Pupils get on their marks for charity

STAFF and students at a Ponteland school put on their running shoes at the weekend to help a range of charities.

More than 20 boys and girls from Richard Coates Middle School took part in the Junior Great North Run on Saturday in aid of St Oswald's Hospice.

They are hoping to raise around £700 and beat the total amount they collected after last year's event.

Three members of staff were truly exhausted by their efforts, but thoroughly enjoyed the experience of their maiden attempts at the Great North Run on Sunday.

One of the trio was running for St Oswald's and the others were raising money for the Motor Neurone Disease Association and Marie Curie Cancer Care.

Source: Morpeth Herald

Flower Power Solution to Problem Pavement Parkers

FLOWER power could help solve the issue of problem parkers near two Ponteland schools.

Complaints about cars parking along Thornhill Road and on pavements when taking pupils to and from Richard Coates Middle School and Ponteland First School intensified when the first school moved from North Road to a site next to the middle school in 2007.

Since then they have worked closely with Northumberland County Council and Ponteland North member Richard Dodd to try to get parents to stop further away from their premises in order to relieve congestion and improve safety.

Coun Dodd has spent £20,000 from his small schemes allowance on yellow lines, new parking bays for elderly residents in the neighbouring bungalows and a new zebra crossing.

And the education side of the campaign has had some success as the majority of parents are going elsewhere.

But Coun Dodd says there are about 20 people still causing problems, which also includes irresponsible driving, and he recently met the schools, highways chiefs and concerned parents to discuss what else can be done.

“I would like an extension of the yellow lines and another idea is to put some planters on the pavement and fill them with flowers,” he said.

“As well as stopping the irresponsible drivers from parking on the pavement, they will also make the area look nicer.

“The schools and Cowell’s Garden Centre have shown an interest in maintaining the flowers so if the price is right with the officers we can move forward on this.

“It is very frustrating that these drivers, who I believe do not live around here, continue to abuse our village with their inconsiderate parking and bad driving, such as making dangerous u-turns and using the bus lane.

“They refuse to listen to our advice and I think they would drive right to the classroom if they could.”

Police have warned that anyone seen by officers parking illegally in Thornhill Road will receive a fixed penalty notice.

In a joint statement, Headteacher of Ponteland First School Lynn Blain and Headteacher of Richard Coates Middle School Paul Rusby said: “We work closely together on many matters and we have worked collaboratively to improve traffic issues around our school site with Coun Dodd, Northumberland County Council, local businesses, Northumbria Police, local residents and parents.

“We are very grateful to the majority of parents who now park away from Thornhill Road, which is helping ensure pupil safety as they access our school site.

“We continue to encourage all parents to park with consideration for local residents and the safety of our school communities.”
Source: Morpeth Herald

Chefs go back to the classroom

TOP chefs cooked up a creative lesson for Ponteland students as they passed on their catering skills.

Pupils at Richard Coates Middle School welcomed Aramark chefs Jonathan Duke and Paul Walton to the classroom as part of the national Let's Get Cooking Big Cookathon.

Around 230 community cookery events were organised nationwide through the initiative, with more than 3,000 pupils, parents and teachers from ten north east schools joining in.

And the Ponteland youngsters were delighted with their share of the food fest.

Food technology teacher Lisa Burton said: "The Let's Get Cooking clubs are really keen for people to work with industry professionals so we had two chefs that came along to work with our gifted and talented children and they provided everything.

"They are top chefs and they showed the kids all the fancy techniques.

"The children seemed to really enjoy it. The group who were taking part have really good skills already, but they certainly benefited from working with real chefs rather than teachers.

"This was the first time we have worked with these chefs, but they are keen to come back into school on a more regular basis, which would be great."

Let's Get Cooking is a network of after school clubs for children, their families and the wider community, led by the School Food Trust and supported by the Big Lottery Fund.

It aims to give people the skills and confidence to cook healthy meals on a budget.

Source: Morpeth Herald

Richard Coates Annual Ski Trip

Richard Coates returned from yet another fantastic Ski Trip this week.  Having taken some 47 pupils to the resort of Les Menuires in the Trois Vallees, Mr Hopper was only full of praise for his students on their return.

The pupils were all an absolute credit to the school.  Each has progressed so far in a week in terms of not only their skiing ability, but also thier social skills and living away from their home comforts.

The hotel Piolet managed by Chay and his wife Zoe was an excellent base from which we were able to ski to and from the door each day was an excellent base in the resort centre.  The quality of service from the staff was fantastic.

SKiing in 6 days of solid sunshine certainly meant spirits were high and the views from the top of the pistes were breathtaking. Especially looking across the magnificent Mt Blanc.

I know that the pupils will cherish the memories of the trip for many years to come and I look forward to start planning again for next years adventure.

Quotes from pupils on the 2011 Ski Trip to Les Menuires

I thoroughly enjoyed this years skiing trip. The skiing, the accommodation and also the food, it was all great!   My favourite part of the trip was learning to parallel ski down the red slopes.  I also enjoyed the après ski activities like the town trail. Quiz night, crepe night and the disco.  Our 4 instructors Marco, Lolo, Audrey and Muriel were very friendly.  I would definitely recommend this trip to the year 7s.

Adam 8 He

Skiing was a really good experience and I will always remember the trip.  I would definitely go skiing again as it was great fun.  It was the best activity holiday I've ever had!

Kim 8He

The ski trip was amazing! The best thing for me was getting down a slope and knowing that you had achieved it.  If you made a mistake the instructor told you how to correct it and you could improve.

Logan 8Ry

Skiing 2011 in Les Menuires has been the best week of my life.  It has taught me that if you put your head to it you can do it.  I will never forget this trip.

Jack 8Ry

I would recommend the skiing trip to everyone.  It was fun and I was able to make more friends. 

Bradley 

The great thing about the ski trip was being able to experience a new environment and try something that I had never done before.  I will always remember the feeling of skiing down the mountain in the sunshine.  It was amazing.

Dan 8Ry

RICHARD COATES SCHOOL CLOSURE 1ST DECEMBER

Snow Update 6.15am and 8.00am - Wednesday 1st December 2010-SCHOOL IS CLOSED due to local weather conditions and road conditions. We apologise that this decision has been necessary. Ponteland First, Middle and High School and Whalton, Heddon, Belsay, Stamfordham and Cambo First Schools in our Partnership are also closed today. I will update the website throughout the day, but looking longer term, will do all we can to reopen on Thursday 2nd December (weather permitting)

From Richard Coates Website 

You'll pay the price, rogue drivers warned

PEOPLE who fall foul of new measures to tackle congestion in a Ponteland street have been warned they will pay the penalty.

And a local councillor is hoping the police will back up their words with action to reduce the problems in Thornhill Road at the start and end of the school day.

Richard Coates Middle School and Ponteland First School are next to each other on the street.

Complaints about cars parking along the road and on pavements when taking pupils to and from school — which parents, local residents and councillors say reduces an already narrow road and puts children's safety at risk — have intensified since the first school moved there in 2007.

So in a bid to tackle the issue following discussions between the schools, Northumberland County Council and Northumbria Police, new double and single yellow lines were introduced at the start of the year.

Team Traffic Manager for Northumberland County Council Alan Bawn said the parking plate signs for the single yellow lines, prohibiting parking in key areas between 8.30am to 9.30am and 3pm to 4pm, Monday to Friday, have now been installed.

And Neighbourhood Inspector for East Tynedale Kevin Oates said: "Fixed Penalty Notices will be issued to drivers who park illegally in Thornhill Road.

"I would appeal to people who are attending the school to park legally in the area and avoid causing congestion. I appreciate this may involve a short walk from nearby car parking facilities."

There were traffic calming measures along the road already, including a 20mph speed limit and speed cushions. A zebra crossing and other road markings were put in place last year.

But many complaints have been made that indiscriminate parking on Thornhill Road is reducing the highway to single lane traffic and causing visibility problems for pedestrians.

Ponteland North county councillor Richard Dodd, who has been campaigning for new measures for a number of years, said: "I have still seen people parking on the yellow lines since they were put down so I hope the police and traffic wardens will regularly enforce the regulations like they have been doing outside County Hall."

Richard Coates Headteacher Paul Rusby said it has been working with other organisations to make the street as safe as possible for pupils as they go to and leave school and thanked parents for their support on the issue.

"I think the yellow lines will have a positive effect and help to address the congestion problem," he added.

Lynn Blain, Ponteland First School Headteacher, said: "We are committed to making sure access to and from the school is as safe as possible and the recent developments are a step in the right direction.

"It also requires education of the whole school community, including children and parents, about the importance of walking or parking in a village car park then walking the rest of the way whenever possible as well as effective enforcement of parking restrictions by the police." 

Source: Morpeth Herald

A taste of the Aztecs

PONTELAND school pupils got colourfully creative to celebrate its Aztec Day.

All Year 5 children at Richard Coates Middle School started making masks during art lessons before the event and finished them off on the day.

They came dressed in Aztec costumes and had a feast in the style of the ancient civilisation.

They were also involved in five activities — playing board games similar to the Aztec game patolli, crafts such as jewellery making, cooking food including tortillas and dipping fruit in chocolate, making an Aztec instrument, music and dance, and tackling an Aztec challenge in computers.

It was organised and led by Co-ordinator for History and Geography Christine Cowan with the help of Year 5 staff.

It was was part of a series of activity days about civilisations and time periods, including the Tudor and Victorian eras, held when pupils are studying them in lessons.

Richard Coates Deputy Headteacher Shirley Clark said: "Activity days like these bring the topic to life.

"The things the pupils learn from reading textbooks and internet research are put into practice, which helps them to remember the information."

Source: Morpeth Herald

Super troupers raise the roof

FUN and fund-raising was the name of the game at a Ponteland school's charity Abba night.

Pupils at Richard Coates Middle School, as well as their parents, school staff and people from the local parish, danced and sang to the music of the Swedish band and about £600 was collected to support a fresh water and feeding programme in The Gambia.

In 2007 a group of volunteers called The Wellwishers was formed to raise money for the projects.

And last year members Carol Morgan, a teacher at Richard Coates, and teaching assistant Frances Dawson took more than £1,000 to the African country, with support from school pupils selling raffle tickets.

The money from the Abba night, where a raffle was also held, will again be used to buy rice for the Sifoe Lower Basic School feeding programme, where children attending the school receive free school meals, and contribute to the fresh water appeal for the village of Sukuta — including a new well.

Mrs Morgan said: "More than 50 people attended and they all had a great night singing and dancing to Abba, while also donating to a worthy cause.

"With the Mamma Mia film and stage show having such a high profile, the tunes were equally as popular with the children as they were with the adults."

The best singing prize went to Year Six student Beth Mackenzie and the dancing queens were Mrs Dawson and fellow teaching assistants Marie Dunn and Sam Hood.

Source: Morpeth Herald

Could Pupil Power Ease Ponteland Traffic Troubles?

PUPILS could become traffic wardens for the day in a bid to tackle parking problems on the road outside their schools.

Head Teacher of Richard Coates Middle Paul Rusby said the idea, which he saw being put into practice by another school on television, was among the options being discussed by it and Ponteland First, both at Thornhill Road.

And after concerns that the current traffic calming measures were not effective enough, Northumberland County Council has agreed a re-think and is proposing new ones to try to ease the problems.

Complaints about cars parking along the road and on pavements when taking pupils to and picking them up from school — which parents, local residents and councillors say reduces an already narrow road and puts children's safety at risk when crossing — have intensified since the First School joined the Middle School in 2007.

At a meeting of the Northumberland County Council Area Committee for Castle Morpeth, Mr Rusby said: "When watching the regional news on television, I saw that pupils from Cullercoats Primary School, with the Police alongside them, were wearing luminous jackets and placed reminder notices on cars.

"It appeared that it was effective in getting the message across about the problems caused by parents parking right outside.

"We would have to be very careful to make sure we were not putting any of our young people at risk, but we are being as flexible as possible and will consider all sensible ideas that we see or are suggested."

There are traffic calming measures along the road (20mph limit, speed cushions and chicanes which allow only one vehicle through at a time) to reduce speed, but Committee Chairman Richard Dodd believes there needs to be a change.

The Ponteland North member said: "My daughter goes to Richard Coates School, so I regularly see the problems on Thornhill Road and I think we all agree that we have to do something about the traffic at dropping off and picking up times," he said.

"Measures were put in place to try to deal with that, but they are not working and so we need new ones in place."

Dick Fraser, Head of Policy and Information for Community and Environmental Services, said officers had looked at the site during peak traffic times and decided that the chicanes should be removed.

"If there was only one school in the area they might have been useful but not with two, and unfortunately we have seen people driving faster through them which defeats their purpose," he said.

"We are now proposing to take them out and put in road humps to keep the two-way flow of traffic all the way along the road and we are happy to listen to other ideas to slow traffic down at this stage.

"But this is only part of what is needed, as there are enforcement issues to consider and we are encouraging the schools to educate parents about other parking facilities nearby."

He said there would be be consultation on all major measures proposed, which could also include yellow lines and signs warning cars not to park in the bus turning circle area.
Source: Morpeth Herald