## **Carrowreagh Primary School PTA Annual General Meeting – 13/01/25 Chairpersons Report 2024/2025** 

## Good evening, 

We would like to extend a warm welcome to everyone attending this year’s PTA AGM. It is a pleasure to reflect on the work and achievements of our PTA over the past year. 

We have once again had the privilege of serving as chairpersons, and it has been a busy and enjoyable year. It has been a year of growth and collaboration, and we have thoroughly enjoyed working with such a dedicated team of parents and staff who have generously given their time and energy to plan and deliver our fundraising events. 

Our PTA has continued to support both the educational and social development of our pupils, and we are proud of the many milestones we have achieved. This year’s wish list was certainly ambitious, but, as ever, Lorna and I approached the challenge with optimism and determination. 

And so the fundraising began. Although it felt early in September to be thinking about Christmas, we were very grateful to the staff for helping the children create a Christmas design template for our fundraiser. These were sent home to parents and printed on cards, mugs, bags, wrapping paper and other items. Not only did this raise valuable funds, but the children also loved seeing their own designs on the finished products. 

Our first event was the PTA disco, which was a huge success with the children — and even DJ Parkhill and the team joined in with a dance-off! This was followed by our new event, the Pumpkin Dressing and Puddling Night. We are extremely grateful to Vicky from Origin, who generously donated many of her own supplies and led the event. We ended the term with _A Grand in Your Hand_ , another new initiative which was very well supported. 

In Term 2, we held _A Night at the Rugby Club_ , alongside a raffle which received fantastic support on the night, raising just over £900. As the tractor run had been so popular last year, we were delighted to run it again. One of the great strengths of our PTA is the sense of community it creates, and this event was thoroughly enjoyed by pupils and staff alike. 

Term 3 saw our second door collection at SuperValu, Ballymoney, which raised just under £800 — a fantastic result. This was a particularly effective event, as it did not involve asking school families for additional contributions. We also held our Bop-a-thon, which was another great success, raising just over £2000. We would like to thank all the participants and their sponsors for their generosity. 

We finished the year with our annual summer fair, which is always a highlight for everyone. Thankfully the weather was kinder this year, making it an easy decision to go ahead. The children loved taking part in all the activities, and the introduction of stallholders selling handmade crafts and accessories was very well received. 

Although grant applications can be time-consuming, they can make a significant difference. We were delighted to be awarded £500 from the Tesco Stronger Starts programme, which 

contributed towards the purchase of eight iPads. We also received funding from the Honorary Royal Irish Society, which further supported our work. 

We are all aware that school budgets are under increasing pressure, so our aim as a PTA is to enhance pupils’ experiences, wellbeing and the resources available to them. Over the past year we have been pleased to provide picnic benches, wooden benches, a small and a large wooden shed, P7 leavers’ hoodies, the annual Numeracy Scheme subscription, selection boxes, ice lollies and funding towards transport for school trips. 

We would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank Mrs Crawford and Mrs O, our longstanding staff representatives, for their continued support and commitment to the PTA. 

Finally, a huge thank you to all our wonderful committee members for their dedication, willingness to help and endless support. Lorna and I truly could not have done this without you. 

Thank you. 😊