Your Fete Committee

A fete is usually ‘the big event’ on a fundraising calendar and its complexity demands a committee all of its own. While the existing parent committee is an obvious source of assistance and advice, you shouldn’t limit your selection pool to people already volunteering on a regular basis. You might find that there are individuals willing to dig in and do a one-off event like the fete, but do not want to sign up to two years on a committee doing multiple small-scale events.

You are looking for the most enthusiastic, motivated, creative and organised volunteers available to steer the fete committee. You also need people who are willing to listen to others, but also able to make decisions. Select your key committee members well and the workload will be distributed evenly, there’ll be less volunteer stress and tears of joy (rather than hopelessness) when the big day arrives!  

Fete Convenor (Chief Event Organiser – CEO)

This person carries overall responsibility for the event, without the pay incentive! The fete convenor is a ‘big picture’ person who can:

• chair all committee meetings
• liaise with stall holders, the school principal, teachers and the P&C
• mediate disputes (and yes, they will happen).

The fete convenor needs time and energy to tackle this job. Alternatively, it can be job-shared by two people who work well and closely together.

TIP: If I can walk away from of all this with friends intact, I’ll be a happy person. Karen, successful fete convenor for five years

Fete Secretary/Communications

This important role looks after correspondence, meeting minutes and other ‘office type’ work involved in the fete’s organisation. You need someone with a good eye for detail, ideally someone with strong office, computer and organisational skills.

The fete secretary needs to be a brilliant communicator, keeping the committee, plus significant stakeholders like school administration, up to speed on what’s happening.

Once your committee is finalised, the fete secretary should compile and distribute a comprehensive contact list, ensuring every member's details are on the list (including email, home, work and mobile telephone numbers). Committee members need to be able to contact each other quickly and easily.

I recommend using group email, a messenger or Whatsapp group for issues that suddenly arise and need to be dealt with urgently.

I also advocate sub-categorising email lists — for example, fete committee, stall holders, volunteers — so that you can be specific with communication. Some fete organisers prefer a network pyramid model to forward information on but if you do go with that style, be confident no-one falls through the cracks.
 

The fete secretary is responsible for taking minutes at meetings, distributing those minutes to committee members and key stakeholders (such as the P&C), and preparing and distributing agendas for meetings. They are also responsible for the all-important Fete File (chapter 5).

The fete secretary’s role continues past fete day, ensuring thank you letters and certificates of appreciation are sent out to sponsors and stall holders and that the all-important handover book is updated.

Fete Treasurer

Money isn’t just about the cash handed over at the cake stand on the day of the fete — it will be coming and going for months before the event; afterwards as well. Accurate financial records are essential. Your fete treasurer — or financial controller — will be great with numbers and ideally have experience in accounting or bookkeeping.

Other Positions

The three strategic positions above form the nucleus of your fete sub-committee, supported by a team of volunteers who will oversee all other aspects of the event, including:

Sponsorship & donations

• Seeks cash sponsorship for major purchases and hire; prizes for raffles and auctions; in-kind sponsorship from suppliers
• Coordinates donation drives within school

Volunteers/rostering

• Assists stallholders with the recruitment and time-tabling of helpers
• Provides point of contact for all volunteers
• Provides orientation for new volunteers

Security

• Coordinates gate security if required
• Security for money drops and cash handlers

Set up/clean up teams

• Two teams, one responsible for set-up, the other for pack-up
• Coordinators need to have clear plan of what needs to be done, by when, and where everything is located

Equipment hire and loans 

• Responsible for any equipment hire such as portable warmers or pizza ovens for food stalls, fridges, generators, lights, portable loos etc
• Coordinates loan of equipment from other schools such as marquees, including drop-off and pick-up and safe storage while on school grounds

Purchasing

• Responsible for purchasing supplies in bulk, especially for food stalls (economies of scale means purchasing plates and cutlery for ten stalls will be cheaper than ten stallholders sourcing their supplies individually)

Entertainment

• Coordinates volunteer and paid entertainers such as musicians, choirs, dancers, ensembles, bands, street performers, circus performers, buskers etc

Signage

• Advertising before the event (signs on school grounds)
• Maps and signage during the event so visitors can find their way around
• Stall identification 
• Includes any signage requirements for sponsors

Graphic design 

• Developing a brand and logo for the fete
• Designing paper advertising (flyers, letter drops, signs, newspaper adverts etc)
• Designing digital marketing (Facebook event, Instagram etc)

Publicity/marketing

• Responsible for accurate, clear, attention-grabbing messages within and beyond school community including news media and social media

Electrical supply

• Oversees power requirement for stalls and rides
• Coordinates checking (and tagging if required) of electrical equipment

Safety/OH&S

• Responsible for ensuring safety and well-being of visitors and volunteers
• Ensures adequate first-aid providers are on-site
• Develop COVID plan if required
• Develop evacuation plan

Gate control and parking

• Works with security and OH&S
• Identifies and manages suitable parking areas
• Provision of warning to local neighbours and businesses
• Create signs if necessary
• Team needed: If you are having ‘gold coin’ parking on your oval you will need people to oversee this
• Someone during set-up to direct ride and stallholder vehicles to their sites
  Stall convenors 
• Responsible for overseeing a stall, managing volunteers and supplies for the stall, pricing etc

Money handling

• Work with Treasurer to develop cash-handling plan
• Organisation of floats
• Organisation of EFTPOS or Square systems
• Portable ATM if required
• Cash drops, security and volunteers
• Money counting, safe transport to bank
• May include developing token system for rides and games

First aid

• Coordinate with St Johns or other first aid providers
• Alternatively, a roster of volunteer medics

Photography     

• Prior to event for marketing and promotion
• During event for communications and record-keeping

Website/social media

• Develop site to market and promote event to general public
• Call for volunteers and donations
• Provide event updates 
• Thank and promote donors and sponsors
• Promote special prizes, entertainment etc    

While not all of these jobs require a separate person - for example, the publicity person might also handle the website and social media - it’s important not to let people overcommit to too many roles.

TIP: We had a small team of five or six core committee members supported by a larger team of volunteers. While the larger team had defined and manageable roles on the day, the core members found themselves with multiple, significant and sometimes conflicting roles. As a result, few of the Committee Members got to stop and eat, shop, spend time with their families or even enjoy the event.

Next time, now we understand the complexity of each job, we will be more careful to limit the specific jobs for individuals on the day. It’s important to schedule realistic breaks – even just half an hour – to ensure your Committee members eat, drink and go to the toilet.

Don’t let the Fete Convenor take on any roles on the day – other than Fete Convenor. There will be plenty to keep them busy.

Shannon, fete first-timer
 

Brains Trust

You may have people within your community who are clever and well connected but are too busy to run a stall, let alone be a part of your organising committee. However, the big brains and high-level input of these amazing people should not be allowed to go to waste. Invite the uber-busy, entrepreneurial, creative, connected types. The big thinkers. Go beyond your usual P&C volunteers (although it’s worth asking ex-Presidents) and even think outside of your school: consider local politicians and business people within your local community.

Invite them to be a part of your ‘Brains Trust’.

Your ‘Brains Trust’ is separate from your organising committee and it’s important you let both the Brains Trust and your committee know this. The role of the ‘Brains Trust’ is early and finite, with two or three Brains Trust meetings in the preliminary stages of planning as you are throwing ideas together.

You will discuss big-ticket items such as a theme for the event, which are the profit-centres that can be focussed on, what amazing items you can come up with to raffle off, who can be approached for sponsorship, how to engage the local community, what crazy ‘out-there’ ideas can draw the crowds on the big day, how to publicise the event… the list goes on.

Preferably, you will need three meetings so that your big brains can come up with the grand ideas, make lovely promises, and then come back and be held accountable for the follow-up!

Committee Meetings

Your first meeting will set the agenda for the whole planning process of your fete. The convenor needs to outline a clear plan that lists all the elements of the fete, roles of the committee members and the dollar target.

If this is your school’s first fete, it is a good idea for your fete secretary to implement a comprehensive filing system (paper or online) now. This will assist in planning this fete as well as those you hold in future years.

In an ideal universe, every committee member will receive an information folder or access to a shared online folder, providing as much detail as possible about their tasks. Encourage them to keep notes - these will prove invaluable reference points for subsequent committees.

Set the expectation early that everybody will be required to contribute to the handover process once the fete is over.

Another thing to get right from the start relates to money. Aside from inclement weather, extravagant spending by well-meaning stall organisers is a fete’s NUMBER ONE profit muncher! Be clear about your committee’s accounting practices from the start. Money-handling procedures should be included in the information folder given to all committee members. Establish how goods can be purchased for stalls and include an approval form for the reimbursement of expenses.

In addition, make certain you know where the upfront money will be coming from. Do you have reserves and do you require authority to access them? Are you dependent on receiving sponsorship before you can start planning? Revenue will most often go down before it goes up, so make certain you provide for this.

Initially, monthly meetings will be fine but as your event gets closer, be prepared to meet fortnightly, even weekly.

Meetings need to be in a location that is convenient for everyone. Light refreshments add a nice touch: ask everyone to bring a plate of food or bottle of something to share. The most productive atmosphere will be one that’s warm and friendly. But that doesn’t mean forgetting about business! No-one — least of all busy fete volunteers — has time for meetings that go off on tangents or around in circles.

Your fete convenor needs to have the strength of character to keep discussion on track. Ensure your fete secretary distributes an agenda well before each meeting to allow members to gather their thoughts and make considered responses, and remind everyone to keep their reports brief and to the point.

Minutes of the meeting will not only be distributed to committee members but to the P&C (or its equivalent). Such transparency gives confidence to those outside your committee, can help identify any problem areas as they arise and invite ideas from the ‘outside’.

Next Chapter >> Your Fete File