Headteacher Update
December 2022
Yesterday, we welcomed the families of some of our students into school for a family learning workshop. The session was organised by our Family Liaison Officer, Lori McDine and the session was delivered by The Northern Learning Trust; this week the families learnt how to make bath bombs, timely for Christmas. Everyone had a great time and they even got to meet our school dog, Ralph! There will be two more sessions before Christmas.
Our students have been busy fundraising again this week, well done to Year 8 students Rowan, Eva, Niamh, Sophie and Frankie who raised £85 for their chosen charity, the PDSA, by setting up a bake sale. I was also visited this week by two year 9 students, Leighton and Lucy, from their Fit for Life lessons where they had been discussing ideas about how to raise money for their charity Walking With. They enthusiastically told me about their plan to arrange a sleepover in the school to raise money and having got an agreement in principle from me, they went back to start putting together a more detailed plan with the support of their teacher Miss Benson. Two great examples of students thinking about their community and what they can do to help, although I’m not sure the initial proposal of a full year group sleepover was a such a good idea!
Our students have also been involved in other community activities during the past few months. Mrs Entwisle and Mrs Martin from our Art Department spent many painstaking hours helping students to make origami cranes as part of the Cranes for Ukraine appeal, the experience certainly taught them and the students a lot about resilience and never giving up. The project has now finished and the cranes made in school have joined thousands of others as part of the installation in place at the Bridge Gallery in Tynemouth station – if you haven’t seen it then go along and have a look, it’s very impressive. Some students have also been involved in the Helix Arts project ‘Georgian Cluedo’ where they have worked with a writer to create a mystery experience inspired by North Shields heritage. There will be free performances at 1pm, 2pm and 3pm on 11th December at The Exchange Theatre, North Shields. You can book tickets at: ha-Georgian-cluedo22.eventbrite.com. And finally, the Christ Church Christingle Service will take place next Tuesday during which there will be performances from a number of North Tyneside Primary Schools, supported by some of our students. A huge thank you to Mr Grazzer who has been working with the North Tyneside Music Hub to put together the arrangements and rehearsed the pupils.
Safeguarding events have also been a focus this week with sessions for consent (Year 11), county lines (Year 9) and malicious communications (Year 10). These events are part of our Fit for Life and Relationships and Sex Education programme, but they are also responsive to what students are telling us and what we hear are current issues in the community. As ever, our students engaged very well in the sessions and we hope with ongoing advice and support we can help them navigate their way through a tricky world as they grow up. If you would like any advice about keeping your child safe, then a good starting point is the NSPCC, but please do get in touch with us if you do have any specific concerns. For information, in the next week or so we will be practicing our school lockdown procedures, this is not due to any concerns or threats, but to test our systems if, in the very unlikely event, we had to lockdown the school.
As the students keep on telling me and the fact that the ‘Scholars Bus choir’ were singing Christmas songs on the way to school yesterday (the poor driver!), we are heading towards the end of term. The school will close at 2pm on Thursday 22nd December, the office will remain open until 2.30, but after this the school will be completely shut for the Christmas break. Students return to school on Monday 9th January 2023.
I hope you all have a good weekend.
Best wishes
Jonathan