XP. School Doncaster

All great schools have a palpable culture. It hits you as you walk into the place and permeates not just the school building and displays of quality student work, but through the students and staff themselves.

The best schools can explicitly define this culture by the values and actions that create it. The students know what they look like, and what they do to maintain it.

This is why at XP we have defined our Character Values. The DNA of our culture. They are what we expect of everyone; students, staff, governors and parents.

The open evening at CAST was a great success, with around 150 people attending. It was an opportunity to get our vision for XP across to our parents and children, and for them to ask critical questions and voice their concerns.

We will shortly be posting responses to certain questions that we haven’t yet published, such as our term dates etc.

But first of all,

THANK YOU!

If you are a prospective parent, please come to CAST, Doncaster’s new venue at Waterdale on:

Wednesday, 2nd October, ready for 6pm

We will be presenting XP, what it’s all about and how we will provide a world-class education for your children.

You will be able to meet the people behind XP, ask questions and apply for a place.

Andy Sprakes, current Head Teacher at Campsmount Academy will be our new Principal when we open in September 2014

Gwyn ap Harri, Founder and Chair of Governors, XP school says, “We’re delighted with the appointment. Andy is clearly the man for the job. He is a Donny lad, just like me, completely passionate about improving the lives of our young learners, and has a proven track record of creating value-driven schools with a strong culture. He understands what we are trying to achieve here is World-Class, and I know he has the energy and skills to implement our plans. He’s the perfect fit for XP.”

Andy Sprakes has been Headteacher at Campsmount Academy, serving the areas of Askern, Norton and Campsall Doncaster for 8 years, after spending the four previous years as Deputy Headteacher and will leave them with record breaking results at both GCSE and A Level.

Andy Sprakes agrees to be XP’s new Principal

Andy says, “It’s sad that I’m leaving such a brilliant school, but I couldn’t miss this opportunity. XP is not about politics or size, it’s about how we fundamentally teach our kids. I have no doubt in my mind that XP will change the face of education in the UK. It’s an honour and a privilege to be the new Principal. There will be many challenges ahead, but I’m looking forward to tackling these and making XP the most fantastic place to learn.”

Gwyn adds, “Andy Sprakes is a nationally respected Head Teacher, guiding Campsmount out of their fire disaster when the school burnt down, building a new school for the community and leading them in their last Ofsted Inspection to ‘Good with Outstanding Features’ despite still being in Portakabins, following this up in their new school with record GCSE and A Level results this year. I can’t think of a better person to lead our school.”

He continues, “We are well ahead of our timetable to open next year. Most Free Schools don’t recruit their Principal until the New Year, but we know how important it is for parents to know who will be running their school, and for them to have a strong and proven track record.”

XP will host an open evening for prospective parents at CAST, the new performance venue in Doncaster at 6pm on Wednesday 2nd October

The event at Campsmount Academy was a great success!

Over 130 teachers from over 50 schools attended the night with members of the Department for Education and educational press, wonderfully facilitated by one of the world’s best educators, Ron Berger.

The reaction to the night was incredible, with participants tweeting throughout the evening – see the hashtag #bergerism

We will post up a video of the event as soon as we’ve edited it.

Today, our application has been officially approved! Of the 102 new free schools, The Guardian have chosen to highlight us in this article:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2013/may/22/free-school-learning-michael-gove

Just to point out, I’m not going to be the Head Teacher, I’m the Chair of Governors. They got that bit wrong!

Suffice to say, we are very, very happy!

Now, all that’s left is for us to build the best school in the world…

Hi everyone, we have some really great news!

During the Easter holidays, I went over to the states to visit Expeditionary Learning, where we met Ron Berger, EL’s Chief Program Officer, Teacher, Educator and author of An Ethic of Excellence.

Through his work with EL, Ron has helped over 160 schools in the US to run a project-based curriculum, like XP. As you could imagine, his input was invaluable. Sharing his experience, knowledge and wisdom was the best professional development I have ever had.

As well as meeting Ron at EL’s headquarters in Amherst, Massachusetts, he arranged for us to visit an outstanding school in Portland, Maine called King Middle, where we met the Head, Mike McCarthy and spent a day and a half with their teachers and students, seeing expeditionary learning in practice. I have to say, it was stunning.

Not only were the kids fully engaged, making beautiful products, with authentic results that will help their community, the academic rigour was also there. The culture and values of the place were the DNA that allowed it all to happen, with rubrics for every task to keep the students focused and on track. The remarkable thing is that this was all done in their unique context where around 500 students speak 28 different language and come from 17 different countries!

EL and King Middle have expressed their support and desire for XP to exist and succeed. We very much appreciate the time and energy they have already given to us, and all for a noble mission!