Pupil VIPs
Some of our pupils take very important roles in the running of our school, such as being part of the School Council, training to become a Peer Mediator or being a House Captain.
School Council
The Chivenor School Council is made up of pupil representatives from Years 2 to 6.
The five main roles of Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, Treasurer and Publicity Officer are taken by Year 6 children. All the other year group classes have representatives who are known as Reps.
The Reps listen to ideas presented by Year 6 School Council members, voice their own views or those of their class, and generally help out. They also inform their class about decisions that have been made by the School Council.
 The Chair and Vice Chair begin a meeting. |
 The School Council enjoying a working lunch. |
School Council Elections
During the Summer Term, Year 5 children who would like a role on the School Council write an election manifesto to explain why they are the best person for the job.
The manifestoes are displayed in school and on Election Day the candidates try to persuade children in Key Stage 1 and 2 to vote for them. Ballot papers are handed out for each of the key posts and each child votes for one candidate per post.
The winning candidates are announced and they take up their post in September when they are in Year 6.
Children in Years 2 to 5 then choose two class representatives to attend and represent them at School Council meetings.
School Council Minutes
Minutes of our recent meetings:
Quotes from the Council
Hi, my name is Tyler. I've got a very important role on the Chivenor School Council. I am the chairperson. The best thing is that I have had to talk to lots of children about their ideas for school. I love to hear their ideas. We are thinking of opening a stationery shop for the whole school, every Friday afternoon. We are organising events for Children in Need, Red Nose Day and Environment Day. 
My name is Jack and I am the School Council vice-chairperson and my job is to help make improvements in the school. One of our current projects is Children in Need.
My name is Khaleel and I am Publicity Officer for the School Council. It is my job to publicise fund raising and other events we have organised.
Hi my name is Kloe and my role in the School Council is Treasurer. I take care of fundraising ideas and look through school catalogues to see what school equipment we need.
My name is Loren and I am the Secretary for the School Council. I need to take the minutes at meetings and then type them up afterwards to present at the next meeting.
Peer Mediators - Chivenor Chums
At Chivenor we train children to become Peer Mediators. They are known as Chivenor Chums (Children Helping Us Mediate). Chums take it in turns to be on duty throughout the week at lunchtimes on the playgrounds.
What is mediation?
A structured process in which a neutral third party assists voluntary participants in their dispute.
Mediation is not:
- About deciding who is 'right' or 'wrong'
- Apportioning blame
- About focussing on the past any more than is necessary to help the disputants to work out the way forward in the future.
Mediators do not offer advice. Instead, they support disputants to find mutually acceptable solutions.
How do we train mediators in school?
We begin with a series of class activities focussing on expressing feelings and co-operation.
We then choose an equal number of boys and girls to give the training to. This involves: playing a variety of games with the aim making an atmosphere of co-operation & fun. We use a video, which contains examples of what good mediation techniques are. Finally we practice mediating.
We then have an assembly to tell the rest of the children who the Chums are and how mediation works at Chivenor.
| Year | Chums |
|---|---|
| Year 5 | Finlay, Logan, Connor, Mya, Jordan, Chloe, Rourke |
| Year 6 | Laura, Adam, Elesse, Brandon, Charlene, Tyrell, Lauryn, Megan, Blake |
House Captains
There are four Houses at Chivenor - Bader, Cheshire, Gibson and Johnson.
New House Captains and Vice-Captains from Year 6 are elected every half term by Key Stage 2 children at house meetings.
| House | House Captains - Spring Term 2011 |
|---|---|
| Bader | House Captain - Ryan Vice Captain - Kynan House Captain - Paris Vice Captain - Monique |
| Cheshire | House Captain - Blake |
| Gibson | House Captain - Ben Vice Captain - Tyreese House Captain - Megan Vice Captain - Olivia |
| Johnson | House Captain - Jack Vice Captain - Louis House Captain - Lauryn Vice Captain - Olivia |