Greenbank School: Community spirit and Christmas offerings.
Community is the most important word in the dictionary according to staff, pupils and parents at Greenbank Preparatory School and Day Nursery in Cheadle Hulme. The school prides itself on being one big family, with an open door policy which means that parents have constant access to the school and its staff in order for all parties to be able to collaborate and establish fantastic relationships which allow Greenbank’s children to have the best possible outcomes.
With the festive period approaching, Greenbank’s community spirit is once again out in full force as Mrs Aizlewood and the Year Six children prepare to visit residents in the local area with Christmas offerings of tea and coffee and personalised Greenbank holiday cards to wish their neighbours the very best for the season. Greenbank strongly believes in forging close links with the local community and long-standing Marketing and Media Manager, Lyndsey Aizlewood has been heavily involved in this, organising a pen pal scheme between Year Five students and care home residents, as well as lockdown care packages and gifts for different occasion. ‘It is important to teach our children about the importance of community from a young age,’ explains Mrs Aizlewood, ‘in the hope that they will take our teachings as morals to live by and turn out to be active and considerate members of their own local communities when they grow up.’
Greenbank have been a regular sight at local care homes during the Christmas period, delighting residents with festive carols and engaging conversation. They also support the local Chelwood Food Bank with their harvest concert and donations every October. Charities Day in the summer term gives students the opportunity to nominate local charities to support through school-based fundraising activities, with Wilmslow Animal Sanctuary and Francis House Hospice being the most recent grateful beneficiaries. There are many other community projects also in the pipeline, one of the most exciting being their alliance with the Friends of Hesketh Park, whom the Greenbank Gardening Club will be assisting in the maintenance of their well-loved, community space. Greenbank’s involvement in the local community is one of the reasons that the school and its pupils are so highly-regarded in the local area, and their continued dedication to being good neighbours will ensure that bond between Greenbank and the Cheadle Hulme will only strengthen in the years to come.
