Hello!

A huge welcome to everyone that is new to the school and welcome back to everyone else. For those that don’t know us yet, we are Friends of Ambler.

What is Friends of Ambler?
A charity set up to fundraise, apply for grants and put on events with the sole aim of making Ambler Primary School and Children’s Centre even more wonderful than it already is. 

We run “just for fun” events for the kids such as discos, movie nights and the winter day of fun. We also put on lots of fundraising events such as the silent auction and the summer fair. We have a tradition of evening events for adults – ranging from quiz nights to comedy nights to live bands! 

How does Friends of Ambler support the school?

We raise money to enable school trips for all, pay for big projects, help fund workshops, buy equipment and assist with other school-led initiatives. The school would not have any of these extras without Friends of Ambler. 

In 2022-23 Friends of Ambler funded:

• Sensory room, £20,000
• Equipment (iPads for every classroom, yoga equipment, book stairs), £8,500
• School trips, £8,400
• Workshops (e.g. virtual reality, indoor planetarium, first aid) - £5,000
• Arts week and other arts projects - £2,500

This is a fantastic achievement that wouldn’t have been possible without the help and contributions of Ambler families. Given the increasing economic challenge the school faces, it is more important than ever for everyone to get involved, especially families lower down the school. We need to replace the families moving on at the top of the school to keep the momentum up.

Who decides where the money gets spent?

When it comes to spending the money, we are completely school-led. We also aim to benefit as many pupils as possible.

None of the projects mentioned above would be possible without Friends of Ambler.

How do I get involved?

If you are interested in joining the Friends of Ambler or one of the Ambler communities, please fill out this form or email us on friendsofambler@gmail.com. Ways to get involved include: 

- volunteer at events. We are always grateful for volunteers who sign up to run a stall, help set up or help clear up events. We cannot do these events without extra hands and the more people the less work all round! 

- provide a particular skill. The Ambler community is full of amazingly talented individuals. So have a think about what you can bring to the table! From baking delicious treats for events or helping with heavy lifting to DJing skills and being a dab hand at face painting. Let us know what you can do as every little bit helps!  

- help apply for grants. As well as putting on events, Friends of Ambler apply for grants on behalf of the school. If you have any experience in this area, we would be very grateful for extra help. 

- see if your employer does match funding. Some employers will match your donations. So if you are feeling generous, you might find your donation can go even further with the help of your employer. Equally, if you volunteer at an event your employer could match what we raise through platforms like Benevity, Bright Funds, Charityvest, YourCause or others. Please check with your employer’s HR department.
 
- give a one-off donation or donate regularly. If you are short of time but in a position to do so, please donate money through https://cafdonate.cafonline.org/15071.

- EasyFundraising App. Where possible utilise the EasyFundraising App in any of your online purchases. The App covers 7000+ retailers and donates a percentage of your spend to Friends of Ambler at no cost to you! Please select ‘Friends of Ambler - London’ as the cause you’d like to support when setting up your profile.

 

Click below to download the App now

Ambler Community Fund

If you can, please also remember to put money into the Ambler Community Fund to help other Ambler families with clubs, school trips and other school costs: https://cafdonate.cafonline.org/21741.

This is different from our usual fundraising efforts and the money does not go to improving the school generally. It goes to individual families to ensure that all Ambler pupils have the same school experience. Anyone needing support from the Ambler Community Fund should speak to the school.
 

(Volunteers Needed!)

Grow Ambler is part of Friends of Ambler, but it is the branch that focuses on the school from an environmental perspective. Initiatives include gardening days once a term where we tidy up the school grounds, have a picnic, spread woodchip on the paths, plant and maintain the planters and forest space. We also work with the school to improve things from an environmental perspective.

Barbara Rainbird and Carolyn Payne have done an amazing job running Grow Ambler for quite a few years but they are now stepping down. Please get in touch by emailing friendsofambler@gmail.com if you are interested in getting involved; it would be really sad to lose the gardening days.

(Arts for All)

Ambler Arts is the branch of Friends of Ambler that works closely with the school to offer an enriching arts curriculum and extracurricular art activities. Ambler Arts has supported a breadth of creative projects like the annual Arts Week, the Apollo music project, football cage graffiti, pottery workshops, gallery & museum trips as well as workshops.

Again, if this is where your interests lie, please get in touch as Natalia Yanez-Stiel and Illiana Ortega-Alcazar could do with some extra support.