XP Gateshead

This week, most of our schools are on their half term break – except our newest school, XP Gateshead. They’ve had a week full of incredible stories…

Beautiful Work This Week @ XP Gateshead

Thomas Hepburn Memorial Service

On Saturday 14th October some of our staff, students and families from G30 attended the annual memorial service for Thomas Hepburn at St Mary’s Church, Heworth. The service commemorates the life of Thomas Hepburn who spent his life working to improve the lives of miners and their families as well as being the founder of the Colliers United of Durham and Northumberland in 1825. 

It was a real honour to be invited to the ceremony where the acclaimed filmmaker, Ken Loach, spoke about Thomas Hepburn’s life and his fight for social justice as a leader of the first miners’ trade union. The service also featured readings from the local MP for Easington Grahame Morris, the Mayor of Gateshead, Cllr Eileen McMaster and the Reverend Lucy Moss. The Durham Miners Association Brass Band were wonderful and accompanied the service throughout.  Following the service, wreaths were laid at Thomas Hepburn’s grave and the Felling Banner group gave our students the great honour of laying their wreath.

Coming Soon: ‘Should I Stay or Should I Go?’

Beautiful Curation in our new spaces…

Share your stories with us!

We now have a new dedicated news email so that you can send your stories, updates or ideas about potential news articles directly to us in Comms. 

It might be something you or your students have achieved, a charity you’re supporting or anything at all that deserves a wider audience.

Write to us at [email protected] –  we want to hear about it, write about it and celebrate it!

Here at XPG, Personal Development is an essential part of the curriculum. Every week, students have ‘Wise Wednesday’, a time for students to develop the knowledge, skills and understanding they will need to manage their lives. 

G30

As the newest members of our school, Year 7 are currently examining what makes a strong community. This week, our students have looked at bullying and the importance of being upstanders in our community. After half term, we will also look at cyberbullying and how we can protect ourselves online.

G29

Our G29 cohort have been discussing prejudice, discrimination and stereotyping in depth, considering how this can impact our treatment of others. The level of discussion has been truly phenomenal and students have made clear links to their current expedition ‘Being Human’.  Next term, students will deliver a presentation within crews about their own identities, developing not only their presentation skills but their confidence and crew relationships. 

G28

Building on the work we did in the summer term, Year 9 have been looking at sex and relationships education. Historically, sex and relationships education in schools has been described as “too little too late” and has not reflected the reality that young people experience today. This introduction to sex and relationships education drives home the message that we cannot talk about sex without consent, as well as the importance of healthy relationships. Our students have also considered the importance of contraception and how to access sexual health services in our local area. Many pupils in the UK leave school without knowing what services they can access, which is an injustice. Here at XPG, we want our students to feel empowered with the right information to make informed choices. 

Talking about these sensitive (and potentially embarrassing) topics can be hard. However, good PSHE education is a partnership between the home and school. As a parent or carer, allowing your young person to talk about PSHE topics can be an amazing way for them to explore some of the content they learn. If you have time, you might want to do some research to anticipate any awkward questions. Being honest if you can’t answer a question is also absolutely fine. 

If you would like to know more about sexual health and wellbeing, have a look at the website below. It is designed for young people, but has a wealth of information for all: 

Brook: Sexual Health and Wellbeing

 

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch. 

Thank you for your continued support, 

 

Sophie Pegg

We are sharing your child’s information snapshot with you this week. This includes information about their attendance and their HoWLs (habits of work and learning).

This short video is a guide to help Year 7 families interpret this information:

Students are currently working on pledges based on these snapshots. These will be shared soon. Following this you will be able to ask questions of your child about their assessment information.

In January students will present to you and their Crew Leader at their SLC (student-led conference) with:

• An updated information snapshot with further information about their academic progress
• Responses to your questions
• Evidence of how they have been working on their pledges

G29 students will also carry out SLCs in January.

G28 SLCs will be in the fortnight commencing 13th November. Details of how to book a slot will be sent out soon as well as the form which gives you the opportunity to ask questions of your child in advance of the SLC.

Of course for all families, if you do have any questions please get in contact with your child’s Crew Leader in the first instance.

On Tuesday  November 7th, the first Tuesday after the October half term, Year 8 will be carrying out fieldwork at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Sherriff Hill. Students will walk to the hospital from school but will be in school for lunch so no packed lunch is needed. Comfortable shoes and a warm and waterproof are needed.

The fieldwork will connect to the work students have been studied on the Gas Exchange and Circulatory  systems and  our guiding “What does it mean to be human? ” Students will be involved in sessions in the Respiratory Simulation room and meet the clinical lead for organ donation.

A payment amount of £451 will be applied to your parent pay account. This does not mean that must pay in full now. You can manage your own payments and pay down the balance at any time within three years, at comfortable amounts for your circumstances.

Here are a few options to pay the full amount:

• £12.53 per month for 36 months (or £2.89 per week)
• £18.79 per month for 24 months (or £4.44 per week)
• £451 pay outright.

At the end of your child’s time in school the device can be kept by the family if the balance has been paid in full.

If you have made an agreement with us to pay less than £12.53 per month, then please make the lower payments that were agreed each month. We will review these lower payments every 6 months.

If your circumstances change and you find paying the full amount difficult, please do talk to us.

Ticking the consent box will record as your agreement to make regular payments.

A reminder that there is industrial action all of this week on Gateshead’s buses.

We were very impressed with the resilience shown by students in getting to school during the previous strike action. Thanks especially to those families that supported others in getting our children to school.

Beautiful Work This Week

XP Trust’s first ever Tag Rugby Tournament!

Last week, we hosted our first ever Trust Sport Tournament for three of our primary schools. Hosted at Club Doncaster near XP, the three schools competed in a series of games of tag Rugby – here are some of the exciting highlights!

Yomiuri Shimbun journalists visit XP!

Iain Boothroyd and Kazu Makita from the Yomiuri Shimbun, the most read daily newspaper in Japan came to XP to find out more about what we do! Alicia and Freya were awesome ambassadors for the school and gave our guests a tour of all the beautiful work created by our students. Mr Makita is writing an editorial about XP, which will appear in the newspaper in Japan!

Welcoming our first delegation of the academic year

This week we had our first collection of visitors from all over the country at XP! They learned about how Crew, Expeditions and how we design our curriculum. Our student ambassadors were terrific and the delegates really enjoyed their time in Crew sessions!

Top of the Blogs

Beautiful Work from Lucy @ XP Gateshead

Crew Malala on Bronze DofE – Litterpicking @ XP East

Smashing Short Division @ Plover

Haunting Halloween @ Norton Juniors

Crew Pasteur @ XP

A Roman’s Daily Life @ Carcroft School

Class 5 Awesome Maths @ Green Top

World Mental Health Day in Reception @ Norton Infants

Nursery Admissions for 2024!

Start your learning journey with XP! You can apply for any of our schools with nurseries using the link below!

https://doncaster.gov.uk/services/schools/nursery-admissions

Share your stories with us!

We now have a new dedicated news email so that you can send your stories, updates or ideas about potential news articles directly to us in Comms. 

It might be something you or your students have achieved, a charity you’re supporting or anything at all that deserves a wider audience.

Write to us at [email protected] –  we want to hear about it, write about it and celebrate it!

Unfortunately last week there was a theft of a student’s bike from our school premises during the daytime. The bike was stolen from the bike shed immediately outside of the school building.

Given that our school front is easily viewable to passers-by, unlocked bikes are therefore attractive to any thieves.

Thankfully this has not been something that has happened frequently since we have opened ,but obviously we want your children’s bikes to be as safe as is possible when they are stored at our school.

With this in mind it is essential that all students’ bikes are locked with a strong bike lock.

On Thursday 12th October, Crew Stanton are having a school disco for our crew charity Tiny Lives. Tiny Lives is a charity in Newcastle that supports premature and unwell babies and their families.

Tickets cost £1.50 and you must buy a ticket in advance. They are on sale at break and lunchtime in the canteen on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week and there is a limit of 100 tickets available.

There will be food and drinks and face painting available to purchase on the night too.

We recommend you dress up but it is optional (keep in mind the school’s dress code which is modest and appropriate). We encourage as many students as possible to go home and get ready. There is a limited space in school for students to get changed and ready for the disco if they live too far away to do this. 

It will start at 4:30 and end at 6:30 and will be a combination of dancing and games.

Any students who are not meeting our expectations in terms of HOWLs in sessions or behaviours around school will lose the privilege of attending the disco.

Please support our charity by encouraging your child to attend this disco as this will support the family of an unwell child.