The Parent Staff Association.
Otherwise known as the PSA, it is essentially a group of dedicated parents, working closely with the school in order to provide a better learning environment for the one thing they have in common, the children.
Be it fundraising, running events, spreading awareness about potential issues, they play a vital part in many schools, even though they’re often behind the scenes.
As the daughter of the head of the PSA, I have had first hand experience with the effort they out into their roles.
In my school, there is an annual christmas fair, something the whole community enjoys to get into the christmas spirit and so, members of the PSA spend a mind-blowing amount of time in preparation to make the best they possibly can.
I have seen, every single morning, in the foyer of the school, no matter whether the streets were slick with ice or not, PSA members collecting any donations they could possibly sell.
I have been going to bed, and overheard a PSA zoom call in full swing, discussing finance, logistics, volunteers, every single facet of a fair you could think of.
And I have helped setting up the fair, watching people cover pillars in red and white, or organise the most chaotic cupboards into things that could be sold, somehow turning a couple soap sets into a £40 hamper.
But what astonished me the most is that many of them had a full time job on top of this yet they chose to help out, to support the school and children inside.
So next time that you attend a school fundraising event or buy clothes for a second-hand sale, I hope you feel a sense of appreciation for, most likely, the busy workers of the PSA out of sight.
Spending their time, effort and money even, they deserve a lot of love.
