Expert Visitors: Community Heroes in Doncaster

Laura Parsons

This morning, we were very lucky to welcome more expert visitors to help us answer our guiding question:
“Not all heroes wear capes – How can I be a hero where I live?”

We were honoured to be joined by Ros Jones, the elected Mayor of Doncaster, Jackie Dudley, the Deputy Civic Mayor, and David Milnes, who is the Mace Bearer and official chauffeur to the Civic Mayor.

Our visitors spoke to us about their important roles in Doncaster and the ways they work to make a positive difference in our community. We learned all about the Mansion House — one of only a few remaining in the country — and discovered how special it is to have one right here in Doncaster!

Ros shared her CBE medal, which was incredible to see up close, and David gave us the chance to look at the official Mace, which was fascinating to learn about.

They also spoke about what inspires them in their roles and how proud they are to serve the people of Doncaster.

To say thank you for their time and the compassion they show every day towards our community, we were very proud to present them with one of our Community Champion Awards.

What an inspiring morning learning from real-life heroes who make Doncaster a better place to live!

Our Stars of the Week!

Elouise Chadwick

Today in Reception, we enjoyed another successful community meeting, where we came together to celebrate the wonderful achievements of our children. It was a special time to reflect on all the hard work, kindness, and determination shown across our classes this week.

Well done to all of our stars — you truly show us what it means to Be Kind, Work Hard, and Get Smart!

Turning Pages and Counting Collections: Class 1’s First Experience…

Elouise Chadwick

This week, Class 1 have done an amazing job exploring their brand-new books. The children have been so enthusiastic, showing great focus and excitement as they read together in class. It has been lovely to see their confidence grow and their joy in discovering new stories and ideas.

The best part is that the children are now looking forward to taking their books home. This means their reading journey can continue from school to home, giving them the chance to share their stories with family and keep practising every day.

This week, Class 1 took part in their very first Counting Collections session — and what a success it was!

Working with a partner, the children began by choosing a collection of objects to count. Together, they thought carefully about which strategies might help them — such as grouping, sorting, or counting in different ways. With lots of concentration and teamwork, they counted their collections carefully, making sure not to miss or repeat any items.

To finish, the children even had a go at recording their mathematical thinking, showing the strategies they used and the numbers they discovered. It was fantastic to see such enthusiasm, collaboration, and persistence in action.

Well done, Class 1 — you are already becoming brilliant mathematicians!

Sharing our Stories: 03/10/2025

Geoff Hewitt

Beautiful work this week

Here’s a selection of beautiful work from across the XP Trust!

To read about other stories from across the XP Trust, visit xptrust.org.

G29: What makes a great education?

Last term, students in G29 at XPG were challenged to give a keynote at the MTEM conference on what makes a great education. Over a week they drafted and put together an incredible speech which they have now recorded back in school.

Top of the Blogs

Class 8: Martin Luther King research @ Green Top

Decorating cupcakes @ Plover

Fire Fighters @ Carcroft School

Crew Nightingale – Higher Maths @ XP

XP Outdoors – Year 7 take on mighty task of litter picking @ XP East

A visit from Stuart – learning about helping homeless people @ Norton Infants

Share your stories with us!

We now have a new dedicated news email so that you can send your stories, updates or ideas about potential news articles directly to us in Comms.

It might be something you or your students have achieved, a charity you’re supporting or anything at all that deserves a wider audience.

Write to us at [email protected] –  we want to hear about it, write about it and celebrate it!

KS1 Presentation of Learning Invitation

Laura Parsons

This term, our Year 1 and Year 2 children are going on an incredible learning journey through our Autumn expedition, Not All Heroes Wear Capes, guided by the big question: How can I be a superhero where I live?

From creating their own superheroes inspired by Supertato, to marching for justice after studying Let the Children March, to meeting real-life heroes from our community, the children will explore what it truly means to show courage, compassion, and kindness.

We would love to invite you to join us for our Presentation of Learning:

  • Tuesday 2nd December
  • 3:00pm – 5:00pm
  • School Hall

You don’t need to stay for the whole time — please feel free to drop in at a time that’s convenient for you between 3:00pm and 5:00pm.

This special event will take the form of a museum-style gallery walk, where you’ll be able to see:
– The children’s artwork and writing
– Photographs and memories from expert visitors
– Pop-art placards from our peaceful march
– Reflections, pledges, and our very own expedition book
– Introduce some of the real-life heroes they have met, who will be joining us to help demonstrate their skills

It’s really important that the children come along too, as they will be your tour guides — explaining their learning, sharing their work, and showing off everything they have achieved.

Friends of Norton Campus Association will also be supporting us by selling refreshments during the event — so you can enjoy a drink and a treat as you explore the children’s fantastic work.

This is a celebration of your children’s hard work, character, and creativity — and a chance to see how they have discovered that not all heroes wear capes… sometimes they live right here in our community.

We can’t wait to share this with you!

Key Stage One Crew

A Visit from Stuart – Learning About Helping Homeless People

Laura Parsons

This morning we had a very special visitor in school. Stuart came from an organisation called Starting Point. He spoke to us about his important job supporting homeless people across Doncaster.

Stuart told us that his role is to make sure people who don’t have a safe home can get the help they need. He explained that this could mean finding them a safe place to stay, helping them get food, clothing, and health care, and supporting them to make positive changes in their lives.

We asked him lots of thoughtful questions, such as:

  • What is your favourite thing about your job?
  • What can we do to help?
  • How do you get donations to help people?
  • Where do you take people to be safe?
  • How many people have you helped?
  • How many homeless people are there in Doncaster?
  • What are you most proud of?
  • What inspired you to help homeless people?
  • How can you help people stay clean and healthy?
  • Do people volunteer to help homeless people?

Stuart said that one of the best parts of his job is seeing people smile again when they feel safe and supported. He told us that anyone can help by being kind, donating food or clothing, or even just raising awareness about homelessness.

We learned that there are many people involved with the work Stuart does. Together, they make a huge difference to people who might be going through very difficult times.

At the end of Stuart’s visit, we were proud to present him with one of our special Community Champion Awards. The children thought carefully about the character traits Stuart shows every day in his work. We agreed that he demonstrates compassion, respect, and integrity in all he does.

Meeting Stuart made us think about how important it is to help others in our community. We left the session inspired and ready to play our part in making Doncaster a kinder place for everyone.

Celebrating Our Uniqueness Through Self-Portraits…

Elouise Chadwick

This week in Class 1, we have been busy exploring art as part of our current expedition. To celebrate everything that makes us special, we created our very own self-portraits. Using a mix of oil pastels and watercolour pencils, the children experimented with colour, line, and texture to capture their individual features.

We are so proud of Class 1 for their creativity, focus, and confidence in expressing who they are…

RE in Year One

Anna Wojcik

This week  we have been reading some stories from different cultures and looking at the deeper meaning of them. We read the story of ‘Duni Chand and the silver needle’ and discussed how to be kind and generous to others. We made an anchor chart to list our ideas and then we added a cup of water to a class bowl and explained what we would like to add more of to the class. 

Celebrating Success at Our Friday Community Meeting

Elouise Chadwick

Today, we came together for our weekly Friday Community Meeting—a time we all look forward to each week. It’s a wonderful opportunity to reflect, celebrate, and recognise the fantastic efforts and attitudes our children have shown over the past few days.

This week, we celebrated our “Work Hard, Get Smart, Be Kind” stars—children who have gone above and beyond in demonstrating our school values. Whether it was through focused learning, a growth mindset, or acts of kindness, each child has truly earned their moment of recognition.