As a UNICEF Rights Respecting School, Student Voice lies at the very heart of everything we do.  It makes a significant impact on how the school develops and grows. It empowers young people by giving them the opportunity to have their say on school life and make a real and valued difference to the wider life of the school and our local community. Our student leadership programme permeates through school life, from Votes for Schools sessions during tutor time to the many Focus groups students can be part of. Students Leadership also plays a key part in contributing to our school ethos and we are extremely proud of all students involved in this

There are four main Focus Groups that meet weekly to formulate ideas and implement plans and changes for the school, local community and wider world.

• Rights Respecting Community Focus Group 

The Rights Respecting Community Focus Group works hard to ensure that the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is at the heart of everything that we do at Deer Park.  They organise a variety of charity events linked to specific rights such as the annual Basics Bank food appeal, Rotary Shoe box appeal, Food Bank Run to KCC and UNICEF Soccer Aid to name just a few. They also write tutor sessions to educate all staff and students on the UNCRC and the Protected Characteristics.

• Eco Focus Group

The Eco Focus Group work hard to implement sustainability and eco friendly initiatives to Deer Park.They have worked closely with local organisation Sustran on an Air Quality awareness campaign to encourage cars to not ‘idle’ and pollute the air. They are also looking at the issue of single use plastic and what we as a school can do to reduce the impact of this. 

• Deer Park TV/Google Focus Group

The Deer Park TV/Google focus group are responsible for creating videos and sharing news of everything related to Deer Park! They have also made strong links withSnow SnowDrops Care Home and visit regularly to teach people about new technologies and how they can use them 

• Diversity Focus Group

The Diversity Focus Group helps to promote a wide range of topics related to diversity including Deaf Awareness Week, Black History Month and many others. They are all members of the Hampshire Equality & Rights Advocates (EARA) and attend conferences throughout the year showcasing the work that they do to support diversity and promote inclusivity and acceptance.