Student Leadership
At St John Henry Newman, we firmly believe in the power of the student voice. We provide students with a number of different leadership opportunities whilst they are at school, ranging from our Senior Student Leadership Team, Head Boy and Head Girl to Student Council Representatives and Tutor Representatives. We believe that it is imperative to give students a voice and to take their opinions and views on board, looking to change and improve things where we can.
Aims of student leadership
- Student centred – we want students to feel that they can contribute towards the school and make real change that matters to them
- Student leadership will be purposeful provide students with the key skills for life outside of school
- Drive positive change and feel that they have a voice
- Develop active citizens who make a positive contribution to society (e.g. fundraising, eco initiatives, school of sanctuary, catholic life)
- To prepare them for their journey after SJHN and develop their key skills
- Instil the importance of British Values
Student leadership model
Wider student leaders: All students across the school who have the opportunity to contribute (e.g. tutor representatives, anti-bullying ambassadors, cultural diversity, reading mentors). This also includes our year 11 prefects.
Student council: Each tutor group has two student council representatives who meet with the Junior and Senior Student Leaders each half term. They gain feedback from their tutor groups prior to share at the meetings.
Junior student leaders: Two students from each year group who represent their year group in surgery sessions with key stakeholders and student council meetings.
Senior student leaders: The post 16 student leadership team, comprising of the Head Boy and Girl, Deputies, Senior prefect and senior student leadership team. They oversee the student leadership model.
The student leadership model will enable a two-way communication system between the students and school through regular meetings, including half termly surgeries and half termly student council meetings.
Senior student leadership team: Head Boy and Head Girl
In Year 12 have students have the opportunity to apply for the role of Head Boy and Head Girl. This is the pinnacle of student leadership, and the role comes with a detailed job description which both challenges and develops the leadership skills of those students selected. The schools current Senior Student Leadership for 2026-27 are:
Introduction from our Head Boy and Head Girl
"My name is Shepherd Ashraf and I am a Y13 sixth-form student at SJHN. I am thankful to have the chance to serve as Head Boy this year. I wanted to take part in Student Leadership as I wanted to give something back to the school community which has supported me during my time at the school. The teachers, the staff and the students have all contributed to my development, and becoming Head Boy seemed to be a worthwhile chance to return some of that support. I hope this year to contribute in a positive way to life at school by making sure that students feel that their views are being heard, that they are supported and are encouraged to take part. I also want to help in building up the sense of community in our school and to make it an enjoyable and memorable experience for all. I believe that other students should take part in Student Leadership since it offers the opportunity to make a real difference, acquire new skills, and give something back to the community which we all belong to."
"My name is Olivia Warner and I am currently studying Psychology, Geography, and Biology in sixth form at SJHN. Ever since I joined Newman, I have been a part of the student council from a Student Council Rep to Talking Points Leader and now to Head Girl. I’ve always enjoyed bringing student’s suggestions forward to the council, acting as their voice and giving the chance to make a positive contribution to the school in a way that can improve everyone’s time here. As Head Girl, I want everyone to be heard so we can make a real difference this year, so I really hope to encourage students to get involved in the Student Council, whether that be through becoming their tutors representative or an anonymous suggestion box, as it strengthens our school community and brings forward new, unique ideas enabling us to make Saint John Henry Newman the best it can be."
KS3/4 School Leadership Roles
Students in Year 7-11 can apply to become part of our student leadership team. Roles that they can apply for are:
- Faith in Action Leaders
- Student Voice and Wellness Leaders
- Standards and Enrichment Leaders
- Student Council Representative
- Junior Student Leaders – Head Boy and Girl
- Subject ambassadors.
The Junior Student Leaders (Head Boy and Girl) are the main student leader in each year group, working alongside their head of year to shape and make change in their year group.
Student Council
The Student Council is an integral part of our school community, as developing the student voice is paramount to promoting change. The purpose of the student council is to communicate their ideas and suggestions about a wide variety of issues. Pupils are encouraged to develop skills to help them communicate, think about important issues, express and justify opinions and contribute to discussions and debates. Minutes of the meetings are taken and shared with staff and students. They can also be viewed on our school website. A list of actions is drawn up and then students are informed of any decisions made via tutor discussions, assemblies and the weekly review.
As our Student Council is all about developing the student voice, students take part in an Election Campaign to democratically vote on their tutor’s representative. Students are encouraged to write speeches or make promotional videos and deliver their speeches to their tutors. Each individual student votes for who they would like to elect as their representative.
Student Council representatives meet formally once a half term and discuss issues raised from their tutor groups, with the Headteacher and chair of governors. All information is fed back to tutor groups and actions are discussed. Not only do the representatives have formal meetings, with the Headteacher and Chair of Governors, but they lead on pastoral sessions across each half term. This is to encourage students to speak up and raise awareness of issues within school and make a real change to their time at SJHN. The minutes of each meeting can be found at the bottom of this page.
Eco Champions
The Eco-Committee is run and lead by like-minded students from each year group who take the lead in introducing, running and developing the Eco-Schools programme. We hold the Eco schools green flag. This award embarks the school on a meaningful path towards improving the environment in both the school and the local community while at the same time having a life-long positive impact on the lives of young people and their families. The Eco-Schools Green Flag is an internationally recognised award for excellence in environmental action and learning and the Eco-Committee have worked extremely hard within the school to ensure St John Henry Newman achieves the award and continues to contribute towards eco initiatives.
Years 7-9 are invited to help keep our school environment clean and tidy as Eco Champions. This role involves litter picking sessions and promoting environmentally friendly techniques to their peers! As part of our commitment to putting our faith into action, this service project offers students a hands-on opportunity to engage with environmental stewardship and social responsibility. Students will have the opportunity to care for our shared spaces and protect our local ecosystem. Our Eco Champions are excellent role models for their peers and wear their badges with pride. The Eco Champions are listed below:
Autumn term 26-27 Eco champions:
| Year7 | Year 8 | Year 9 |
| Erin M | Iris E | Katie N |
| Sofia H | Osian A | Iwo S |
| Jacob A | Kayla M | Ricco C |
| Jasmeen S | Rayn H | Hope J |
| Savannah T | Kelsey C | Ollie B |
| Macy B | Filip S | |
| Phoebe C | Jaidon B | |
| Cody A | Tilly O | |
| Temilayo O | Nadish N | |
| Oluwateniola O | Demian M | |
| Isla F | Patryk L | |
| Rosie H | Jakub P | |
| Jacob H | ||
| Jack A |
Further student leadership opportunities at St John Henry Newman Catholic School:
- Student librarians
- Anti bullying representatives
- Eco champions
- Cultural diversity representatives
- Mental health champions
- Reading mentors (Year 9)
- Key stage 3 mentors (Year 12)