G29 Key Stage 4 Pathways – Family Drop In Evening – Tue 3rd June

18th May 2025Martin Said

To support Year 9 families in discussing Key Stage 4 pathways with your children, we are hosting an evening slot for any G29 families that wish to attend.

This evening will be held on Tuesday 3rd June between 5pm and 6pm in school.

You can drop in to the evening at any time, and staff leaders will be available to talk about your child and the courses on offer.

Please do let us know about your current thoughts and questions by completing this Google form.

On the evening staff will be available to give you and your child advice in their role as:

Communication Strand:

GCSE Spanish – Señorita Quested

Level 2 Interactive Media – Mr Said

 

Leading our own leading strand:

GCSE Geography – Miss Jones

Level 2 Health & Social Care – Mrs Diamond

GCSE Religious Studies (Ethics) – Mrs Ross

Level 2 Sports – Mr Devitt

DT / Engineering – Mr Said

 

Additional support for English and Maths:

Mrs Mosley, Ms Marshall, Miss Jones

G28 Fieldwork Monday 19th May

By Darren Mead16th May 2025

G28 Students will be visiting Newcastle University on Monday morning to participate in workshops about our Fuel futures.

Students will debate the use of renewable energy,  study the factors that affect the placement of a wind turbine and look at engineering solutions to transport. 

The students will leave school at 9:15 and will be back in time for lunch. 

Students will need comfortable shoes for walking, something warm to wear (the forecast is cool and overcast) and their normal school kit including water and a healthy snack. 

If you have any questions about this fieldwork, please contact Mr Mead

Sharing our Stories: 16/05/2025

16th May 2025Geoff Hewitt

Beautiful Work This Week

Here’s a selection of beautiful work from across the XP Trust from this week. To read about other stories from across the XP Trust, visit xptrust.org.

Top of the Blogs

Block Volcano Art @ Green Top

Innovating the Gingerbread Man @ Plover

Identifying features of a map @ Carcroft School

Activism in action – the second annual public health conference @ XP Gateshead

Seascapes @ Norton Infants

Fully immersed in Wordsworth @ XP

Arts Festival 2025

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!

We’re Hiring: Join the Green Top Crew!

15th May 2025Geoff Hewitt

We’re looking for two incredible Learning Coaches to join the team at Green Top School!

This is an opportunity to be part of a school where relationships come first, learning is purposeful, and every child is known, supported, and challenged.

You’ll work side by side with teachers to help deliver beautiful, meaningful learning experiences as part of our expeditionary learning curriculum. From Early Years to Key Stage 2, you’ll support children to grow academically, socially and emotionally – helping them become thoughtful, capable, and kind individuals.

Find out more about the roles here: xptrust.org/vacancies

Refugee Week 2025: Oral history project

By Emmy Tatters15th May 2025

We invite XP Gateshead students and families to participate in this exciting Gateshead heritage project in conjunction with Refugee Week.

United Voices of Gateshead
Children and staff from Gateshead schools have worked together to create a collection of voice recordings that celebrate the wide range of dialects and languages spoken across the borough. These recordings help preserve the oral histories of Gateshead’s schools in 2025.
You are invited to take part by recording your own voice, helping to expand this project into a
community-wide celebration of Gateshead’s rich linguistic heritage. The recording will be anonymous (no names) and played during exhibitions at Gateshead Library and The Glasshouse.

Students will be contributing to this project during crew next week (if you would rather they did not, please speak to your child’s crew leader).

We would love this to open a dialogue within families about where different branches of your family tree may have come from. This is particularly relevant for G30 as they continue to consider the GQ ‘Is migration worth the risk?’

We would also love for the wider XPG community of parents and family members to be involved. All you need to do to be a part of this exciting local history project is to record yourself saying:

I live in Gateshead and my family are from _____________ .
We speak ____________ and English.

Example:
I live in Gateshead and my family are from Gateshead and Manchester.
We speak Geordie and English.

As you can see, you do not share your name or any other identifying characteristics in the audio. Just have your child audio record on their iPad and we can get this shared with the project organisers.

Please get in touch with Miss Tatters if you have any other questions.

Year 6 – Information Evening Next Week – Thu 22nd May at 6pm

By Martin Said15th May 2025

A reminder that we are holding an In-Person Information Evening at our school next week on Thursday 22nd May at 6pm.

It is important that all of our Year 6 families attend as we will give important information about the Outward Bound course that takes place for all students at the start of Year 7 as well as our iPad scheme.

In addition, we will address some of the misconceptions about our school so that families are completely clear on what we are: ‘A mainstream school with a relentless focus on beautiful work, character growth and academic success’, and also what we are not.

There will be an opportunity for you to ask us questions too of course.

Due to the size of our temporary accommodation, we ask where possible that a maximum of two people from each family attend this event. Children do not need to attend on the evening.

Activism in Action – The Second Annual Public Health Conference at XP Gateshead

12th May 2025Andy Sprakes

It was an honour to spend time with Year 9 students at XP Gateshead as they held their second annual public health conference with a focus on the dangers of smoking and vaping on Friday. The conference was the culminating event to the learning expedition entitled, ‘You Give Me Fever’ where students had engaged in a thematic study of health, considering how approaches to, and learning about health has changed over time from the Medieval Period to the modern day. Students were challenged to answer the guiding question,

“How can we continue to make progress in public health?” 

In order to do this students focused on factors which can affect our health, such as wealth, poverty, science and technology and the role of the government. Combining what they studied in history and science this helped us to complete a human geography study of our local area. Students had investigated the difference in life expectancy in the local area by studying deprivation and its contribution to risk factors. Case studies blended English, History, Geography and Science to give the students a breadth of knowledge and understanding about key health issues, in particular smoking and vaping.

Student key note speakers eloquently outlined the causes and long term effects of smoking on health and related social issues. They articulated the desperate link between smoking and deprivation and presented some chilling and compelling research about the impact of smoking on reducing life expectancy and increasing the chances of life threatening diseases like cancer, respiratory illnesses and strokes.

XPG Year 9 students lead an expert question and answer session about the risks of smoking and what we need to do to address this public health issue.

After this thought provoking start, students conducted a question and answer session with local experts from local government and community health services. Questions ranged from:

Should smoking be banned?

Does social media contribute to participation and smoking? 

Have public health changes made a difference to health in our community of Gateshead?

What is the local council doing to address deprivation in our community?

Exchanges were frank, honest and solution driven. XP Gateshead students showing, yet again, that they are actively leading positive social change in their community.

The next phase of the Presentation of Learning involved all students hosting a stall where they articulated the report they had written that linked to their learning in the expedition. Reports were wide ranging, informative and extremely well written. Titles included:

  • The Impact of Smoking on Respiratory Health
  • The Tobacco Industry Playbook
  • Is Smoking a Choice? The Link Between Poverty and Smoking As students presented their reports, invited guests were asked to consider a range of proposals such as, ‘Are smoking reforms having a positive impact on our communities?’ and to vote using a QR code. We were then invited back into the conference hall and students reflected on the answers given by the community.

    The wide range of expert reports produced by Year 9 students at XPG

    Students ended the conference with a call for the community, local authority and health professionals to collaborate more effectively to reduce the negative impact that smoking still has on the health and well being of the wider community in Gateshead. 

    After the conference I caught up with Georgia and Scarlet who spoke to about the importance of the work they had undertaken. I asked them why it was important to hold a Health Conference.

Georgia and Scarlet shared their thoughts with me about the importance of their work

Georgia commented:

“We showed the dangers and the impact of smoking and what it can do to yourself but also the people around you.”

And Scarlet built on this:

“Raising awareness and making sure people know the risks of smoking and if we are to continue to make progress as a society we need to address problems such as smoking.”

 

 

In conclusion, it was a privilege to be invited to an event that confirmed how our curriculum empowers and enables students to make a positive change in their communities. The level of understanding, confidence and quality of work was, quite simply, breathtaking. I made a pledge that the reports now need to be available for a wider audience to access and read. Our civic leaders and politicians must support and realise this important work and I know XPG students will not stop demanding this until they do!

 

Weekly update for families – W/C Monday 12th May 2025

By Julie Mosley11th May 2025

Dear Families

Another week of great work at XP Gateshead, even though we only had 4 days in school! 

Our second annual Public Health Conference, ‘Is Public Health Going Up in Smoke?’, took place last Friday hosted by our Year 9 students. G29 students brought their final products: a public health report exploring the impact of smoking and vaping on the local community to the attention of local councillors, health professionals, invited experts and families. We enjoyed an afternoon of youth-led activism, informed debate, and meaningful dialogue which really showed what young people are capable of when supported and challenged to engage with important issues such as health in their community.

The conference was an in-depth look at inequality in health outcomes and life expectancy in Gateshead viewed through the specific lens of smoking and vaping. This is just one aspect of what our Year 9 students have been studying as part of a longitudinal expedition looking at the people’s health since 1250 in the UK. To be ready for the conference students had to read widely and internalise data to be able to defend propositions when quizzed by delegates. After keynote speeches and expert panel interviews written and presented by our students,  Year 9 then ran marketplace information stalls and important discussions around public health. 

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This week

Crew Day – Monday 12th May

On Monday, Crew Day takes place for G28, G29, G30 and G31. We will take time to reaffirm the importance of Crew, building positive relationships through shared experiences and challenges. Students at XPG are ‘Crew not passengers’ and it is vital that we continue to build our crews and culture strong as this is the bedrock of our work at XPG.

G31 (Year 7) 

G31 students will participate in a fundraising effort to support Walk2Water. This event will take place at Gateshead International Stadium from our arrival at around 9am, until departure after lunch time. Families are also welcome to come and support students’ efforts and cheer on students should they wish! We are asking families and friends of XP Gateshead to support the efforts of G31 to help us reach the required total by donating, if they can, using the Enthuse platform linked here.

Students will start school at the regular time. We will be travelling to the stadium on foot and by metro and returning during the school day so students will finish at the regular time of 3.15pm.

Year 7 students will need a packed lunch for the day and to come prepared for all weathers and for walking a distance. See post for full details. 

G30 (Year8) 

Our year 8 students will be working in their crews getting stronger together. 

Crew Darling and Crew Einstein will be offsite taking part in a 7-mile walk along Hebburn Riverside and back, with a cultural visit to the Buddhist monastery, which will help consolidate the students’ learning from our first learning expedition of the year, Being Human. Crew Darling are taking the opportunity to gather sponsors from their walking efforts to raise money for a special visit to the Farne Islands inspired by the legacy of Grace darling, the namesake of their Crew.

Crew Earhart and Crew Kahlo will be onsite working outdoors on team building including den building with their Crew leaders and Wayne Dobson, an expert in Outdoors Education: High Tide Adventure Company.

Year 8 students will need a packed lunch for the day or their agreed crew picnic contribution and be prepared for outdoor activity and weather.

G29 (Year 9) 

Our Year 9 students will spend Crew Day carrying out campcraft training in readiness for their DofE bronze practice expedition on Friday 16th May. G29 Crew Leaders will be checking their crews to ensure students have all the required kit and are fully prepared. Please see the recent post for more details on the practice and final expeditions along with the kit needed. 

G28 (Year 10) 

Our Year 10 students are heading to Tynemouth Longsands for their Crew Day, where they will take part in a range of activities including sports and art. After working incredibly hard over the past two weeks during their mock exams, this day is a well-deserved opportunity for students to unwind, enjoy the outdoors, and reconnect with the spirit of Crew. 

Students will start and finish school at the regular time and will need a packed lunch for the day. Some Crews have organised a Crew Picnic please ask your child about this. See post for full details.

G29 and G30 Student Led Conferences (SLCs)

SLCs start for our Year 7 and 8 students and their families this week. Students have worked hard to prepare for their conference, preparing to share their recent work, evidence of work around the pledges they have shared and responses to the questions parents and carers have asked to be addressed in the conference. Please can I remind all families that SLCs, like PoLs, are key moments in the development of our students and it is vital that parents, carers and families fully support SLCs. 

You should already have received an email from your child with an updated snapshot and a link to ask questions of them in advance of the SLC. Here is that link if your child has not yet sent that on to you. You will also receive a link to sign up for a time slot from your child’s Crew Leader. Please contact [email protected] if you do not receive this.

PE sessions this week

There are some changes to PE sessions this week due to Crew Day and G28’s DofE practice expedition . Please ensure that your child has their  full PE kit for sessions.

  • G31  students (Y7) have PE on Wednesday this week.
  • G30 students (Y8) 
    • Class 1 have PE on Tuesday this week
    • Class 2 have PE on Friday this week
  • G29 students (Y9) have PE on Thursday this week
  • G28 students (Y10) have PE on Thursday this week

Extended Study and Clubs

Extended study and after school clubs will not be running over the next two weeks due to G31 and G30 Student led Conferences.

Changes to the lunch menu this week

Please note that Thursday and Friday lunch options will swap this week. Please see our menu for details (we are on week 1).

If you have any questions please contact your child’s crew leader in the first instance. 

Thank you as always for your ongoing support.

Julie Mosley

Principal

G29 Crew Day: A Reminder for Parents

By Rebecca Marshall11th May 2025

On Monday 12th May, G29 students will be developing invaluable skills to prepare for their Duke of Edinburgh Practice Expedition on Friday 16th May, and ultimately the final expedition in July.

As outlined in the previous blog post, students must bring their full DofE kit into school on Monday so they can pack their bags ready for the practice expedition on Friday.

Please note: students do not need to bring a rucksack, as this will be provided. A shopping bag or similar is fine for transporting kit on Monday.