Service as a central value to develop leadership.

Service at the heart of SPW
At St Peter’s Woodlands Service is one of our four core values. It is an actionable value in which the other three values can be practiced – wonder, courage and respect. Our hope is to always educate our children to look beyond their own needs and wants, to those of others, and we know this starts with small acts of leadership and service that can grow as our children do.

Leadership begins early
Leadership and service, which tend to go hand in hand, are practiced as soon as children start at St Peter’s Woodlands in the ELC. This may look like being the Mini Teacher, where students throughout the year take it in turn to share the responsibility of helping the teacher or educator carry out the day’s tasks.

These skills get further developed throughout their schooling, where individuals are asked to demonstrate responsibility, trustworthiness and kindness. In Reception students are randomly selected to be Lucky Ducks – badged with the honour of leader, students will assist with daily tasks – this tradition continues throughout the years with the tasks demanding greater responsibility.

In Year 1 the role of Class Expert is introduced where students who have finished their work can help others complete theirs – they may use their own work as an example to aid or assist in the activity or simply encourage their classmate. By Year 2 this form of leadership can range from being lunch order monitors, running errands to school Front Office, escorting younger children as a special buddy after the morning’s choir practice or ensuring class pets are cared for.

By the time students reach their senior years of primary school, students have been nurtured to take on these responsibilities at a pace that feels manageable so that when they reach their senior years of primary school they feel confident to take on more challenging leadership roles such as road crossing monitors, playground leaders, sport trolley monitors or sport leaders.

Confidence through communication
Topic Talks is another activity which is carried out throughout the student’s entire schooling at SPW. To introduce the idea of public speaking early, before any inhibitions have emerged or in fact, to conquer any that may have already arisen, students are asked to do weekly Topic Talks. Students present to the class on a certain topic. This requires them to prepare, practise and present, getting them comfortable with the idea of talking to a crowd of people, presenting ideas and answering questions. It also reinforces to children that what they have to say is important, and they deserved to be listened to. Again, this activity will develop and change in format as the students go through the year levels to continue to challenge them. 

These skills are also further honed when cohorts are asked to run a chapel service or assembly, where they are required to use a microphone, rehearse and understand the format of the presentation.

The groundwork of these activities work to serve students in their confidence to nominate themselves to take on senior roles – whether it be SSLC or School Leadership in Year 6 where public speaking and taking on responsibility increases significantly.

Confidence through communication
At St Peter’s Woodlands we recognise that service and leadership can come in many forms. For some it may be being a role model, caring for others, leading or working as a team or simply being a kind person. We offer a wide range of in-class activities to foster these skills, but it is often the opportunities found in extra- and co-curricular programs that allow every type of personality to take on a role that suits them.

This may involve being a part of Garden Club and being responsible for tending to the garden beds, or caring for the chickens, being a playground monitor to ensure students during lunchtime can seek child appropriate help from their senior students. It may include being a Chapel or Show Choir Captain or Sport Leaders. We are not in the business of trying to make world leaders, but rather to encourage every student to find opportunities to lead with kindness and thought for others.

Lasting impact beyond SPW
Recently we caught up with three old scholars who during their time at SPW took advantage of the different leadership and service opportunities offered to them. They believe that the foundation of their primary years helped give them the confidence to strive for further opportunities in their senior years of schooling. Each of them are now school leaders at their respective schools.

• James – Westminster School Captain (Former SPW School Captain Class 2020)
• Zara – Walford School Captain (Class of 2020)
• Sarah – Brighton School Leader (Former SPW House Captain Class 2020)

“The opportunities at SPW are vast, so you can tailor it to what suits you best. My attitude was to accept every opportunity that came my way, even if it wasn’t a natural fit. Sometimes it’s the things that are outside of your comfort zone that teach you the most.” – James

“I was quite a shy kid during my primary school years, but SPW really challenged me to come out of my shell by giving everything a go. At senior school I still had to work quite hard at conversing with strangers comfortably, but through my leadership opportunities this skill now comes easily to me.” – Zara

“The opportunities to serve others, raise money for charities and care for your community as well as getting up and speaking in front of others aided me in taking on these senior school leadership roles.” – Sarah

Service and leadership are part of the fabric of our school and it is our hope that we instill in every child a responsibility to give back to the community and move through the world with kindness.