Governors’ Report to

Parents & Carers

2015 - 2016

Published July 2016

Piccadilly Circus, London, February 2016

Welcome to Silverdale

On behalf of the Governors, I’d like to welcome you to this

year’s report.

It’s been another busy and successful year for the school.

The ARP pilot that I mentioned last year continues to do

excellent work supporting very young learners who have

been referred to us. We are now operating at full capacity,

and at the end of the pilot phase we received funding to

continue this valuable work which is very good news.

We were also very proud to be awarded the Leading

Parent Partnership Award. This is a nationally recognised

award for schools that show outstanding partnership with

parents. We feel that it’s important to find the best way to

partner with parents and carers as a vital part of helping

our students succeed. It was therefore a great pleasure to

hear that our work was judged to be worthy of the high

standards set by this award.

Within the Governing Body, we’ve continued to do the three things that we are asked to

take care of: setting strategic direction and vision for the school, holding the senior

leadership to account and making sure that the money given to the school is spent wisely.

Three of our meetings focused on more detailed studies of areas we thought important.

These were child protection / safeguarding, looking at how positive handling is used in

school, and how often, and finally we thought about some of the questions we might get

asked by Ofsted. We also regularly look at attendance, at ongoing statistics around

positive handling, and we monitor progress across the school to ensure that the focus on

high standards never goes away. In this way, we can act as advocates and supporters of

all the young people at Silverdale, and this is really what Governing is about.

We’re always happy to hear from parents and carers with questions, concerns or

suggestions and these can be sent either to the Headteacher or to me via the School

Office.

Finally, I would like to pay tribute to the staff who have put in another year of dedicated

effort. There are very many positive things about Silverdale School, and they are created

by the staff, support workers and of course by the students themselves. In particular, I’d

like to recognise our Deputy Head, Aileen Conlon who will leave at the end of the summer

to take up a new role as Headteacher in County Durham. Aileen has been a major force for

growth and development at Silverdale – we’ll miss her and wish her all success in her new

post.

We hope you enjoy reading the rest of the report and learning about all that’s been

happening this past year.

Dr Andrew Graydon

Chair of Governors Whitehouse Farm

The Governing Body

CHAIRPERSON

Dr Andrew Graydon

VICE CHAIR

Linda Turner

TEACHER GOVERNORS

Paiula Liainagian Souzy Dunn

Sara Bowery

PARENT GOVERNORS

Jill Johnson Emma Hunter

COMMUNITY GOVERNORS

Craig Beauman Steve Beveridge

Vacancy

TRUST GOVERNORS

Linda Turner Dean Titterton

CLERK TO THE GOVERNING BODY

Janet Bailey

Silverdale School Langdale Gardens

Howdon Tyne & Wear

NE28 0HG

0191 200 5982 0191 200 6710

silverdale.school@northtyneside.gov.uk

www.silverdaleschool.com http://twitter.com/SilverdaleNT

Angel by Bradley R

Silverdale Staff

Silverdale School

HEAD TEACHER

Peter Gannon

DEPUTY HEAD TEACHER

Aileen Conlon

ASSISTANT HEAD TEACHER

Emma Webster

LEAD BEHAVIOUR MANAGER

Gary Phelps

TEACHERS

Kris Priestley Dave Lindsay Andrew Knox Gemma Sandbach

Alan Henny Richard Munro Sarah Byrne Daniel Kebede

Beth Darby

INSTRUCTORS

Paiul Leainagiain Kate Sullivan Deborah Basara Simon Mearns

SUPPORT TEAM

Joan Cowen Gemma Burnip Ray Pegg David Richardson

Samantha Cave Megan Gilbert Malcolm Gibson John Coulthard

LINKWORKERS

Colleen Guthrie Debbie Atkinson Sara Bowery

SCHOOL BUSINESS MANAGER

Viv Burnip

ADMINISTRATION SUPPORT

Debbie Cave

SCHOOL CLEANERS

Carol Dunbar Lynn Marshall Alan Waterson Tina Waterson

CARETAKER

Gareth Conroy

SCHOOL COOK

Sharon Hogg Susan King

Primary A.R.P

TEACHERS

Lesley Rushtom Jamie Gilbert Souzy Dunn

HLTA TEAM

Chelsea Cairns John Coulthard

Sarah Tindall John Boustead Mandy Atkinson Nicki Gilchrist

Elizabeth Smith Darren Edwards

Leanne Kerr Rachel Maddison Margeret Sidders

Nicola Cox Adrienne Curry

Julie Judge

ADMIN SUPPORT

Lisa Joyce

FAMILY PARTNERS

Laurie Wilson Cherie De Paiva

Academic Year Ahead

The dates of the 2016/2017 academic year are as follows:

School breaks up Return to school

Autumn half term Friday 21st October 2016 Monday 31st October 2016

Christmas 2016 Friday 16th December 2016 Tuesday 3rd January 2017

Spring half term Friday 17th February 2017 Monday 27th February 2017

Easter 2017 Friday 7th April 2017 Monday 24th April 2017

Summer half term Friday 26th May 2017 Monday 5th June 2017

Summer 2017 Friday 21st July 2017 Monday 4th September 2017

If more advanced notice of events is required for example, if families are planning holidays

and fear they may clash with exam dates, please contact school where your query can be

answered.

Clowning around

About Silverdale School

ADMISSION ARRANGEMENTS

These are made through a formal statementing process in consultation with North

Tyneside Children’s Services.

USE OF SCHOOL PREMISES

The Governors will consider any approach to use school premises outside normal school

hours, where appropriate, and which meet with the criteria recommended by Children’s

Services. They would encourage any community organisation that wished to use the

school premises.

SPECIAL NEEDS EDUCATION

Silverdale’s special education policy is outlined in the school prospectus and there has

been no change from that published last year. The School prospectus is available online

at www.silverdaleschool.com

CHARGING

No student will be excluded from any educational activity because they are unable to meet

the cost. Occasionally parents may be asked to make a donation to help meet the cost of

certain activities or materials.

INFORMATION CONCERNING SYLLABI

Information concerning syllabi appropriate to the ability of different pupils and other

general educational provision is available to parents by contacting the Head Teacher.

DISCIPLINE

We have a Behavioural Management Policy, which details the way we deal with discipline

in school. This policy is available to parents. It is annually reviewed and updated. This

policy is available online at www.silverdaleschool.com

SEX EDUCATION

Sex Education is dealt with in the area of Personal, Social, Moral and Health Education.

Whilst the biological and health aspects of sex education are treated in a factual manner

the school does not ignore the moral, social and emotional dimensions, which are handled

sensitively and appropriately according to individual needs.

SCHOOL SECURITY

School security is of great importance. We have a dedicated health and safety officer who

oversees all policies and procedures in this area. Regular fire drills are held; health and

safety issues are dealt within our induction policy, regular fire alarm and security checks

are made. The school is covered with CCTV, videos etc. The school signs up to all

Service Level Agreements with the authority, many of these are health and safety related.

STAFF DEVELOPMENT

In Silverdale School we are constantly updating and re-visiting our knowledge and skills.

Apart from five training days we also have Thursday evenings where we have

development sessions and ask experts from within and from outside of school to lead

sessions on various issues.

Last year we covered:

Operation Outreach (Child Protection/Safeguarding)

Teamteach

School Vision

Behaviour Management & De-escalation Skills

Good to Outstanding Teaching

Improving Boys writing

Peer Coaching

Other staff attended training courses and programmes appropriate to their job

description.

CURRICULUM

Since June 2014 our students have had the opportunity to leave us with up to eleven

GCSEs. All pupils will now study GCSEs in Photography, Art and Design, Graphic Design,

and Film Studies. We have also introduced further GCSEs in Food and Nutrition and PE.

Our full Key Stage 4 curriculum is listed below:

English Language

Maths

Statistics

Science

ICT

History

Art and Design

GCSE Photography

Preparation for Working Life

Food and Nutrition

PE

Cambridge Progression Level 1 and 2 in English and Maths

GCSE Graphic Design

Our students also have the opportunity to attend specialist vocational training at The Barn

Joinery, Meadowell Connected; North Shields YMCA, Animal Care at Earsdon Stables; The

Base; The Motor Project; and Construction at Norham.

Destination of Leavers We were sad to see our Year 11 students leave but are pleased to report that they have

moved on to Newcastle College (Hospitality & Catering), Tynemet College (Construction,

Joinery & Engineering), Motor Project, North Shields, Trinity College (Motor Vehicle

Repairs) and Northern Construction.

Student Destination Number Percentage 16+ Provision 4 44.4%

College 4 44.4%

Youth Training

Employed

Unemployed

Other 1 11.2%

Attendance in 2015 – 2016 Year Groups Number on Roll Attendance Authorised

Absence Unauthorised Absence

3 – 6 23 94.7% 4.87 0.45

7 – 11 38 90% 6.78 3.65

3 – 11 61 91.6% 6.05 2.38

Attendance for the first two terms of 2015-2016 was 90.64 %

Exclusions There has been 1 fixed term exclusions in the year 2015 - 2016. There were no permanent

exclusions.

Silverdale A.R.P Silverdale’s Additionally Resourced Provision worked with almost 50 pupils over this last

academic year (the ARP has had around 40 children on roll for the majority of the year).

We are planning transitions to new schools or a return to their mainstream primary school

for 15 pupils and we have 2 Year 6s moving on to High School in September 2016.

Trips

Children from the three classes have been to the following places over this year;

Newburn Climbing Centre, House of Objects, Bowling, St Mary’s Lighthouse, local parks,

Blythe Park, Arriva Bus Tour (for a pupil keen on buses as an individual reward, if you are

ever stuck, he knows every single route!) Cramlington Fair and friendly football matches

against Silverdale and swimming lessons for all pupils Y3 to Y6 throughout the year. We

also have regular trips to Pets at Home and Killingworth shopping centre to buy things for

our new pet rats, Rosie and Ruby.

Welcome Days

We have had two Welcome Days with the Summer Celebration planned for the end of this

term. A huge thank you to all the parents, carers and family who came along, we have had

excellent attendance and it was a pleasure to see so many grandparents too. The

Christmas movie was a big hit, we are already planning next year’s event, no pressure to

try and top last year’s performance! The children really enjoyed showing the hard work in

their books at the Easter Welcome Day.

Training

ARP and Outreach staff have worked hard to keep their training and professional

development up to date. We have attended training sessions on;

• Solihull Approach

• Child Protection/Safeguarding

• Educational and Vocational Trips

• First Aid

• Team Teach

• Understanding Attachment

• Updating understanding of ADHD

• PREVENT – raising awareness about radicalisation

• Operation Encompass – supporting pupils and families who experience

domestic abuse

• Curriculum training for English, Maths, Science and using iPads

Outreach

The Outreach Team of 8 staff have worked with 201 pupils since the Service was

commissioned September 2014. The majority of those pupils’ behaviour has improved and

they have remained in mainstream.

We have worked with 60 pupils this year to date and are working hard to reduce the

waiting list of 49 pupils. There have been 13 re-referrals from schools.

9 pupils who had support from the Outreach Team have enrolled at the ARP over this

academic year.

The Solihull Approach

We have successfully ran two courses of the Solihull Approach this year. The programme

offers parents/carers 11 weekly sessions where they can learn about the brain

development of babies and children, discuss ways to manage behaviour, explore

resilience, reciprocity and ways to repair broken relationships.

Some of the parents/carers have chosen to set up their own support group after the

course finished and this allows them to enjoy community events together without feeling

isolated or worrying about the reaction of staff at venues to their children’s behaviour.

Feedback from Parents/Carers

‘All the staff are warm and friendly, they come straight to the gate as soon as I get there.’

‘Was very worried and staff eased this by being friendly and open about school.’

‘Staff have been very welcoming, open and friendly from the outset.’

‘Our first visit was brilliant. My son settled straight away.’

‘Very friendly and courteous.’

Feedback from Pupils

‘The teachers help me make good choices.’

‘I feel protected and safe.’

‘When I say something they always listen.’

‘The teachers are nice.’

‘My old teacher did not listen to me that's why I want to stay here. I am really happy.’

‘I feel great now and have improved my behaviour.’

Pantomime

On 9th February this year, a production of Peter Pan was held at the ARP. Students from

our main site went up to join them. In total about 70 students were present. M&M

Theatrical Productions specialise in taking theatre out to schools as they realise how

difficult it can be for our young people to get this experience in their lives. They are a small

theatre group who play all the parts between them and do all costume and background

scenery changes themselves. All the usual favourites were in the play. Peter Pan, Captain

Hook, Wendy Darling and the Crocodile who amazed us with her singing and dancing. The

boys and girls quickly got in the pantomime spirit and were singing along and cheering

and booing. Some of the more reluctant staff were forced to sing and dance along too. A

fabulous time was had by all and we look forward to their return early next year with

"Beauty and the Beast."

Examinations & Accreditation Silverdale School has built up a curriculum that allows every student to achieve a range of

GCSE qualifications that reflect their interests, aspirations and abilities. Silverdale School

students were entered for the following examinations during the academic year 2015-16:

Examination Number of Entrants GCSE Mathematics

GCSE English

GCSE Science

GCSE Photography

GCSE Physical Education

ICT: ECDL Level 2 4

ICT: ITQ Level 1 4

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Hallowe’en 2015

Financial Report Silverdale School Budget Plan 2015-2016

Allocated Budget £2,078,381

Budget Area Planned Action Cost

Teaching Staff One head teacher, 1 deputy head and 11 teachers

26 Behaviour Support Rises are built in including performance related points for those on the leadership scale. The figures include all on costs.

£738385

£903578

Administrative Staff

One Finance Officer and one full time and one 0.68

Administrative Assistant.

£75407

Premises Staff 1 full time Caretaker and 4 cleaners £41918

Supervisors One Senior Supervisor

15 Midday Supervisory Assistants

£41511

Other staff expenses

Adverts, employee expenses, mileage, Teachers 1:1 tuition .

£16975

Total Employee expenses for a staff of 53 £1817774

Premises Including fuel bills, water rates, cleaning contract, off site rentals, building and structural maintenance.

£139672

School Development and Supplies and Services

Includes all equipment and materials, insurances, educational visits, computer equipment, admin supplies, printing and stationary, telephone bills, postages, exam fees, books, consultants fees, hire costs e.g. ski slope, climbing wall etc and a contingency fund with a view to new recruitment.

£145453

Service level agreements

Includes personnel, finance, payroll, edit, clerking, advisory service and legal services. It also includes school meals contract.

£88347

Total Cost – 28889 income £2162357

Total Budget including £155270 B/Fd £23345628

Surplus £172205

Pupil Premium 2015 – 2016

In 2016-2017 we received £40,785

Planned Action & Impact Cost

Educational Welfare

Officer Service

Level Agreement

Increased Attendance. Our attendance

continues to be over 90%

£950

Rewards Budget Improved behaviour. Last year we saw

record attendance and much fewer fixed

term exclusions.

£7000

Outdoor Education Extends the PE curriculum and develops

PSHE skills in the outdoors leading to

improved self-esteem and self worth.

£4000

Residentials Our aim is to give every student at least 1

residential experience whilst they are with

us. Outcomes again are increased self

esteem and participation.

£9000

School

Improvement

Service SLA

Allows the teaching staff access to the latest

training and teaching strategies. Outcome is

improved teaching and learning.

£918

Educational

Psychological

Service SLA

We have bought a number of additional

hours from the service allowing us to get

children assessed more quickly.

£8000

Read Write Inc

resources

Improve literacy skills including phonics

knowledge at key stages 2 and 3. Improved

reading and writing levels.

£1600

1:1 Literacy

support.

Targeted support for reading for 9 hrs per

week. Outcome is improved reading ages.

£7077.57

iPads We have provided all students in KS1 and

KS2 with iPads to develop ICT skills and the

ICT Department in Upper school has a suite

of iPads.

£3705

Total Cost £42250.57

Total Pupil Premium Budget £40785

Overspend to be found from MSB £1465.57

Glencoe & Borrowdale

London & Alton Towers

Kinder Scout Kinder Scout class has been exploring a range of topics this year that incorporate our

foundation subjects. We have explored Day and Night, London, Explorers and Adventurers,

Alice in Wonderland, The Farm and The Circus. Through these topics we have enjoyed a range

of lessons and activities. For Christmas we were also lucky to have a pantomime come to the

ARP where we got to see the adventures of Peter Pan and meet up with our ARP friends. We

have also visited Whitehouse Farm to learn more about our Farm topic. During our day there

we got to hold different reptiles, feed the goats, ponies and llamas, bottle fed the baby lambs,

had a ride on a tractor as well as learning about the different farm animals and how they are

looked after. As part of our Farm topic we also planted a variety of different plants and

vegetables. The class particularly enjoyed growing our bean sprouts and a Venus fly trap. We

have now planted our plants in our sensory garden in primary and look forward to everything

blooming soon. The children in Kinder Scout have been working hard all year during their

Numeracy and Literacy lessons and have produced some excellent work. They are particularly

proud of their interactive, animated dinosaur fact files that they have created using their iPads.

Pen-y-Ghent Pen-y-Ghent class have covered the national curriculum this year and explored a variety of

different topics such as the Rainforest, the Stone Age to Iron Age, volcanoes, Roald Dahl, the

Romans, World War 2 and Coal Mining. These topics have formed the basis for our literacy,

history and geography lessons. As a class we have been able to enjoy some fantastic

experiences together. From working at a cat and dog shelter to going down a coal mine!

During our rainforest topic we were visited by “Animal Antics” who brought along a boa

constrictor, a python, a tarantula, a millipede and plenty of other critters. During our World

War 2 topic we took on the role evacuees at the Beamish Museum and lived a wartime country

life for a day! The class have produced some fantastic model animations through their work in

ICT and have also enjoyed other areas of the ICT curriculum such as E-Safety and

communicating and collaborating online. The class have worked very hard this year and have

produced some fantastic work. Their numeracy and literacy books are full and they can be

very proud. The class have enjoyed Philosophy for Children all year, so be sure to have some

deep and meaningful conversations. Well done Pen-y-gent it has been a great year!

Crossfell Crossfell class have investigated a range of topics this year that cover the upper Key Stage 2

curriculum. We have travelled back in time to study the ancient civilisations of the Maya and

the Sumer, the Viking invasions of Britain, Dinosaurs and Earth and Space. We have used

these topics as a basis of a range of activities during lessons. Friday mornings saw the

introduction of ‘The Crossfell Challenge’ which tested pupils’ abilities in a range of different

educational and social challenges. As can be seen by the display of photographs in the

classroom, showing the pupils working together; the pupils overcame personal insecurities

and were able to demonstrate hidden strengths and talents that helped boost their confidence

and see each other with a new respect for differences. The pupils in Crossfell have worked

hard throughout the year to improve their Literacy and Numeracy skills with some pupils

completing the end of Key Stage 2 SATs tests. Everyone was very proud of the way each of

pupils involved approached what was a challenging week. A favourite Literacy topic of pupils

of pupils in Crossfell was an alternate look at Traditional Tales which saw each pupil write very

witty and well thought out versions of events in the story of Little Red Riding Hood, from the

Wolf’s point of view… We finished our year with an extremely successful trip to Dukeshouse

Wood.

Dukeshouse Wood The pupils in Crossfell class visited Dukeshouse Wood in Hexham for a 2 night residential.

They took part in several challenging activities such as a very large and very daunting

climbing wall, an equally large abseil and enormous zip wire! Other activities included

quad biking, fire lighting and a blind folded obstacle course. The pupils worked hard to

overcome their personal fears and were extremely encouraging to help their fellow pupils

achieve success. The main focus of each activity was to try and be better than yourself

and out do what you thought you could do. We also discovered that we have some

promising archers and fencers amongst the ranks. After some pupils initially struggled to

meet the expected behaviour required on such a trip, in the end our guides and teachers

from other schools were very impressed with the behaviour and attitude of all of the

pupils. The trip was once again a great success and the Silverdale staff members involved

in the trip are extremely proud of the group.

Silverdale Learning Centre In April 2016 we moved from our Annexed Unit from Whitehouse Primary School, which

was being demolished, to Monkhouse Primary School. While it was sad to say goodbye to

the Whitehouse Unit, a place of many happy memories, we are all very excited to be in our

much larger site now which was renamed Silverdale Learning Centre in May 2016. We are

making the most of having separate KS3 and KS4 learning spaces, a kitchen area, Adult

training room, Recreation area and a wonderful garden that we have already started work

on to improve (see Twitter). We are currently completing a sculpture project in Art as well

as Maths, English, PSHE and in the next academic year will start ASDAN and ICT with a

number of pupils. We are also very proud of our Year 10 and 11 students who have

completed their GCSE exams and have done themselves and us proud with their effort,

maturity and determination. The forthcoming 2016/2017 academic year will be an exciting

school year at the Learning Centre as we look to expand our garden project, and

accommodate training courses.

Preparation for Working Life At Key Stage 4 in the PHSCE programme Year 10 and 11 pupils sit an exam called

Preparation for Working Life. This one year course takes them through how to apply for

jobs and gives them a cohesive understanding of what to expect when they start work.

Mathematics It has been a very demanding time for staff and students in the Department working

towards meeting the extremely high expectations and demands of the new National

Curriculum. Year 6 students transitioned successfully in September into Upper School and

have worked extremely hard towards their KS2 SAT’s which they completed in May. Over

the year, we have introduced a number of new techniques and mathematical concepts to

support the students with their learning and they have enjoyed working on these. Our KS3

Year groups have participated in maths challenges throughout the year, working well on

developing their problem solving skills and applying these to real-life concepts. Year 9

students transitioned into KS4 in May this year and have already begun working hard on

gaining their qualifications in Maths including the Cambridge Progression Level 1 and 2

Awards and GCSE Mathematics qualifications. We are in the process of changing to

assessment without levels and working within yearly objectives in line with the New

National Curriculum for Maths. Progress at KS3 has been outstanding again this year with

94% of students achieving 2 or more sub-levels progress in Maths which is much higher

than national benchmark targets and a real credit to all the students who work

exceptionally hard in their maths lessons. The coming year will be a challenging and

difficult period but I am sure the students will strive as always to achieve the best they can

once again.

English Changes have been taking place at rapid place across the English Department in line with

new qualification and KS3 Curriculum being implemented fully. We also moved the Year 6

students into Upper School for the first time in September this year. Students have

studies units ranging from The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas to G Force and Poetry which

have enabled them to gain a greater understanding of the key aspects of fiction and non-

fiction texts. Once again in February this year, four of our Year 9 students embarked on

our English Department’s residential which links to our Travel Writing Unit of work. Whilst

in London, we undertook the usual visitor attractions including Buckingham Palace,

Trafalgar Square as well as Downing Street and The Palace of Westminster as well as lots

of other activities which are mentioned in the Residential section of the Governors Report.

We also extended our Basic Skills lessons to Year 6 three times per week and all Key

Stage 3 students continued with one lesson per week. The impact these lessons have had

on the students’ progress has been immense. Our students have visited the Theatre

throughout the year to see Goodnight Mr. Tom and The Woman in Black are looking

forward to continuing this experience over the coming year. Progress has been

outstanding at Key Stage 3 this year with 94% of students making 2 or more sub-levels

progress in Reading and Writing which is much higher than national expectations. A huge

congratulations and thanks got to the staff and students as without their hard work and

determination, the Department wouldn’t have achieved the successes it has.

Science Students have studied topics featuring:-

Chemistry

• acids and bases

• elements and compounds

• chemical reactions

• rocks and weathering

• solutions

• environmental chemistry

Biology

• food and nutrition

• environment and ecosystem

• animal and plant classification

• microbes and disease

• respiration

• genes and inheritance

Physics

• electricity

• energy sources

• pressure

• the Earth in space

• forces

• energy transformations

We have had an intake of year 6 students in upper school and they have taken well to the

subject, showing themselves able to work safely and confidently in the lab.

Key stage 4 students have followed topics including:-

Biology

• cells, organs and organ systems

• inheritance patterns

• homeostasis

• agriculture, transportation and ecosystems

• disease, vaccination and antibiotics

• variation and evolution.

Chemistry

• periodic table and electron configuration

• neutralisation reactions

• properties of substances

• industrial processes

• reactions and reaction rates

• the changing Earth

Physics

• energy and energy transfer

• wave characteristics

• the electromagnetic spectrum

• ionising radiation

• radioactive decay

• voltage, current, resistance and power

• the changing universe

The plan for accreditation at Key stage 4 is that most students will leave with at least one

award in Science and some will leave with 2.

i-World This year has seen the introduction of a new course as the European Computer Driving

Licence Level 2 has replaced GCSE ICT. This decision was made because of the huge

amount of coursework required which the pupils found very challenging especially those

with literacy issues. The coursework would often stretch to be more than fifty pages. The

new course has four modules which are Word Processing, Spreadsheets, Presentations

and Productivity in the Workplace. They are online test where pupils need to score 70% in

the first three exams and 50% in the final exam. The tests are 45 minutes long. They have

proved to be a suitable challenge. Two pupils have already successfully completed the

course and two more have passed modules (one of these is doing his final module in the

next week) towards the final qualification. The level 2 is equivalent to an A-C grade.

This year pupils have used Word to send off letters to Celebrities asking for autographs.

They have created spreadsheets including a stadium ticketing model for football, cinemas

and UFC fights events, used databases to create a top 25 FIFA players database and

Publisher to create Newspapers, CDs and Leaflets. The Serif Package has enabled pupils

to create websites using Webplus, manipulate pictures at a professional level using

Photoplus including Head swapping and creating Spot the Difference puzzles. Pupils have

started programming creating animations and games using Scratch and Logo.

The Department is facing many challenges with the evolution of technology and the

introduction of touch-screen technology in the real world. Students are entering the

school with developed skills and abilities for this new technology and yet the courses and

qualifications are very much rooted for the world of personal computers and keyboards as

used in business and industry. That said, the iPads have still been used in a wide range of

projects and are very popular among the children, particularly for educational games,

research and reading books. We look forward to the coming year and the development of

a project called ‘iPads for Learning’.

Life Skills Over the past year in Life skills I have covered a variety of recipes with years 6, 7, 8 and 9.

These recipes have included varying skill-based activities which the pupils have been able

to demonstrate throughout their lessons. In years 10 and 11 the pupils have been studying

GCSE course work and completed some complex recipes while the year 11s have just sat

their final exam. We have been on several exertions to different restaurants to experience

different foods and learn how they are prepared, cooked and served. These trips have

given the pupils experience in a social setting and a wider perspective to where this

qualification could take them.

GCSE Photography GCSE Photography provides students with a wide range of creative, exciting and

stimulating opportunities to explore their interests in ways that are both personally

relevant and developmental in nature. The assessment is by Portfolio of Work

(60%) and an Externally Set Task (40%). Students take photographs while out and

about in the community; these are then edited on the computers in our i-World

Suite, before being printed for their portfolios.

Over the year, the course visited a number of locations enabling students to

develop their photography skills and capture scenes from around the northeast.

We visited: Newcastle Quayside and bridges, the Sage, the Baltic, the Angel of the

North, the Hoppings fairground, the Rising Sun Country Park, Houghton Feast,

Chinatown, Jesmond Cemetery, Tynemouth coastline, Northumberlandia,

Penshaw Monument, Lumley and Durham Castle, the Great North Museum, Shields

Ferry, Marsden Rock, the Port of Tyne, St Mary’s Lighthouse, South Shields,

Newcastle Airport, Killingworth Lake, plus many other parts of Gateshead,

Sunderland, South Tyneside, North Tyneside, Durham, Northumberland .... to

name but a few!

The GCSE Photography course ended in June and saw students completing an

unusual and interesting range of projects for the examination, including carrying

five giant cardboard boxes to local landmarks (even up Penshaw Hill),

photographing all sixty Metro stations, making wrapping paper from images of car

badges, photographing collections of live creepy crawlies, and a Star Wars

themed project.

This year a record breaking 13 students were entered for the GCSE Photography

exam and we look forward to seeing what results students achieve when the exam

board releases the results.

GCSE Physical Education This year three pupils sat the GCSE PE exam and there is a great hope all pupils could

achieve a good grade due to the amount of work they put into both their sport and revision

for the exams. The course has involved students travelling and representing the school

well in local gyms and leisure centres, filming videos which need to be sent off to the exam

board to show their sporting abilities.

History Year 7 pupils have been looking at the history of the United Kingdom. Looking at the

background to the famous union and making an interactive model of the union flag

showing each of its constituent parts. They have also looked at famous events of the

twentieth century, using the ICT and the internet to research and answer questions about

events ranging from the Death of Queen Victoria to the sinking of the Titanic, the World

Wars to man landing on the moon and the Challenger space shuttle disaster.

Year 8 and 9 pupils have been looking at different aspects of the Great War in its

centenary years. They have studied what life was like in the trenches, the conditions and

the health related issues. Pupils have looked at the variety of new weapons developed

because of the outbreak of war, the need for propaganda and conscription. Pupils have

used their own skills and abilities to create propaganda posters and make models of

trenches.

Sports & Exercise Lessons this year have helped pupils improve their fitness and sporting skills including

Football, Basketball, Badminton, Table Tennis, Fitness Circuits, Hockey, Dodgeball, Crab

Football, Tennis, Carpet Bowls and Cricket. Pupils have participated in multi school

tournaments and the school teams have shown a lot of progress and represented the

school well at Football, Badminton and Basketball tournaments. Next year, to help engage

students who are not interested in sports, we are planning to introduce dance, role play

and more traditional games such as the Carpet Bowls which is already being integrated

into lessons.

Art Key Stage 4 pupils are given the opportunity to develop their own ideas for a project, and

this is working really well. This means that the pupils can investigate a topic that is

personal and interesting to them. At Key Stage 3 pupils have studied artists such as Van

Gogh and Giacometti and have produce a series of personal responses to these artists. As

well as looking at different artists, the pupils have also studied movements such as Pop

Art and Art Deco. Pupils have continuously had the opportunity to experiment with a

variety of materials such as wire, clay and watercolours.

Geography The year 7 pupils have developed their understanding of basic geography skills -

improving map reading skills, which has linked into the orienteering work undertaken in

their Outdoor Education lessons. The students have looked at the basic breakdown of

human and physical geography and what it means to study the two sections. They have

looked at the world in the wider context and narrowed it down to a continental, national

and local level. They have looked at the topic of weather, taking part in experiments and

local studies. They have been able to show what causes it to rain and understand why

Britain has the climate that it does.

Year 8 pupils have studied two contrasting environments – Rainforests and deserts. The

intention was to look at how plants and animals have learned to adapt to such extreme

environments. They have explored the types of animals that inhabit such ecosystems,

looking at videos and using the internet to create information packs. The pupils have also

studied the topic of natural hazards in particular volcanoes and earthquakes. They have

observed videos of these hazards, in particular Mount St Helens and the San Francisco

earthquake of 1989. This led to looking at how and why these events take place, looking at

plate tectonics – the reason why Britain has no active volcanoes.

Year 9 pupils have studied weathering and erosion, looking at costal erosion and how it

can be managed. As part of the study they have visited Marsden rock and have been able

to see for themselves the power of Mother Nature. The human topic was related to

population and migration – looking at the ever increasing world population and the

problems that arise from this. They have produced graphs and data relating to birth and

death rates and studied which countries are most likely to struggle with the bulge in

population growth.

Balloon fun

Arrrrr matey!

Outdoor Education The Outdoor Education team began the September term with an exciting

residential to the beautiful area of Glencoe where the group stayed in the Glencoe

Independent Youth Hostel located at the foot of the mountains. We were blessed

with the weather with temperatures exceeding 20oC every day! The activities were

both exciting and fitness orientated with ghyll scrambling and an exciting

canyoning adventure both of which were very close to the accommodation. All of

the students said it was their best residential yet!

This was followed by our fantastic bushcraft sessions where we covered a variety

of survival skills. Students also were shown how to safely use knives, create and

operate primitive weapons such as atl-atl spears and how to light fires in a survival

situation using limited resources.

Next we moved on to indoor climbing where we based our sessions at Sunderland

Climbing Wall and students learnt how to master their fears and push boundaries,

both physically and mentally. Participation from the students was again very good

with students maintaining a positive attitude towards the belaying, bouldering

walls and climbing challenges. We saw some excellent standards of climbing and

behaviour.

Following on from the climbing we went straight on to mountain biking. We rode

numerous trails around the area and developed our skills on the bikes. Looking at

the important arts of weight shifting, slow speed control and bike maintenance as

well as improving our fitness.

Most recently we have been kayaking. Students have been building their repertoire

of paddle skills. We have also put an emphasis on safe practice by making the

students aware of dangers and requirements for safe water activities. As usual

lots of fun has been had and more recently the adventurous students have been

wet-suited up and deliberately capsizing to get a feel for it.

Not just fun and games .... but promoting self esteem and confidence through

adventure and the outdoors!

London Residential 6:15am and we’re standing within the concourse of Newcastle Central Station with four

excited students who couldn’t wait to board the train to begin their residential experience

in London. After a three hour journey down (slightly delayed by the fact our first train

broke down), we finally arrived in London as three fun-filled days awaited us. The first stop

being a meagre climb up 71 floors as we travelled to the very top of The Shard to look at

the views across London. To say they were breath-taking would be an understatement and

gave our students the ability to take in the vast expanse of the area they were going to be

visiting.

After a descent down The Shard building, we began our tour of Shakespeare’s Globe

Theatre. A fascinating and unique experience and insight for the students to truly marvel

and gain a far greater understanding of all things Shakespeare which no textbook could

really provide them. We watched some rehearsals for a forthcoming production of the

Tempest and the students began asking our guide a multitude of questions showing their

full enthusiasm for the subject matter.

Over the forthcoming days, we visited a number of attractions that London had to offer,

including Madame Tussauds, a tour of BBC Broadcasting House to learn about how media

and television news reports are produced and reported as well as sightseeing at

Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, Downing Street and a trip around the London Eye

as well as a visit to a West End theatre to watch a dramatic production of The Woman in

Black (a truly terrifying experience the students will never forget).

So when we returned to school, the students fully embraced our unit of work on Travel

Writing linked directly to our residential in London and have recently started working on

Shakespeare’s Macbeth. The love and enthusiasm for the subject matter has increased

significantly, enabling them to relate fully to the text and theatrical style having been

there. The unique experiences and memories they have of the residential, I am sure will

remain with them for a long time as it has with previous cohorts.

My World The My World curriculum was enriched last year with visits from a wide variety of outside

agencies teaching them about safety and taking risks. Kate from the Drugs service N2L

was a key visitor who came in to talk to all of Key Stage 3.

Also this year both the Year 10 and 11 pupils had the opportunity to attend the North East

Skills Event at the Metro Radio Arena. The pupils had the chance to talk to a variety of

different employers and colleges to find out a little bit about what they have to offer. There

were also lots of practical activities that the pupils could get involved with such as

bricklaying, computer games and a climbing wall. All the pupils thoroughly enjoyed the

experience.

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Lighthouse slip by Dean