The last day of a gloriously sunny week saw a number of eager Year 12 students get stuck in to a range of community volunteering activities as part of the annual Community Day. This year’s event was the school’s third Community Day, organised in partnership with the Brun Bear Foundation.
In small groups, the students worked on a variety of activity in a range of settings, from local primary schools to public civic spaces, including:
- Outdoor maintenance at Rushey Green Primary School
- Clearing brambles at Wild Cat Wilderness forest school
- Classroom support at St Winifred’s Primary School
- Grounds maintenance at Nunhead Cemetary
- Maintenance and removing invasive plants from the River Ravensbourne at Ladywell Fields, and at Beckenham Place Park
- Gardening at the therapeutic garden of St Mary’s Church
- Building a pizza oven for Sydenham Garden’s wellbeing garden
- Indoor and outdoor painting at 5 Steps Nursery
- Designing leaflets for Signal Family Support charity
A full report of the day from the Brun Bear Foundation can be viewed here: From pizza ovens to cemetery restoration: Third annual community day sees record student participation
Student reports from the day included:
“As part of our activity, my group volunteered with Signal Family Support, a support group for families with autistic children and young adults (aged 25 and under). Our main task was to design flyers, posters, and leaflets promoting upcoming events, such as a teen group, financial workshop, and general activities. We also supported admin duties like stamping and preparing letters for postage. Our day was spent in an office setting where we were assigned roles by a staff member and worked independently and creatively. I took the initiative to design materials tailored to specific audiences, ensuring they were clear, accessible, and engaging. This volunteering had a meaningful impact by helping the charity communicate effectively with its community, encouraging more participation in their events. Personally, I gained confidence, improved my creative and teamwork skills, and developed a better understanding of community support work. I would strongly recommend that Colfe’s continue this partnership next year – it’s a valuable and rewarding experience. It has inspired me to continue volunteering when I can, knowing the difference it makes.”
Daniel, Y12
“During volunteering day, I and my group helped out at 5 Steps Nursery in Deptford, by completing tasks to make the courtyard of the nursery more presentable to the public. We first painted the legs of chairs, replacing the peeling paint with a neater black, making them appear less worn. Then, whilst I weeded out plants growing on the courtyard, others tied curtain strips on the gates to block out dust on windy days, and we all did some litter picking, leaving the nursery exterior very tidy. The staff highly appreciated our work, and were pleased with our ideas, particularly the developing of new art for their walls near the garden (perhaps an endeavour to be completed for the next year of volunteers from Colfe’s).”
Oyin, Y12
