those skills they’ll need in later life.
“We talking a lot about being a bystander, and why sometimes speaking up for what’s right is really difficult, as we want them to have the courage to be able to identify right from wrong and understand that if they walk past something it’s saying it’s OK.”
Teacher Claire Rolph is a local scout leader, who has lent the school all of their litter pickers for the occasion.
“They’re doing a super job,” she said. “They’re transforming the place!”
Clare added: “The great thing is them feeling that investment in their local community rather than school just being somewhere they come to in the morning and disappear from in the evening. The world is changing and they need to keep up with what it looks like to support each other and work as a team.
“They spend so much time at home and online, and their worlds have become much smaller, so our job is to open their eyes to the fact that it’s actually much bigger.”
At Fleetville Community Playgroup, pupils are cleaning outdoor toys and sweeping sand, arduous tasks which staff often don’t have the time to carry out.
George said: “Having optimistic volunteers is amazing! They came in all smiling and ready to start, which was really nice.
“I think they’re such a wonderful bunch, and to spread their wonderfulness amongst the community where they live is just really nice.”
The success of this year’s first Community Day means it looks likely to become a regular event for Fleetville Junior School.
Raihaanah Ahmed, founder of St Albans Community Pantry, couldn’t have been more delighted to have benefited from the day: “The packages created by the pupils have added much spring time joy to our emergency food aid boxes that are delivered to the most vulnerable residents across St Albans and the neighbouring villages.
“They have been packed with thoughtful items and we have received the most heartfelt thanks from the recipients. It is clear the children have put a lot of consideration and hard work into the packages.
“We’re grateful to teachers Maryam, Clare and the team for facilitating this project and hope the pupils are proud of their efforts.”
