Friends of St Dunstan's
Friends of St Dunstan’s is the name given to our whole-College Parent Teacher Association. The aim of Friends of St Dunstan’s College (‘Friends’) is to enrich the educational, social, spiritual, and family life of the College through whole-College community events, as well as social and leisure activities. Friends aims in every way to enhance the standing and good name of St Dunstan’s College within our local and broader community. Friends also aims to raise funds for the benefit of the pupils, the College, and local and national charities, in pursuit and support of the wider strategic aims and development of the Foundation.
Every member of the parent body is considered to be a Friend of St Dunstan’s. Throughout the year the team organises a range of social, fundraising and marketing events and have regular meetings with the Head of Junior School and our Heads of Operations. We see our parents as being an integral part of our St Dunstan’s community and we relish any opportunity to include the Friends of St Dunstan’s committee in as many events as possible, from the Cheese and Wine to the Christmas Fair or Summer Fete, our parent representatives are always there to support, organise and celebrate key events across the school year.
Friends uses Classlist as our primary means of communication to all members of the parent body at St Dunstan’s College. If you are a parent and have not yet signed up, please sign up here.
For the very latest Friends news and dates of upcoming events visit here.
Meet the Committee
The Friends of St Dunstan’s Committee is made up of seven parent volunteers and four College staff members.
Parent Members
- David Tong – Joint Chair
- Zena Beaumont – Joint Chair
- David Pearson – Vice Chair
- Anne Bowers - Junior School Representative
- Cyrilia Knight – Junior School Representative
- Zoe Baggi– Senior School Representative
- Paddy Redding -Senior School Representative
Staff Members
- Laura Whitwood (Head of Junior School) – Joint Chair
- Teresa Beard (Head of Administrative Services and Events) - Secretary
- Mark Bacon (Head of Building Operations)
- Louise Abell (Classlist and Committee Administrator) – Co-opted Staff Member
The parent volunteers on the committee have children across College, including both the Junior and Senior School, and have a range of different backgrounds and experiences. Having worked in professions such as catering, events management, law, education, fashion, human resourcing, the military, project management, financial services and technology, they bring a range of different skills to their roles within the committee. Living in South-East London, for them, being a part of Friends, is all about giving back to this incredibly diverse, inclusive and cohesive community. Our parent representatives are extremely proud of St Dunstan's and the impact the school can make within our local and broader community.
Getting Involved
Friends is supported by a number of parent volunteers (Year Group Reps) across the College community with a reach of up to 2000 parents. Those involved are mainly working parents who are willing to give up a small amount of time for the benefit of all our children and the St Dunstan's community. In the past, our parent association has raised enough funds for:
· College bus (£30k)
· Climbing resources and equipment (£20k)
· Local charities (e.g. Lewisham Foodbank £3k)
· Y6 and Y13 leavers' events
In the future, we hope to support the ongoing plans for the exciting and ambitious College new build initiatives.
We are always looking for parent volunteers across the College, to either join the committee, be a Year Group Rep, to help out at events or support our College Shop. Friends, like St Dunstan’s College, is a diverse, inclusive community and we encourage and welcome all parents to join and support us. You can give as much or as little time as you like, when you like and we are positive that you will enjoy your time with the team, making new friends in the process. If you would like to support us, please do get in touch via email at: friends@stdunstans.org.uk
Events
Friends organise and run a number of social events throughout the year, the main events being:
· Cheese and Wine – Michaelmas Term (late September)
· Christmas Fair – Michaelmas Term (late November/early December)
· Quiz Night – Lent Term (early March)
· Summer Fete – Trinity Term (late June/early July)
Other smaller College community events are supported through either Friends funding or individual Year Rep events. Please do look out for updates on all our events and initiatives on Classlist or in the weekly College newsletter.
College Shop
Location: The Atrium
Opening Times: Every Tuesday (16:00-17:00) and Friday (1600-1730) - term time only
The Friends of St Dunstan’s College Shop stocks a vast variety of second-hand uniform and other College, Dunstonians and Friends merchandise.
All uniform items may be found here, from blazers, ties, jumpers, trousers and skirts to sports kit. Please do come along, our wonderful College Shop volunteers will be happy to help you find a bargain!
Uniform donations are always gratefully received. Please drop off any donations of washed, unwanted uniform at the College Shop during opening hours or at the College Office any time during the school day. If you have any stock enquiries, questions about the College Shop or would like to volunteer to help us, please email at: collegeshop@stdunstans.org.uk
Key Documents
News
Friends of St Dunstan’s Christmas Fair November 2024
For the first time in its history the Friends Christmas Fair was held partly outside this year, with many stalls, food & drink offerings and attractions in front of the College with lots of exciting activities for all the children. There were also fundraising activities for Lewisham Donation Hub and other local charities. The main market was located inside a very busy Refectory, selling an amazing variety of wares, from socks & scarves, jewellery, ceramics, jams, toys & sweets to Christmas decorations and comics & collectibles!
Fortunately the weather was superb throughout the day and we’ve had nothing but fantastic feedback from all those who attended. Thank you so much to all the parent and College staff volunteers who made this an occasion that will be fondly remembered!
The Friends Committee wishes everyone in our community a very Merry Christmas!
Friends visit Lewisham Foodbank and make £1000 donation May 2024
Friends of St Dunstan’s Quiz Night March 2024
Twenty teams of parents across almost all year groups in the College competed in a high stakes night for the 2024 Quiz Champions Trophy and medals. Team “Pizza Drama” (Year 3) eventually won by 3 ½ points, beating “Bad Education” (Year 8) into second place with teams from Year 2 and 5 only a further point behind. This event was held in support of Lewisham Foodbank and this year we were very happy to welcome, as our guests, a team of Lewisham Foodbank volunteers @lewishamfoodbank (Instagram), @lewishamfood (X). Please consider volunteering your time or donating here https://lewisham.foodbank.org.uk/
A huge ‘Thank you!’ must go to out wonderful team of quizmasters of College staff, who all graciously volunteered their time to prepare tricky but entertaining questions and host the Quiz Night!
See you all again next year for another fun and exciting evening! Who will win the Champions Trophy and medals next time?
Friends makes £1000 donation to Lewisham Foodbank July 2023
Friends of St Dunstan’s committee members visited Lewisham Foodbank at the Hope Centre in Forest Hill on Tuesday 4th July to present a cheque for £1000 from funds raised following their Quiz Night event in March. The team met with the dedicated, hardworking volunteers at the centre and learnt about the immense support they provide daily to the local community. Around 2500 families and individuals are provided with food and essentials each month, with support for fuel costs also now being offered. To highlight its important work, Lewisham Foodbank is the Mayoral charity partner for 2023 as designated by Lewisham Council. If you are interested in how you can help please go to https://lewisham.foodbank.org.uk/
Friends AGM July 2023
At the AGM on Thursday 6th July, Friends said a sad goodbye to Fen (Y13 parent) who has now left the College community as her son has graduated. Fen has been managing the College Shop for over 12 years and was principally responsible for ensuring it's survival and having a permanent space in the Atrium (it used to be in the College basement!). We presented Fen with leaving gifts at the AGM and listened to her many shop stories! Friends continues to manage the shop with a number of Senior School parents. It would be really great to have some Junior School helpers in that team! We also wished Miss Whitwood all the best as she goes on maternity leave.
Friends of St Dunstan’s Summer Fete July 2023
The Summer Fete was fabulously held on Saturday 1st July. Thank you to everyone who came to our Summer Fete and especially to those of you who volunteered to help. We really hope you had a wonderful time with your families! Have a lovely summer and we'll see you again next year for more amazing events!
Friends of St Dunstan's make donation to Lewisham Donation Hub June 2023
Friends of St Dunstan’s delivered donations of tech and other items from the St Dunstan’s College community on Thursday 22nd June to Lewisham Donation Hub, a local registered charity supporting the needs of local people . If you want to donate tech, Friends have placed blue boxes in the Junior School and main College Offices for collection. Remember to wipe your devices! For more details about LDH see https://lewishamdonationhub.org/
Friends of St Dunstan’s Quiz March 2023
Friday 3 March saw the return of the most exciting and competitive community social event of the year, the Friends of St Dunstan’s Quiz Night!
Twenty teams from virtually all year groups competed over 7 rounds in the Great Hall, enjoying friendly conversation, while feasting on some delicious food and drink.
A Year 4 team “Quiz Truss” were the clear winners, taking the Champions Trophy and medals by 9 points, with “Tequila Mocking Bird” coming in second. It was a closely fought contest in the chasing pack with just two points separating five teams in the second to fourth positions. “Tequila Mocking Bird” didn’t lose out however as they won the award for the best team name!
A much deserved ‘Thank you!’ goes to our quizmasters Sonia and Justin (Y11 parents) and to the Friends team and parent and staff volunteers for once again organising a wonderfully fun evening for all our community. They look forward to seeing you a next year for another fun night out! Who will win the Champions Trophy and medals next time? This event was held in support of ‘Lewisham Foodbank’ raising recognition and much needed funds for this local charity. Please consider giving here https://qrco.de/bcRsaB (add ref: SDCQuiz).
Friends of St Dunstan’s Cheese & Wine Evening September 2022
On Friday 30 September, Friends of St Dunstan’s held its first social occasion of the new academic year bringing together the Whole College community, providing a huge, friendly welcome to all parents old and new. As usual, a varied selection of food and drink was made available, along with a plethora of cheese and wines, there was a selection of beers, samosas, fruits as well as vegan and non-alcoholic alternatives. This has always been a popular event and a great opportunity to meet with fellow parents, year reps and members of the Friends committee, however this year was exceptional, being extremely well attended with over 300 tickets sold. This was a marked increase on the previous year, raising ample funds that will be directed back into our community for the benefit of our children.
A big thank you to everyone who came and especially those of you who volunteered to help make this a truly special and fabulous occasion. We really hope you all had a wonderful time and look forward to seeing you at our next event!
