Student Leadership

At Our Lady's RC High School we see it as fundamental for the future development of our pupils, that they are exposed to experiences that allow them to develop their own leadership skills. This is done through the curriculum with pair or group work being seen as fundamental to our practice across different curriculum areas. Distinct roles are also available throughout the school that afford pupils the opportunity to take on extra responsibility and begin to understand the key principles of accountability, reliability and professionalism. These are listed below:

• Student Librarians

KS3 and KS4 pupils have the opportunity to volunteer as student librarians during their time at Our Lady’s RC High School and support the culture of reading within the school. Within this role, pupils work on a rota to support Mrs Coles in the management of the library during social time. This role sees pupils supporting the checking in/out of books as well as general organisation and management of the book stock. 

• GIFT Chaplains

KS3 and KS4 pupils have the opportunity to become GIFT chaplains during their time at Our Lady's RC High School, and support in embedding the distinct Catholic ethos that makes our school so special. Within this role, pupils lead our school in whole school worship, weekly and form Masses, and guided Rosary walks with the aid of our resident priest, Fr Nicholas.

• Digital Leaders

KS3 and KS4 pupils have the opportunity to become Digital Leaders during their time at Our Lady’s RC High School and support the digital life of the school. Within this role, pupils offer practical advice for both staff and pupils on how to utilise technology within their education to ensure they are benefitting from the platforms on offer, most notably, Google classroom and Kanexion.

• Sport Leaders

KS3 and KS4 pupils have the opportunity to become Sport Leaders during their time at Our Lady’s RC High School and support the engagement of sports and healthy life generally within the school. Within this role, pupils volunteer in their own time to develop their skills and qualities to confidently lead and help organise events within the school and the wider local community. This includes interacting with our primary network through events such as the “Manchester European Primary sports festival”. We also have a variety of captain roles, across a multitude of sports, with pupils having the opportunity to lead teams within a competitive environment. 

As well as these opportunities, we have additional leadership roles that support the effective deliverance of student voice at Our Lady’s.

• Student councillors

All pupils have the opportunity to apply to sit on the student council on a yearly basis. The student council is split into five action teams, that can be seen below and meet on a weekly basis, during form time, to discuss initiatives and areas for improvement regarding their remits. These meetings are chaired by a deputy prefect, who then meets with Head Prefects and SLT in turn to present the ideas of the pupils within the action groups. 

• Welfare

• Eco/sustainability
• Communications
• Rewards
• Diversity

• Prefects 

In year 11, pupils are invited to apply for a perfect role at Our Lady’s RC High School and lead the democratic systems within the wider school. Prefects are allocated to one of the following roles upon appointment:

• Year group links
  • These Prefects work closely with the Head of Year and Assistant Head of Year of a specific year group to create and support initiatives which aim to develop the younger years in their care. They also work with form tutors to implement high standards and act as excellent role models to their younger peers.

• Student Council links
  • These Prefects chair the meetings of the different Student Council Teams seen above and pass on relevant information or ideas/initiatives to the Head Prefects for consideration

• Enrichment links
  • These Prefects work alongside staff to support the extracurricular life of the school. They help in the effective running of different activities and events throughout the school year and often organise their own clubs and initiatives to enrich the experience of pupils throughout the student body.

• Head Prefects
  • These Prefects manage the junior Prefects and act as a link between the pupil and staff body to raise questions, concerns or ideas for the consideration of SLT. There are 3 Head Prefects during any one academic year, with one of these being dedicated to the Religious Life of the School. 

Becoming a Prefect is a wonderful opportunity for pupils to develop many important skills including public speaking, leadership, negotiation, delegation and time management. As a school we look to create distinct opportunities for our Prefects to develop these skills explicitly, with them often leading presentations to both internal and external audiences.