What is Courageous Advocacy?
"By way of a working definition, when using the term ‘courageous advocacy’ we are referring to the act of speaking out against an issue of injustice, often on behalf of those whose voice is not heard. Speaking out, at whatever level this takes place, requires an element (and sometimes a great deal) of courage! Becoming a courageous advocate for change, therefore, must involve being informed about an issue and it must move beyond simply knowing, to saying and doing. ....courageous advocacy must embody an ethos of action-taking, challenging injustice and becoming agents of change in the transformation of ourselves, our relationships and our communities from the local level to the global."
"Courageous Advocacy", Caroline Weir - Global Neighbours Programme Coordinator Christian Aid, Church of England Education Office
It's our belief that everyone has the power to change the world for the better. To this end, we know that all of our pupils and our whole school community has the potential to be advocates of change, and we both encourage and celebrate them taking responsibility for doing this within the school community and wider afield.
Throughout our school, and in particular our PSHE and RE curriculums, we learn of opportunities for social action and where appropriate to challenge injustice. Every child learns about courageous advocates from across the globe, both past and present, that have faced injustice and overcome barriers in order to help others for the greater good. As part of their learning, the children reflect on what injustice these courageous advocates have faced and how they changed the world for the better.
We have an Eco Warriors Committee who are very active at driving our school forward in becoming more sustainable and this is just one example of where our children are leading us to a better future. On their page, you can find out a little more about why these children have become 'agents of change' and are taking action to make their world a better place. You can also catch up on their 'Bee Barn Blog'.
Please see below where our children have used their energy and knowledge to make a positive impact on the world:
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Bronte cleans up! In a wonderful act of courageous advocacy,Bronte did a litter pick all around Hanwood Park and our school!
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Making Young People's Voices Count In a remarkable act of advocacy, our Esther has put herself forward to join the UK Youth Parliament.
The UK Youth Parliament is made up of more than 300 young people aged between 11 and 18 years, who are elected as Members of Youth Parliament (MYPs) to represent the views of their peers. It provides opportunities for young people to bring about social change through meaningful representation and campaigning. Key activities for the UK Youth Parliament include participating in regional roundtable events and undertaking a national ballot of UK-wide youth views, Make Your Mark. The MYPs also campaign locally, regionally and nationally throughout the year and deliver sessions with schools and in the community to engage young people with the democratic process.
As you can see below, Esther is already a huge advocate for supporting those with SEND (and their families) and removing barriers to education for all, and if you read her manifesto (she is Candidate #11), you can see how she is also passionate about climate activism/global warning. Anyone aged 11-18 in North Northamptonshire can vote, and we hope that you are able to put your support behind our amazing, courageous advocate-for-all, Esther.
"I participated in two workshops and completed in different activities to ensure the voice of young people is heard. I felt lucky that I got to be a part of the Youth Works Conference because it has encouraged many more people to do the same. I love changing things for people who are neurodivergent. " Esther, 11 |
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Swimming to support Cancer Research Krasi is taking part in Swimathon 2025, swimming 1500m to raise money for Cancer Research UK, Marie Curie & the Swimathon Foundation. These charities do great work for a cause that's very important to a lot of people. If you can, please donate to their fundraising project on GivenGain!
"When the opportunity came up to raise money I took it because it's nice to try new things, and I felt joy to honour my Grandma" Krasi, 9 |
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Raising awareness on #RareDiseaseDay On Friday 28th February 2025, we were advocates for people around the world suffering from rare diseases. Rare Disease Day is a globally coordinated movement dedicated to rare diseases, striving for equity in social opportunities, healthcare, and access to diagnosis and therapies for people living with a rare disease. We all wore red for the day, and parents made online donations on the Rare Disease Day website.
Our very own Mrs Fraser was diagnosed with a rare illness recently and we used the day to raise awareness of the specific condition that she has - Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura or TTP. A rare blood disorder that affects between 6 to 10 people in every 1 million, TTP is an autoimmune condition, and people with it have a deficiency of the enzyme which normally prevents bleeding. This can form blood clots in small vessels that can then affect any organ. Mrs Fraser has become an advocate for those suffering with TTP and is doing her own fundraising. To donate to her cause, please visit her JustGiving page. |
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Esther advocates for SEND at the Youth Voice Conference Courageous Advocacy is not only about raising money, it is also about speaking up on behalf of those whose voices may not be heard. During the February half term, Esther did exactly that!
Esther attended the Youth Voice Conference 2025 which was delivered by young people for their peers with SEND, and was funded by the Department of Education. Esther attended the conference along with her participation group - Young people's Autism Advisory Project (YAAP) which is part of EnFold, a local autism charity. They travelled to Manchester together and when there, took part in workshops aimed at influencing policy and improving experiences for disabled people.
"I put myself forward to be a member of the UK Youth Parliament and I had to explain why it was important to me; there was then an election week to decide who would get in. I did it because it meant that I could change things for my community around me." Esther, aged 11
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Ivy donates her hair to The Little Princess Trust Ivy was a tremendous Courageous Advocate when she was able proudly to donate 18 inches of hair(!) and £1051 (including GiftAid) to The Little Princess Trust. The Little Princess Trust provides free real hair wigs to children and young people up to the age of 24, who have lost their own hair through cancer treatment or other conditions. They also fund childhood cancer research searching to find kinder and more effective treatments.
She was so brave, and we are incredibly proud of her kindness. Ivy and her fanily thank you for your support and kind donations helping to add to her fundraising total.
"I had 18 inches cut off my hair to make a wig for someone who needed it and I felt happy that I was helping someone." Ivy, aged 8
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Lewis spreads Christmas Cheer Lewis has shown incredible #courageousadvocacy as he realised that not every child is as fortunate as him or the pupils in our school. He wanted to make sure every child enjoyed Christmas and began a collection (along with his family) to make sure this happens. Here he is at our one of our regular coffee mornings at the start of his campaign. Lewis also went on the school gates with Mr Albert and Mrs Jones to collect more! He raised almost £70 in the first few days, along with some wonderful donations of brand new toys which were also ready to pass on to deserving children. On the Sunday before Christmas, he visited Kettering General Hospital Children's Ward with a local Scooter Club, where he delivered 86 wrapped presents. Both the hospital and Scooter Club were hugely impressed with Lewis and have asked him to help support them in the future!
"I raised money by doing a cake sale at school to buy Christmas presents for children who were less fortunate than me. I raised £70 and bought presents for boys and girls at Kettering General Hospital. Before Christmas, I went with my mum and dad to give these presents to the staff at the Hospital. I then got to meet some of the children that were being looked after at KGH. This made me feel amazing because I knew I had made some people's Christmases better!" - Lewis, age 9
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Eva raises awareness of Battens Disease Eva is in Year 6. In a fantastic example of courageous advocacy, Eva asked her if she could hold a day in school to raise awareness of Batten;s Disease which unfortunately afflicts her brother, Isaac, who was formerly a pupil at Hayfield Cross.
In addition to raising awareness, Eva also did some fundraising, organising a coffee morning/cake sale and a mufti day for the entire school, where everyone wore orange! As always, our community really got behind a worthy cause and the combined total that was raised for the Batten Disease Family Association (BDFA) was almost £1060 which is incredible and will go towards the great work that this charity does to help families just like Isaac’s.
Sarah Chandler, who works for the BDFA, attended the event and was stunned by your generosity. She said “…thank you so much for supporting Eva… It’s amazing to see such a supportive and generous community.” We have to echo Sarah’s opinion and I know that Eva, Isaac and their family would agree. |
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Mrs Sheehan will complete a full marathon hike in the Peak District alongside her wife and brother-in-law to raise money for Cancer Research. This is a personal cause for Mrs Sheehan in support of her mother-in-law who has been bravely battling cancer.
If you have a few spare pennies and would be able to sponsor her, click here to visit her sponsorship page.
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5* Accommodation for bugs courtesy of William
William is a member of our Eco-Club. After buying all of the different parts, William put them all together to make this luxurious bug hotel. William felt it was really important to to provide a safe home for wildlife and I'm sure you'll agree that this really is a des-res for insects and bugs of all kinds.
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Lily-Mai donates her hair to the Little Princess Trust
Lily-Mai bravely had her beautiful hair cut off to donate to the charity, The Little Princess Trust. The Trust provides free real hair wigs to children and young people, up to 24 years, who have lost their own hair through cancer treatment or other conditions. They also fund childhood cancer research searching to find kinder and more effective treatments.
"I had 12 inches cut off of my hair. I wanted to help children that needed it more than I did. I feel so proud of myself and happy that I have helped other people. I love my new hair even more knowing I have helped people." Lily-Mai, aged 7 |
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Mrs Hitchcock joins 'Strictly for Sebastian' to help raise money for vital treatment
Our very own Mrs Hitchcock volunteered to take part in a fundraising show to help raise money towards vital cancer treatment. Unfortunately, after 3.5 years of fighting Neuroblastoma, brave and beautiful Sebastian passed away on 28th January 2024 but with the blessing of his incredible family and with love and light, "Strictly for Sebastian" dances on! So much support has been received for the ‘Strictly for Team Sebastian’ fundraiser so far and after careful consideration, Mr & Mrs Nunney have decided that ALL money raised from this event will be donated to the children’s playroom at Northampton Hospital - a special place loved by Sebastian. The playroom's outdoor area is to be transformed, which will bring happiness to young patients across Northamptonshire aged 0 to 18 years old, facing incredibly hard and brave journeys. You can make a donation via the QR tag or link that was shared in our fortnightly newsletter, The Hayfield Herald, or by clicking on the image to the left.
We are all so very proud of her and Team Orange are fully behind her and all of the other performers.
"Sebastian was a child who goes to the same school as my children and also lived across the road from me. I have watched his situation sadly deteriorate. I have always been taught to help those in need but was unsure how I could possibly help?! Brambleside Primary school have held the odd fundraising event, which we as a family have joined in with. The opportunity then arose to join Strictly for Sebastian. I love dancing and I love helping people so completing the application was an easy decision! Not only do I get to meet new people and learn a new skill, but I also get to contribute in a big way to an important cause." Mrs Hitchcock |
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Our School Community held a 'Reverse Advent' to collect needed items for the Kettering Foodbank
The 'Team Orange Parents' (TOPs) contacted the Kettering foodbank before Christmas to find out what items were most needed. They then constructed an advent calendar where, instead of receiving a chocolate treat on the days of advent, they asked the parents and the school community to bring in a specific item. Items included long-life milk, coffee, tinned vegetables and noodles.
We are proud to part of our local area and realise how important it is to help those most in need.
'Lots of people are struggling to buy food at the moment, so it's really important for people to donate food to help others. I really enjoyed going to the foodbank and I felt proud to be donating and helping our community' - Tamiyah, aged 9 |
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Doing our part for 'Save The Children'
In the run-up to Christmas 2023, we joined with others up and down the country to hold a special, Christmas Jumper day. In return for taking part in the themed 'mufti' day, pupils and staff were asked to make a donation to the 'Save the Children ' charity fund. As always, our community donated very generously, even in spite of many charitable events going on at this time and with the expense of Christmas looming, and we raised a fantastic £273.42 for the deserving charity.
Save The Children is an international charity that has helped over 45 million children worldwide. As a school, when we are looking to make a difference and support others, we have different lens' which we look through: school, local, national and global. |
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Discussing the sustainability of our school with the Mayor of Kettering
When the Mayor of Kettering, Emily Fedorowycz, visited the school in November of 2023, our Eco-Council took the opportunity to discuss environmental issues and the school's sustainability with the Member of the Green Party. The children are very passionate about the environment and what we can do to protect it on a global and local scale and were interested to hear Emily's ideas and suggestions, whilst also sharing their own thoughts and visions.
Emily has promised to return to follow up on their talk and find out how the children have progressed with their campaigns.
'I wanted to join the Eco-Committee because of Global Warming, so I joined to make people aware of what they can do to help. I think it is important because some people are careless and don't care about our planet and I am doing my best to persuade them to realise how important this is.' - Max, aged 11 |
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Wearing Orange for 'Team Sebastian'
Along with many other schools in our local area, we took part in fund-raising for Sebastian Nunney, a brave young man living with Neuroblastoma. Sebastian's favourite colour is orange and so he wanted school pupils to wear orange for the day to raise money for his vital treatment. As we're always Team Orange, we modified our own mufti day and went for wearing bright clothes instead. Our school mufti day raised well over £500 for this very worthy cause and a Team Sebastian stall which was held outside also raised £200. An incredible amount of support form our school community.
To pledge your support for Sebastian's treatment, you can click on the photo to the left or on the header of this article and they will both take you to his fundraising page. |
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A real 'gourd'-getter!
Courageous Advocacy comes in all shapes and sizes and when Hayfield Cross pupils have a cause they believe in, they always go above and beyond. Amélie loves her school and decided to raise funds for us by selling gourds that she had grown and then decorated. Through her kindness and generosity, she raised a wonderful £53.50 for school funds.
Not only did Amélie get behind a cause that she believed in, she also demonstrated fantastic entrepreneurial skills. Could she be the next Apprentice?
"I had been growing gourds with my mum and sister at our allotment and we managed to grow more than we could use. We didn't need a lot for our family but had lots of fun spending time at the allotment together. I had lots of googly eyes and craft stuff at home so thought it would be a really nice idea to share them with the rest of the school. I wanted to help raise as much money as I could for our amazing school so decided to sell them to other children." - Amelie, aged 8 |
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Year 6 pupils help organise a MacMillan Coffee Morning
We are always very proud of our pupils, but when some of our Year 6 pupils asked our staff if they could help run this year's MacMillan Cake sale to raise money for Cancer Research, we were absolutely delighted. They produced promotional flyers, communicated with parents and, on the day itself, helped run the event itself.
We will always look to support our pupils when they show courageous advocacy and show passion for a cause.
'I specifically wanted to do some fundraising for Cancer as my Grampy had died recently and I wanted to raise awareness with other people. I wanted to raise money so hopefully one day no other family has to go through what we did.' - Robyn, aged 11 |
