Keep up to date with the latest labour market updates on our school website. This is a great source of information when helping your child plan for the future or considering your own career pathway.
On Thursday 17th March we will be holding our Y11 and 13 Results and Parents’ Evening. This will take place between 4pm and 6pm at the Duke’s site. The evening will provide an opportunity for parents and students to collect the results of their recent mock examinations and for follow up conversations with teaching staff. All teachers of Y11 and 13 will be present and will discuss student performance in the mock examinations and provide advice on what students can do to improve between now and the final summer exams. Our school Careers Advisor and a member of the Sixth Form Team will also be present to answer any questions you may have about Sixth Form options or careers progression. Tea, coffee and biscuits will also be provided.
To help with parental contact in regards to Attendance please use the attendance email to send information/absence notice/ attachments photos/appointment cards etc.
This is an efficient way to communicate between home and school alongside telephone contact.
Please see below a copy of this week’s National Online Safety Guide to parents. The focus this week is an app called ‘Wink’, which has raised a number of concerns.
Wink is a messaging app which allows children to connect and communicate with other users. In a similar style to the popular online dating platform Tinder, Wink uses the ‘swipe’ method for browsing profiles and accepting or declining them. Once two users have accepted each other by swiping on each other’s profile, they can then communicate and play games online together. The fact that Wink allows children to share photos, personal information and their location with other users has caused significant concern.
In the guide below, you’ll find tips on a number of potential risks such as grooming, cyberbullying and inappropriate content.
As up and down the country employers and educators alike celebrated National Apprenticeship Week, Duke’s Secondary School in South East Northumberland announced an exciting new partnership with UK housebuilding giant, Bellway.
The partnership will see a range of opportunities become available to pupils throughout the school, including employer masterclasses, careers guidance and field visits.
The partnership is multi-faceted. As well as supporting Duke’s Secondary School to deliver the National Career Ready programme, it also forms part of a regional pilot project for Bellway to help introduce young people to the wide variety of career opportunities available in the construction sector, including apprenticeships. If successful in the North East, Bellway intends to roll out its school outreach programme across all 22 of its housebuilding divisions nationwide.
To celebrate the official launch of the project, a cohort of Year 12 students from Duke’s Secondary School’s Sixth Form provision took part in a Career Ready Masterclass on ‘preparation for work experience’. Students were encouraged to think about what skills they already have, what skills employers might look for in job candidates and how they can make themselves a model employee.
The full-day visit also included a tour around Bellway’s North East headquarters in Woolsington and also one of its prestigious new build sites near Ponteland.
Danielle Towers, Head of Sixth Form and Careers Lead at Duke’s Secondary School (part of NCEA Trust), commented:
“We are honoured to be working alongside Bellway at the cutting edge of its new school outreach programme.
“At Duke’s and indeed, across all of the schools within the wider NCEA Trust, we are committed to providing pupils with high-quality careers education covering a wide variety of industry sectors to help them make informed decisions about their futures.
“What our pupils have been most surprised by since we first established contact with Bellway is the scope of the career opportunities available, beyond traditional trades and construction. For many of them, it has been a real eye-opener into a sector which they might not otherwise have considered.”
Employing over 3,000 people across the UK alongside several thousand additional sub-contractors, Bellway has come a long way from its humble North East beginnings just over 75 years ago. The five-star rated homebuilder now offers its own in-house apprenticeship opportunities and graduate schemes covering everything from bricklaying right through to architecture and sales.
Laura Bell, Group HR & OD Manager at Bellway, commented:
“We are absolutely delighted to have the opportunity to partner with Duke’s Secondary School. As we strive to help meet the need for more high-quality homes, it is vital that we continue to attract more people to the industry from a diverse range of backgrounds and that we offer them the support and training they need to succeed.
“By showcasing the range of roles available at Bellway and offering opportunities where people can earn while they learn, we hope to open up the possibility of a career in construction to those who may not have previously considered working in the industry.”
For more information about Duke’s Secondary School and Sixth Form, visit www.dukes.ncea.org.uk or for more information about careers at Bellway, visit www.bellwaycareers.co.uk.
On Thursday 20 January, we received an interim inspection from Ofsted to see how we have been getting on with our plan to improve professional standards across Duke’s Secondary School.
A great deal of work has been going on behind the scenes and we are delighted to see that our collective efforts have been recognised in our latest monitoring report, a full copy of which can be found below.
Key summary points:
- Leaders have taken significant strides towards the removal of the serious weaknesses designation.
- Leaders have developed a culture in which school improvement is everyone’s responsibility.
- Faculty leaders, working with their teams, have developed curriculums that clearly identify key learning aims for each year. It is now clear what pupils need to know, and when.
- Staff and pupils are unanimous in praising the transformation in the behaviour strategy since the previous inspection. It is allowing teachers to teach, and pupils to learn.
- Two external reviews of SEND provision have helped to refine the school’s development plan so that pupils with SEND are better supported.
Details of all of our past Ofsted inspections can be found here.
Advance Information is the exam boards’ way of supporting students’ preparation for examinations after the disruption to learning caused by the pandemic. It is a list of the content , or part of the content, that will be assessed in the summer examinations and is intended to help guide and prioritise areas for revision.
Advance information is available for most subjects at GCSE and A-Level with the exception of Art, English Literature, Geography and History where subjects are either not assessed through an examination or have already had additional support built into their curriculum or examination process.
Each exam board has now released its advance information and students can access it to help focus their exam preparation. Please see the links below to the Student Guide to Advance Information and Frequently Asked Questions.
As part of National Apprenticeship Week, we would like to shine a light on one of our students, Olivia who graduated from Duke’s Sixth Form in 2021 after studying A Level Art, BTEC Business and BTEC Media. Olivia is now working as an Apprentice Tattoo Artist at Emporium.
How did you get your Apprenticeship?
“I got my apprenticeship by searching online and having a friend show me the advertisement for the apprenticeship. I contacted the shop and we arranged an in-person interview where I visited the shop with my portfolio of art work. They looked through my art and asked me questions about my work ethic, work experience and what I wanted in the future from my apprenticeship.
“My employers had decided that from my portfolio and the interview that I would be a good fit in the studio and I started working there in early September.”
What is the best thing about being an Apprentice?
“The best thing about being an apprentice is meeting new people and getting experience. I have learned so much about the tattoo industry and business side of things from my apprenticeship that I didn’t know beforehand. I also got to have experience using different tattoo machines (rotarys and coils) and I gained experience with tattooing onto fake skin.
“I really enjoyed learning about the health and safety side of things. There’s so much to learn and being surrounded by people who share the same love and passion for an art form as you is amazing. I’m very lucky to be surrounded by generous and kind people.”
Any advice for anyone looking for an Apprenticeship?
“My advice would be to get some work experience if you can. With tattooing, you’re constantly interacting with clients. I was very nervous at first and very quiet but now I’m more confident when dealing with strangers.
“For a tattoo apprenticeship specifically I would advise on starting a portfolio of your best artwork. Draw things you are passionate about, but try to have a slight variety of different styles (traditional, colour, black work, realism, etc) Start searching online for local tattoo studios that have taken apprentices in the past and reach out to them! But don’t be afraid to stand up for yourself and don’t let yourself be taken advantage of by employers.
“Post your work online and don’t be afraid to show it off! Keep practicing with your art as you’ll only continue to grow and get better. Don’t be afraid to reach out to other artists and apprentices to ask for advice and questions! I’d be more than happy to answer anyone’s questions.
“Advice for apprenticeships in general is to try and get some work experience. With any job you’re most likely going to need teamwork, conversation and leadership skills. Communication is a MUST.”
Anything else?
“I would say that there have been times where it’s tiring or hard, and there will be times where it’s tiring and hard. It’s easy for tattooists to get burnt out especially if you’re busy with a lot of bookings.
“Sometimes you will get clients who are difficult to deal with, you’ll sometimes get rude clients, but you’ll also get regular clients who will keep coming back to you because of your personality and your art. You will find clients who choose you specifically because they trust you and love your artwork. A big part of tattooing is making sure the client is always comfortable and happy. But you also need to be comfortable and happy. Don’t overwork yourself. Surround yourself with a good support system, friends, family and believe in yourself.
“Anyone looking for an apprenticeship should know that apprenticeships can help further your future careers. You’re learning and making some money at the same time, which is always great.”
You can find Olivia at
“Emporium” – It’s on Milburn Road, and it’s the old bingo hall.
Also her social media is @Crybby.tattoos on Instagram.
