World Book Day
Organise a sponsored read, run a book-themed decorate-a-potato competition or raffle off book bundles. For something more ambitious, hold a storytelling night where kids come back to school in their PJs for bedtime stories and hot chocolate, while parents enjoy a glass of wine in the hall.
STEM week
Sell STEM-themed keepsakes, such as personalised Lego brick keyrings from Fab Bricks (for each £3.25 keyring sold, the PTA gets to keep £1). Hold a Super STEM raffle with experiences as the prizes, such as tickets to a live science show, entry to a museum or planetarium, a ride on a steam railway, a trip to Legoland or a visit to a race track.
Easter bonnet parade
Run an eggcellent art competition. Charge £1 for A4 egg templates to be coloured in by each child, with the best in each class winning a chocolate egg. Boost your takings with an Easter egg raffle and a scavenger hunt over the holidays.
Sports day
Don’t want to miss the egg-and-spoon race? Set up a self-service cold drinks/snacks table with an honesty pot for the cash, or ask a local ice cream van to attend and give you 15% of their takings. Hit up the supermarket for free ice pops for the kids at the end of the day too.
School play
Put a shout-out to your parent community for a professional photographer who’d be willing to stay behind after the show to snap pics of the kids in their costumes. Use a themed backdrop designed by pupils, and charge for JPEGs so you don’t have to worry about printing or framing.
Harvest festival
If your school holds a harvest festival church service or event, be sure to offer pumpkin-spiced coffees to the parents and hot chocolate with marshmallows to the kids. If you’re feeling creative, you could also sell autumn-themed craft bags to take home, hold a pumpkin-carving competition or organise a pumpkin trail around town.
Book fair
Set up a small craft table with bookmark-making or silly spoons of favourite book characters. Get the kids going on a Bear Hunt or Where’s Wally? adventure by sticking pictures of said character around the room and charging £1 for a tick-box sheet.
Carol service
Alongside plying audience members with mince pies and mulled wine, hand out sheets for Name the Elf/Penguin/Reindeer/Squishmallow at £2 a pop, with the winner taking home the titular soft toy (purchased from a budget supermarket). Why not also sell Christmas hamper raffle tickets or a turn at Christmas Cash Squares, where you print out a map of the town divided into squares and ask them to guess where Santa is hiding.
Nativity
Create lasting memories by filming proceedings (preferably the dress rehearsal as it’s less noisy) and charging for a password-protected link to download and watch. Make sure to get permission from the parents of all children filmed and issue a usage policy.
