Dear Parents/Carers
Welcome back! I hope you and your family have enjoyed the half term break. We are really looking forward to welcoming our students back tomorrow for the start of our final half term at XP Gateshead.
Our usual reminders for a good start back…
Dress code
As always, we ask students and staff to dress appropriately and modestly. The vast majority of our students get this right every day but some of our students are making dress choices which are not appropriate and we have had to have conversations about what ‘modest’ means. I’m sure that you will agree when we say that we don’t want school to be a fashion show, we want our students to look like themselves and express who they are respectfully.
Our dress code states that
Dress should not be offensive, dirty, revealing, portray gang membership or sexualise the child. We should all be clean and hygienic and avoid overpowering perfumed products and the negative effect this has on others.
For a normal day within school, we do not think it appropriate or recommend that students wear:
- Noticeable make-up, including false eyelashes
- Valuable, sentimental or impractical jewellery
- False nails
- Impractical footwear including high heels, open-toed sandals etc
- Hats, hoods & coats inside school
- Revealing clothing, i.e. crop tops, transparent leggings or hot pants
This is not intended as an exhaustive list, but examples to illustrate how to dress appropriately.
Students having difficulty with finding appropriate clothing for any reason should speak with their Crew leader.
Punctuality
School opens at 8:00am every morning. Students should arrive between 8:00am and 8:25 am and there are spaces available for socialising, reading or completing extended study. Students must be on site for 8.25am for the call to Crew. Good punctuality is an expectation in all future careers and we do expect our students to be here on time every day. We appreciate your support with this.
Daily kit list
As always, students need to bring a school bag with:
- A filled water bottle. This is a must for the start of every day especially in the warmer weather.
- Pencil case including: pens, pencils, ruler, eraser and pencil sharpener
- A fully charged iPad. This should be done at home so students are fully prepared for their day ahead.
- Their AR reading book (please remember that as part of our reading strategy, we expect all students to read between 20-30 mins. each day)
- Headphones
- A healthy snack for break (no confectionery (sweets), fizzy drinks or energy drinks, nut products)
- A notebook
This week
We welcome our new staff to XP this week for the start of their 5 week induction with us. Just like our students, on their first day at XP, new staff go on an outdoor adventure where they work together to explore the meaning and purpose of Crew. The 4 day residential provides the opportunity for staff to share experiences, step out of their comfort zones and be comfortable sharing their vulnerabilities in a safe and supportive environment which aligns with the concept that, ‘if it’s good enough for our kids, it’s good enough for us.’
Family Meeting for G30 (New Year 7) parents
Our transition work with our new G30 students continues. We have now met nearly all of our new families online and visits to primary schools have started
On Wednesday 6th June at 6pm, we will hold a ‘Transition Information Meeting’ in school for our new parents to share our ethos, expectations, Outward Bound planning and IPad scheme.
PE sessions
Mr Devitt returns to XP Gateshead this week after a successful school placement as part of his training course. All PE sessions will take place on Friday this week so students will need a PE kit on Friday. Next week, PE sessions will return to normal and all students will have 2 sessions of PE in school.
Extended Study and clubs
Extended Study and clubs are running after school this week. On Tuesday we have hula fitness, Wednesday is our robotics club and Thursday is Nature Club. There is no Rock School this week however.
Youth Mental Health First Aid (MHFA®) courses
Thank you to all parents/carers who responded to the post about the opportunity to attend a half day Youth Mental Health Aware training course (MHFA®). We have had a good interest in the course (a sign up of 25 so far) so we will be running several training sessions (during school time) to meet this demand. If you are interested and have yet to sign up, please complete this form by the end of Wednesday 7th June 2023. When we have all responses, we will contact parents directly with course dates and details.
As usual, if you have any questions please contact your child’s crew leader in the first instance.
Thank you for your ongoing support.
Julie Mosley
Co-Principal