It’s 1pm on a Friday afternoon and an enormous queue of more than 100 men has formed outside Marine Academy Primary School in
St Budeaux.
The men are the male role models of some of the pupils at Marine Academy Primary – there is a mix of dads, grandads, stepdads, uncles, family friends and male carers. They are all there for one reason: to spend quality time with their children at the Academy’s termly ‘The Dudes Club’.
At the Club, children spend the afternoon with their dudes, taking part in a range of activities. The two-hour club included pints of juice and bacon sandwiches on arrival for the Dudes followed by a football training session with Plymouth Argyle, a boot camp session, martial arts with Discovery Martial Arts, toasting marshmallows at the Academy’s fire pit and making props for a Dudes Club photo!
There was no limit on the number of men who could come to The Dudes Club – whoever wanted to come came. This first event saw 116 Dudes attend with 165 children!
Headteacher Siobhan Meredith said:
“We didn’t draw the line on numbers because we wanted to give as many dudes as possible to have the opportunity to spend time with their children in school.
“It was amazing how many dudes took time off from work to come in for the afternoon; it had such a fantastic atmosphere and was a real delight to be part of.”
The children were also really proud to have their dudes at the Academy with them for the afternoon, with Cassius describing it as ‘the best afternoon ever’ and Oliver saying ‘my favourite part was spending the afternoon with my grandad.’
The dudes really welcomed the opportunity to spend time with their children at the Academy and were overwhelmingly positive about the afternoon.
The Dudes Club gives dads and other male role models the chance to connect with one another and form relationships.
Nicola Keeler, inclusion leader at Marine Academy Primary said:
“It created an incredible buzz around the community. It was a wonderful thing to see all of the dudes gathering together.”
It was the first Dudes Club of many at Marine Academy Primary!
