Well, what a year it has been. I’m sure living through the first global pandemic since 1918 isn’t exactly what anyone had in mind for 2020, but here we are! As I’m sure you’re all aware, COVID-19 has unfortunately cancelled…well just about anything that was supposed to happen since March – including the end of the school year. I know there was much more destined to happen before the schools were forced to close, however instead of focusing my attention on what didn’t happen I’d like to use this opportunity to talk about pre-coronavirus times, and what was a very unusual school year. I have no doubt the 19/20 academic year will go down in history as one to be remembered for very unexpected reasons, but I think it should also be remembered at Greenfaulds as being the launching year of the school’s Pupil Parliament.

As you can see from the timeline, the Parliament’s first year was definitely not wasted. Despite the abrupt end to the school year, looking at what we achieved from August till March it’s clear to see that the launching year of the Parliament was nothing but a success. From raising over £6,000 for Cash4Kids from our flash-mob to selling almost 180kg of rice, we really did do it all! Being involved in the Parliament during my 6th year is without a doubt the highlight of my time at high school. The new-found involvement in school-affairs that the Parliament gave to pupils I think was just amazing. The way it encourages collaboration between teachers and pupils, and of pupils in different year groups, I believe is something special. Despite having senior pupils at the forefront leading the change, the work carried out by the Parliament equally encouraged junior pupils to be involved too. Its introduction I feel has definitely formed bridges between the junior and senior school, allowing change to occur throughout the school as a whole. In just 1 year, the Parliament has managed to make many positive changes to the school environment and has also helped to improve the wider outside community as well.

The biggest event of the year was without a doubt the Cash4Kids Flash Mob organised by the Social Justice Committee in which the school raised over £6,000 and placed 3rd in Clyde 1’s competition, giving us over £7,000 to spend on the school. Not only was all of the fundraising organised by pupils, but the decision of how the money would be spent lay entirely with the Pupil Parliament as well, which I think shows just how much influence has been given to pupils this past year. The Parliament decided how the money would be spent during one of the debates at our Christmas meeting, which was held in North Lanarkshire Council’s Debating Chamber, which was definitely one of my highlights of the year. Seeing all the committees together debating school issues was great, and despite the topics of debate being viewed as perhaps mundane to others, the debates themselves were anything but. It was lovely to see that when pupils are given an opportunity to voice their opinion on school matters, they really do take advantage and enjoy it. The Parliament has shown pupils how to use their voice to influence school issues and be the change they want to see, and this is something that I think we should all continue to use outside of school as well to encourage the change we want to see in our wider communities.

 

I was given the opportunity as part of the Parliament to try and enact change in our local community through the speech I was able to deliver at the Christmas Meeting. I spoke about how the high number of schools being used as polling stations during elections was an unnecessary disruption to education and suggested for alternative venues to be used instead. Whilst the entire year was a great experience, this was without a doubt the highlight for me. Delivering a political speech at North Lanarkshire Council’s debating chamber was an incredible experience and is definitely something I’ll always remember. Considering how shy I was throughout my time at school I think it speaks volumes of the impact being a part of the Parliament had on me as it gave me the confidence to take on this challenge. It also gave me the confidence to take on other opportunities during my 6th year, such as being interviewed by STV News and UNICEF – things I could never have imagined doing. I strongly believe that if it wasn’t for my involvement in the Parliament then I wouldn’t have found the courage to do any of these things. These experiences have given me a new-found confidence that I know I will carry into university with me now that I’ve left school. I am certain that there will be others like me who will find their confidence through being a member of the Parliament which is why I think it is so important. As well as making our school environment a better place, it also has the ability to help pupils personally.

Clearly, it would be impossible for me to delve into detail about everything the Parliament did in its first year, even the timeline on the previous page doesn’t include everything, but I think it’s important to acknowledge that no matter what actions taken by the Parliament, big or small, they all made a huge difference to our school community and everyone involved should be very proud of the impact they had. I should also say a big thank you to all the teachers who were involved with the committees during the past year. It might be called a “Pupil Parliament” but without their help it wouldn’t have been the success it was. I’m disappointed that I’m no longer a member of such a wonderful thing but I’m lucky to have had the opportunity to be involved in its launch during my last year at school. I know that the parliament will continue to improve the community surrounding it for many years to come. It may look slightly different this year due to the external circumstances, but I know it will still achieve great things.

By Amy Herd