Friends of Wistow School Association (FOWSA) is our wonderful PTA

FOWSA's VISION

FOWSA's vision is to welcome new parents to the school and work together to help support and develop the school, enhancing our children's education and surroundings through exciting fund-raising and promotional events.

We strive to support the school in any way we can and aspire to grow as a group, continuing to help the school grow and blossom.

Contact us: committeefowsa@gmail.com

Meet your committee

Rachel Wilson

I am a Wistow School parent and have lived in the village for nine years with my husband, two children and our two energetic Labradors! I have one child currently attending Wistow School,  the other started secondary school last year after his primary schooling at Wistow. I work as a manager at a theatre school in Leeds as well as running my own dance business. I teach ballroom and Latin dance classes to adults in Wistow and enjoy teaching the Wistow School children at Strictly Dance club, which I have done for the last eight years . From my years of involvement as a parent, club leader and volunteer, I have seen first hand the support and encouragement given to the children by Wistow School ( and the positive impact that has). I am pleased to support FOWSA to help the school continue to grow and thrive.

Lauren Mehr

I have lived in Wistow for 9 years and have two children in Wistow School. I volunteer at the school and love coming to read with the children and helping at the fairs. I have worked in Higher Education for 7 years and, in my spare time, I enjoy crafting with my family and going for long distance hikes with my friends. 

Sue Sampson

From 1991-1995 I was a Wistow School parent, when both my daughters attended.

After volunteering in school for a year, in1993 I became employed by Wistow School. As well as being a GTA, I was also the school cook (The first school cook at Wistow) for almost 25 years. I am now a GTA/HLTA and the Home School Link Worker.

In 2003 I went to Hull University and graduated with BA Honours in Teaching and Learning. I have also been the staff governor for 16 years (4 terms).

In the year 2000 I was elected as Chair of FOWSA. I have absolutely loved raising money which enables us to buy things for your children that the school budget does not allow. At present we have a strong, dedicated committee. I am looking forward to raising more money and supporting Mrs Cox and the children in school.

James Rotchell

My wife and I moved to the village in 2022 and are close neighbours of the school. Our eldest daughter joined school in September 2024 and has immediately settled, supported by the great environment and dedicated staff. Through FOWSA, I want to support the whole school community by targeting fundraising to support where it will have the greatest impact.

Victoria Bailey-Horne

I am a senior scientist at the Food and Environment Research Agency. I have lived in Wistow all my life and have some very fond memories of my own time at Wistow School, and the events organised by FOWSA. My oldest daughter was at Wistow before moving on to High School. I joined FOWSA this year and look forward to working alongside the other FOWSA committee members to organise events to help raise money for the children of Wistow School.

Emma Brearley

I am married with two children. As well as being a parent at the school for several years, I also work at the school as a General Teaching Assistant (GTA). My background mainly has been management in Early Years and I have experience of volunteering and working alongside committees. I attended Wistow School as a child and remember FOWSA and am now looking forward to supporting FOWSA to help the school be the best it can be!

Sally Meadows

I spent my childhood in Wistow. I later moved back with my husband to raise my two girls in the village i grew up in. My eldest daughter is in early years at Wistow school, and I wanted to be more involved with the school and the local community, and thought that a great way to have a positive influence would be by joining the PTA (FOWSA).

Congratulations to one of our children in Bolton Class.

The winner of the FOWSA logo competition.

Wistow School Summer Fair

The fair will be held on Friday 11th July at 1.30pm.

We need your help with the following:

• Volunteers to run a stall/game
• Raffle prizes
• Cake donations (on the day please)

If you can help with a stall, please contact myself or a committee member.

Thank you

Sue Sampson

We listened to you!

A date for your diaries.

FOWSA and the village hall committee have got together and are arranging a Race Night, for adults. The event

will take place in the village hall on Saturday 22nd November. There will be more information to follow but for now don't forget to add the date in your diary. 

2024 - 2025

A letter from James Rotchell to the parents

The Hub

At the Christmas Fair, I offered last-minute help—hoping it wouldn’t be needed—but was warmly welcomed. Arriving early, I had a brief visit to the staff room and was struck by how overcrowded and impractical it was. A quick chat with staff confirmed my impression: the space is outdated and inadequate, unchanged for 30 years.

At the next FOWSA meeting, I shared these concerns, and we unanimously agreed on the importance of improving the working environment for our dedicated staff. As a result, FOWSA will support a much-needed transformation of the staff room into “The Hub”—a modern, functional space.

Beyond offering staff a more comfortable and effective break area, The Hub will serve multiple purposes, including music lessons for children and a private meeting space for parents and teachers. This simple yet impactful overhaul will benefit the whole school community.

Easter Fair - Friday 28th March

The FOWSA Easter fair is always full of fun, smiles and chocolate! Our team stepped into action to pull together a fabulous fair and it was great to have to so many of you come and support the event and spend your money.

Thank you to all of you who donated chocolate and other items for the fair, we couldn't do these things without your support.

We are pleased to share with you, that the overall total raised was £ 1006!

A huge thank you to everyone involved in our growing FOWSA team, the Wistow staff and all our kind volunteers for their hard work, energy and enthusiasm.

FOWSA General Meeting - Thursday 13th February 2025

Annual AGM

Our annual AGM was a huge success, welcoming 6 new members to our team.  The meeting was buzzing with new ideas and a renewed focus to further develop our already busy schedule of fundraising events. The team are looking forward to discussing these ideas in more detail and making plans for upcoming events in the next general meeting, to be held at The Black Swan, 7.30pm, on Thursday 13th February.  All are welcome and we look forward to seeing more new faces.  Please come along and support the team in their ongoing work to provide experiences and recourses to benefit all pupils in Wistow School.

FOWSA Committee Members

Sue Sampson - Chair

Lynda Adams - Treasurer

Rachel Wilson - Secretary

James Rochel - Secretary

Sally McLachlan

Victoria Bailey

Emma Brearley

Lauren Mehr

2023 - 2024

Welcome to the PTA 

If you have any spare time, you can help support the school by volunteering to help as a member of FOWSA.

FOWSA runs totally on volunteers and we help the school in a variety of ways. Over the course of the year we run different events to raise money for school, from fairs to competitions.

We have treated the children to trips, theatre visits, resources in class, a sensory lamp, books, the school website and much, much more. 

So please if you can help, the school would appreciate it. Speak to Mrs Sampson, Mrs Adams or Mr Bond if you would like to help in any way. 

These were our winners for the decorate an egg competition, from Egg Sheeran to a ballerina egg, they were all unique and caught the judges eye! Well done to all who entered and every child has been awarded a prize.

FOWSA CHRISTMAS FAIR

FOWSA SUMMER FAIR

Another fabulous event run by FOWSA raising money to support the school. The sun shone and the people came and it was great afternoon full of games, prizes and laughter.