Busines Name

The Hookergate Cluster is made up of the following schools:

· Hookergate School
· Chopwell Primary School
· High Spen Primary School
· Highfield Community Primary School
· Rowland’s Gill Primary School
· Parkhead Community Primary School
· Winlaton West Lane Community Primary School
· St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School – Highfield

The Extended Services Co-ordinator for the Hookergate Cluster is Joy Fletcher. Joy is responsible for co-ordinating activities and services throughout each school in the Hookergate Cluster to ensure that each element of the Extended Services Core Offer is being met within the Cluster. Joy can be contacted for any queries regarding Extended Services in the Hookergate Cluster. Joy's contact details are:

Joy Fletcher
Hookergate School
High Spen
Rowlands Gill
Tyne and Wear
NE39 2BX
(01207) 542 862 ext 270
joyfletcher@gateshead.gov.uk

The Hookergate Cluster is working in partnership with children, young people, families and a range of service providers to further develop and support access to services and activities in the local community. The schools are all providing access to a core offer of services, in partnership with others, that contribute to improving children’s skills, confidence, well being, health and achievement.

Since September 2008, all schools in the cluster have been involved in a subsidy pathfinder project that has provided additional funding from the Government and enabled schools to extend the range of out of hours provision available. The fund has been used to subsidise the cost of residential and school trips as well as broadening the variety of school based activities now running before, during and after school hours. The clubs and activities currently offered within the cluster include ‘Wake up, Shake up’, ‘Learn to be a Magician’, fashion and beauty, dance, guitar, gardening, Chinese art, table tennis, jewellery making traditional team sports and many more!

‘I really love going to the table tennis club. I’ve learned how to serve and how to earn points’
Connor, Year 9 student, Hookergate School

‘We went to the swimming last Saturday and it was great……..also could you please book…..for the rugby, mad science and circus skills in the Easter hols ……thanks very much for your help, cannot tell you how impressed I am with all the clubs, swimming etc. Well done.’
Clare Snowdon (parent), Parkhead Community Primary school

‘The Bollywood dance club was great! I learned lots of dance moves and their names’
Nikita, Year 8 student, Hookergate School

TELL US WHAT YOU WANT!!!!!!

REMEMBER we want to put on activities, trips or visits that you want to attend, so if you are a pupil at one of the schools in the Hookergate Cluster why not TELL US WHAT YOU WANT?

All you have to do to feedback what you want is to go to the homepage and post your comments by leaving your leave your age, school that you attend and area that you live in and of course WHAT YOU THINK!!!!

For ideas on activities that could be provided, check the Subsidy Pathfinder article listed in the Recent News section on the Homepage.

As part of our range of extended schools activities we have been looking at what type of sessions we can offer with external companies that support the curriculum in a fun and exciting way to help children learn after school hours.

To support this we invited a company called Zoo lab to run sessions for Year 1 and 2 to focus on the specific elements of the science that we are teaching and bring in animals for the children to handle and give them great first hand experience.

As this supports the children’s learning in school we have been delighted that so many of the children have been able to attend the sessions.

At Hookergate for three morning sessions during the spring term, a group of parents attended a short course focusing on ways to engage with their children in discussions around puberty, relationships and safeguarding issues. The sessions were delivered by members of the Gateshead Sexual Health Team and Hookergate’s Family and Young Peoples’ Support Worker, Vicky Harrison.

Feedback from the parents who attended the course has been very positive and it is hoped that the course will run again in a primary school setting after Easter.

Active Kidz is a fully inclusive activity scheme for all children and young people aged 5-7 and 8-19 years old. At Easter Hookergate School is the venue for young people aged 8-14 and activities include street cheer, swimming, games, arts and crafts and joint ventures with the other Active Kidz groups from across Gateshead.

The Play Development team intend to run the scheme at some of the cluster primary school sites during the summer holidays and various discounts are available if you are in receipt of selected benefits.

Adults from the local community, school staff and older students can take part in a Community Sports Leaders course (leading to a nationally recognised certificate) to develop skills to deliver sporting activities to young people. For further details please contact Sarah Needham on 01207 542862 or via e-mail to sarahneedham@gateshead.gov.uk.

During the Easter holidays we had our fourth very successful residential visit to Chateau Beaumont, an outdoor adventure centre in Normandy, France. 41 children and 7 staff members from Chopwell Primary School joined in the fun and had a fabulous week together visiting a variety of sightseeing places, taking part in adventure activities and sampling the French culture and lifestyle. Opportunities to learn and practise French were constant! It was a really enjoyable experience for both children and adults!

Active Kidz is a holiday scheme that is ran by the council. It gives children the opportunity to socialize with children there own age and the chance to experience new activities they wouldn't usually have at home, including Arts and Crafts and a mixture of different outdoor activities. The scheme runs for 2 weeks in the Easter holidays and a 5 week scheme in the summer holidays, it is also held at different venues across Gateshead.

Hookergate had 31 children aged over 8. The staff team ran many different activities to keep the children fit and to stimulate them. These included dodge ball, different team relays, human posters, swimming and a big even they named "I'm and active kid get me out of here!" which was held in chopweel forest. The children had many different benefits for attending the scheme; they met new people that helped them get involved with new activities which also helps them to keep fit.

I loved going to chopwell forest and playing the game "I'm an active kid get me out of here!" I think it was really fun!
Helen aged 9

I think Active Kidz is a fantastic scheme that proves how easy it is to include children from all backgrounds and areas of life.
Abigail, Play Development Service

Active Kidz is a great scheme which accommodates for children of all ages. It has many different activities which they all enjoy and get involed in.
Jack, Play Development Services

The Alan Shearer Centre

The Alan Shearer Centre enables people with a disability, and their carers to share leisure time in a setting which provides wide ranging challenge, leisure, relaxation and therapeutic opportunities. People can use this as a place to relax and unwind either to stay for a short session or a longer stay, indoors or out. The Alan Shearer Centre is sponsored by St Cuthbert's Care project and is for both Adults and Children with Disabilities.

The Alan Shearer Centre is a brilliant place to get all children involved. It is really stimulating and really promotes healthy living whilst having fun.
Abigail, Play Development Service

Reported By Matthew Ternent - V talent Volunteer

Children from Year 4 , 5 and 6 enjoyed an outdoor activity week at Whithaugh Park in the Easter holidays. All 53 children and 11 teachers had a brilliant time. Activities included canoeing, raft building, high ropes, gorge walk and many other adventure activities.

Our film club has now been running successfully since March. Children of all ages can join film club and it runs every Thursday evening between 3.20pm and 5pm. Everyone gets involved reviewing the films and children from year 5 and year 6 regularly post reviews on the national Film Club website http://www.filmclub.org/AccessAllAreas/review which is open to everyone to read. Film Club is ran in the KS2 hall and Miss Sewell and Mrs Lang supply popcorn to recreate a real cinema experience for the children! If you want to book a place on our film club please speak to Mrs Lang or telephone the school office.

Winlaton West Lane, Parkhead and Highfield Primary Schools have taken part in the Bike-It project. Bike It is a national Sustrans led project, which aims to increase cycling in schools. There are many benefits of the project including increased physical activity of the children, reduction in local traffic congestion and a decrease in pollution and carbon emissions.

The Bike-It project focuses on running a number of events and activities including:

 Bike rides
 Bike ride breakfasts
 Bike maintenance classes
 Dr. Bike sessions
 Cycle coaching and cycle safety
 Classroom activities including geography, environment, health and growth and history
 PE activities
 Assemblies
 Dressing bike up
 Virtual bike race around the world
 Bike trails and displays with 3 x world champion
 National art competitions

The impact of Bike-It in Gateshead for 2008/2009 shows:

 11.9% of children cycle to school everyday compared to the national average of 1%
 A further 24.2% of children in the area cycle to school at least once per week

For more information contact Gateshead Bike-It Officer:

Alan Barlow
(0191) 261 6160
Alan.barlow@sustrans.org.uk

To read more on the Bike-It project click on the link below:

Download file Bike-It

The Hookergate Cluster wants to know what YOU THINK, whether it be what services or activities you would like to see taking place in the cluster, comments on the Hookergate Cluster Web page or any comments in general about the Hookergate Cluster PLEASE TELL US!!!!!!!!

All you have to do to feedback what you want is to go to the homepage and post your comments by leaving your leave your age, school that you attend and area that you live in and of course WHAT YOU THINK!!!!