Not everyone likes meetings. Many people already have more than enough meetings at work, and just the word “meeting” can be enough to turn some people off! Many Parent Clubs run informal gatherings of parents, simply to make social connections and exchange ideas and experiences in a more casual way, which can be much more inviting. Here are a few examples of clubs doing a great job of making their get-togethers friendly and welcoming.
Langwarrin Park Primary School PFC
The Parents and Friends Committee at Langwarrin Park put this notice up on their Facebook page recently. The post reads:
“…Pizza will be supplied. This is an informal catchup to get to know you all and throw some ideas in the air….there is absolutely zero expectation that you will asked to put your hand up for anything, it’s just a catch up and to listen to some fresh ideas.”
Parkmore Primary School Parents and Friends Group
This Parents and Friends has the following notice on their page on the school website:
“From 2024 onwards all parents and families are welcome to attend our morning tea after assembly in the school canteen area, this is an informal catch up and chat, all families are welcome, and all voices are heard.”
North Melbourne Primary School Parents and Friends
This club used the annual Book Week Parade – which already draws many parents to the school – as a focus for a get-together. From the school newsletter:
Book Week Morning Tea
Following the Book Week Character Day Parade in the MSC Gym, all parents and carers are welcome to stop past the Aquarium Meeting Room on the Ground Floor (opposite the Library) to join us for a relaxed coffee/tea, to meet other parents and share the highlights of the morning’s festivities.
Quarry Hill Primary School
This club has a video on its page on the school website,
with lots of welcoming messages for parents to join in. That’s where we found the photo at the top of this article, and we particularly loved the little rhyme that’s also in the video.
This is a great example of a club making use of the school website to promote itself – see our online Toolkit for more ideas on this.
