Private School News

PEAK PERFORMANCE FROM NEWCASTLE CHURCH HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS

Girls at Newcastle Church High School swapped their school books for walking boots during the trip of a lifetime, trekking through Northern Peru

The determined group of 15 pupils from one of Jesmond’s leading independent schools went on the trip to fulfil the requirements for their Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award Exhibition. After trekking to the remote Peruvian village of Huaraz they all rose to the challenge of restoring a local school, helped build a drainage system and teaching English to local children.

The trip was organised as part of Church High’s challenging programme of extra curricular activities, aimed at nurturing and developing girl’s whole potential and preparing them for all aspects of life.

As part of the project the sixth formers spent 18 months planning and fundraising ahead of the month long expedition into the Andes, along with two Church High teachers.

Charlotte Raymond,17, from Morpeth was one of the sixth form students who took part in the expedition. She said: “The trip was fantastic. Peru is a fascinating country with incredible scenery. The highlight for me was the five day trek, an experience I’ll never forget. It was pretty tough at times and very tiring but so worthwhile when we reached the top – after this, I think I can do anything in life!”

And Alex Forth, 17, from Sunderland said she found the teaching aspect of the trip very rewarding. She said: “I couldn’t believe how little some of these children had and they spoke very little English so they found it hard to understand us. But over time, we began to build relationships with them and they could see that we were trying to help them – it was a really fulfilling experience.”

After successfully completing the project in Huaraz, the girl’s continued their challenge with a trek to Alpamayo base camp – high up in the Andes – where they set up a base camp for a five day climb up to the Punta Union Pass at 4,750 metres.

Jeanne Gordon is responsible for the Duke of Edinburgh Award at the school and led the expedition. She said: “Every other year we organise an overseas trip for pupils to experience different cultures, societies and traditions. Although we place great importance on academic success, at Church High we also believe it vital to develop our pupils through opportunities outside the curriculum like the Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award.

“This year the expedition to Peru presented the girls with some exciting and stimulating challenges, not only during the trip, but also in terms of planning and fundraising beforehand. I was really impressed to see that at each stage of the project all the girls remained really motivated and worked together to reach their goals. From a personal perspective I think the trip has helped develop the girl’s confidence and I am very proud of their achievements.

“The trip has given them a great insight into how other people live, many of whom own less than the girls were carrying in their rucksacks ­­– their help has made a real difference to the people living in Huaraz.”