Dear Parent/Carer,
We have had a fantastic start to the school year and it is brilliant to see our students back in school and working hard.
Open Evening
The highlight of the year so far has been the Y6 Open Evening which was held on Wednesday 22nd September. We had the largest ever turnout with over 400 people attending to have a look around our wonderful school. We also had a record number of student helpers and these all represented the school wonderfully. Feedback that we received from the parents and students that attended has been excellent and we look forward to welcoming many of these students to NGA next September!
Year 7 PROUD Event
We had our very first Year 7 PROUD event on the 23rd September. It was fantastic to see so many of our Year 7 students come to the library to show us the piece of work that they were most proud of so far this year. We plan to host one of these events each half term to celebrate and praise our students for their hard work.
Litter Mix
We are very proud of our Year 9 student Emily Alderson who won the North Tyneside recycling scheme competition to name a recycling truck with her name ‘Litter Mix’.
College Visits
Year 11 students have been on tours of both Newcastle College and Tyne Met and been given the opportunity to be involved in some taster sessions of the different subjects on offer. Students were able to ask questions of the college staff and learn about the application process. These visits are an excellent way to show our students the potential options available to them when they move on from North Gosforth Academy, and help to give them the aspirations to leave school having done the best they can. On both trips our student’s behaviour has been superb and they have been a credit to the school.
Lockers
Keys are now available to all students that would like a locker. Students will need to pay a £5 deposit which will be returned to them when they hand their key back in at the end of Year 11. Students will be notified by their tutors where and when they will be able to collect keys next week.
Breakfast Club
We are delighted to let parents know that North Gosforth Academy have been given a place on the National School Breakfast Programme making sure that every child has the right fuel for learning! The NSPB is funded by the Department for Education and delivered by Family Action to support schools in England to provide children with a healthy breakfast at the start of the school day.
Family Action is committed to supporting child development, and we believe a healthy school breakfast, without barrier or stigma, can set up children to succeed and give them the very best chance to learn. Every child is entitled to a free breakfast in school each morning between 8-8.30am. This is a good opportunity to enjoy a healthy breakfast with bagels and a variety of cereals available. There will also be a member of support staff available at this time for any help your child might need prior to starting school.
Academy Advisor vacancies
The school is seeking nominations to fill two parent representative positions on the Academy Advisory Group. The term of office will be for a period of four years from 1 November 2021.
School Academy Advisors are volunteers, from a wide variety of backgrounds, who have an interest in influencing education for the children in their local community. Advisory Groups act as a critical friend to the Principal on matters of performance, education, behaviour, attendance and staff performance.
As a parent representative you have an opportunity to take a full and active part in the work of the Advisory Group. However it is important to understand that you would be a representative of the whole parent body and not representing the parent body or any particular group of parents. As such you will not have a mandate or a specific constituency.
Please see attached to this newsletter a letter containing further information about nominations for this role as well as the nomination form.
Training Day
Finally I would like to remind parents that next Thursday 7th October is a staff training day and so the school will be closed to students.
I wish you all a lovely weekend,
Pete Fox
Principal