Last week saw the Science department celebrate British Science Week. We have summarised below how we celebrated the week and the winners of the week’s student prize draw.
Prize draw: Congratulations to Abbie, Ebony and Taylor for winning the Scientist of the Week prize draw. They will all receive a gift voucher in due course.
Lewis Arthurton (ex-student), has described how his study of science at Northgate has led to his PhD now at Oxford University:
Biology has always fascinated me, and I am constantly amazed by how parts of the body function. I was lucky to have this interest developed at Northgate High School. I remember dissecting pig’s hearts and lungs in my biology lessons and being fascinated that this seemingly unremarkable and disgusting looking piece of tissue, can be play host to such remarkable and complicated processes. It was at Northgate that I started thinking not just about how these organs let us live, but how and why they stop working, particularly when they develop disease. I remember studying the detrimental impact of smoking on your lungs and your health as we watched “cotton bud lungs” accumulate tar and go from a bright white to a disgusting orange colour. It is an experiment that I will never forget, and it was moments like these that led me to where I am today.
Following my GCSEs and A-levels I was accepted into the University of Liverpool to study physiology (how the body works). I was able to do more experiments and learn about every part of the body from the eyes, to what causes diabetes. After graduating from my degree in the midst of the Ebola epidemic, my curiosity about disease encouraged me to apply to go work in Sierra Leone for five weeks where I tested patient samples at the Makeni Ebola Treatment centre for Ebola and other diseases such as malaria.
My experience there and in Liverpool meant I could apply to continue working in biology at the University of Oxford. I was offered a place to study for a PhD as part of Dr. Alberto Baena-Lopez’s lab, where I remain to this day. My lab studies some of the processes in the body that when become faulty, could lead someone developing cancer. Every cell in your body has a purpose, and when it is no longer needed, enzymes give instructions to the cell that it should commit suicide. Cancer develops when these instructions go wrong, and the cells continue to grow without dying. I study a group of enzymes called the Caspases, which are best known for killing the cells when they are told to (e.g. when they are faulty, or during pregnancy to develop body parts such as the fingers). New research has shown that the caspase enzymes can also give instructions to cells that do not cause the cell to die. Every day I study these enzymes in fruit flies so we can better understand all of their roles. With the hope that one day, a medical researcher might be able to use my research to develop drugs which help the body regulate the caspase enzymes when they aren’t working properly.
I still have one year left of research before I present my research and graduate from my PhD, and I am still deciding what I want to do afterwards.
Alex Jones (ex-student), has written the below summary of his time at Northgate and how this shaped his decision to study Chemistry at degree level:
I studied at Northgate High School from 2009-2014 and DSFC from 2014-2016.
Studying science at Northgate and DSFC was the most I have ever engaged with any subject, during GCSEs the commitment from all of my teachers was invaluable to me and without them I have no doubt that I would have lost interest in science and my path would have been very different. I have always found that a passionate, engaging teacher is vital for me to enjoy a subject, so the excellent standard of Northgate teachers went a very long way and I now find myself exactly where I want to be.
Dereham 6th Form provided a perfect platform for me to grow and when I decided that I wanted to study a Chemistry degree my teachers pushed me to achieve more than I thought I was capable of. Extra revision sessions and after school meetings were just some of the ways that they helped me.
Chemistry was the fourth and final A level subject I chose, so it’s fair to say that I never imagined it being my degree choice, but as I studied it in more and more depth at DSFC, I became passionate about the subject and my teachers gave me the encouragement and the means to keep learning.
I was far from a model student at school but thanks to the hard work of teachers at Northgate pushing me in the right direction, I am currently finishing the second year of a four-year chemistry masters degree at Lancaster University. This summer I will be travelling to the University of Kentucky for a year studying abroad before returning to Lancaster for my fourth and final year. I have found that the more I study chemistry the more I enjoy it, so after the completion of my masters I plan to either: apply to study for a PhD, or train as a teacher.
Dereham Mayor, Hilary Bushell and Northgate High School have forged a fantastic partnership and relationship over the last few months. You can read about the Mayor’s thoughts on her involvement with events at Northgate and the involvement of Northgate students in her events in an upcoming blog.
Tuesday 13th March saw two events take place. The first was in the morning, where the Mayor took part in a blindfold challenge, to navigate her way around Dereham with the use of a sighted guide or a long cane. This was organised by Guide Dogs for the blind. The walk was to raise the awareness of what it is like to be blind and with a disability, walking in the town. The Mayor actually wore a ‘mindfold’, a blindfold which allowed her to keep her eyes open, however she could not see anything. It also meant that her other senses were heightened. It proved challenging with many hazards to negotiate. She was joined by visually impaired and blind members of the community, some of whom had guide dogs. Two guide dogs in particular stood out, Ellis who was retired and 9 years old and 19 month old Lloyd who was about to qualify. Northgate students David and Kayla joined the Mayor for this walk about town and started to get a feel for the obstacles that those who are blind or partially sighted have to face on a daily basis. However, it’s not just the visually impaired that may struggle with access around the town centre, those in wheelchairs, on mobility scooters or parents with pushchairs may also encounter difficulties. You can read about the Mayor’s experience in the Dereham Times article here and see the ‘That’s Norfolk TV’ feature here. More about the guide dogs a bit later.
In the evening, 10 School Council members joined Mr MacDonald and Miss Theobald at the Dereham Town Council meeting. The Mayor had invited us to experience what happens in a Town Council meeting but also for the Town Clerk, Mr Tony Needham, to give a short talk about how the council is made up and what they do. In the same way that Northgate has Team Councils (Rewards, Social and Environment) which feed into the School Council, the Town Council have committees such as Finance and Governance, Buildings and monuments, Social and welfare and Heritage. These committees meet to discuss items and put recommendations together which then go to the full Town Council meetings. Where certain agenda items need voting on, each Councillor has a vote, however the Mayor, as chairman of the Council, has the casting vote in the event of a split vote (think Len Goodman as head judge on Strictly!). This rarely happens and if it does, quite often the matters are taken back to the committees to discuss further. Surprisingly though, as Councillors they are not able to make decisions on their own, it is only by coming together as a body that decisions can be made. In fact, the only person who can make decisions without consultation is the Town Clerk, Mr Tony Needham. A lot of his role relates to health and safety matters. He deals with day to day proceedings such as when trees went over in the gales, getting people out to sort those, repairs to toilets, parks, the new cemetery. He is also able to spend up to £2000 in special cases without having to consult people eg if toilets are damaged or quick repairs need to be made or items he deems necessary etc. Jimmy asked if the Mayor had any additional power. It appears that really it is just this casting vote. She is not able to make decisions on her own, but she does act as chairman of the council and is on different committees. She is the main face of the Town Council and as we’ve seen recently, has been involved in lots of different events, receiving some great publicity in the press. She is on hand to discuss matters further with the Town Clerk if necessary.
There are lots of different topics the Town Council discuss such as planning applications, new play areas, housing developments and road usage and quite a big issue more recently, the new cemetery in Norwich Street. They have a yearly budget and a 5 year rolling budget. They collect most of their money through Council taxes, asking Breckland District Council to collect this on their behalf.
Our School Council members had some great questions for Mr Needham. Hannah asked how they prioritise what the council acts on. Mr Needham mention that this often depends on if deadlines need to be met, with it proposes a health and safety concern etc and often things seem to prioritise themselves. After Mr Needham finished his talk it was time for a few students to go to the planning meeting with Mr MacDonald. This is where plans for extensions to houses and other buildings can be discussions and any objections heard.
7.30pm came along and it was time for the full Town Council meeting to take place. The Mayor and Town Clerk sat at the head of the table, they were joined in the horse shoe by Councillors, Cliff Jordan, Phillip Dugan, Kate Millbank, Linda Monument and Ann Bowyer, Councillor William Richmond was also present to highlight a highways meeting will be taking place with Ben Rayner this week (we have previously met both in a meeting regarding Quebec Road).
Representatives from Guide Dogs for the Blind gave a short talk about the event from the morning. The charity aims to help partially sighted and blind people get out and about with an appropriate aid eg sighted guide, long cane or guide dog. Training a guide dog in particular takes 2 years and costs about £60 000. They aim to break down barriers within towns, looking for hazards eg seating and street furniture without barriers, poorly placed signage, cars parking on pavements etc and campaign to ensure the external environment is as free of hazards as possible. They proposed to the Town Council that more crossings were controlled crossings and that more tactile paving be laid in the town, allowing those who are blind or partially sighted to be aware of appropriate places to cross roads.
There were lots of issues to be discussed from the committee meetings however unfortunately we were not able to stay to the end of the meeting. We hope our students gained a real insight into the running of a Town Council, what they do and how meetings run. It really was a unique opportunity which they really engaged with. Jimmy Cockburn, Year 8, commented, ‘It was really interesting and insightful, giving us an idea as to what goes on at the Town Council. I was surprised at the detail they went into with some of the recommendations such as the cost of reserving burial plots or scattering ashes at the new cemetery. Also, the fact that they have the separate committees just like our Team Councils.’
We wish to thank the Mayor for giving us the opportunity to attend the meeting and Tony Needham for his informative talk.
Last week saw the English department celebrate Shakespeare Week. You can see highlights from Mrs Woods’ tutor group below as well as the Shakespeare quotes from the week here.
Read-A-Thon: Information for parents and carers regarding sponsor money.
Throughout March pupils in Year 7 are taking part in a sponsored Read-A-Thon to help raise money for the charity Read For Good. Students collect sponsors for every page, book or hour they read during the Read-A-Thon.
Pupils should record the books they have read and the sponsors they collect in the sponsor card sent home earlier this term (pupils should see Miss Ling if they need a new sponsor card).
The deadline for sponsor money to be returned is Friday 20th April. Sponsor money can be sent in any of the following ways:
By cheque (made payable to Readathon with the sponsor’s name and address on the back.)
Please ensure any cash or cheques are sent in a sealed envelope with your child’s name and tutor group clearly stated.
*This deadline also applies to any pupils who took part in our 24 hour read-a-thon.
Pupils should also return their sponsor card, with details of the books they have read, to Miss Ling. Prizes will be awarded to the individual pupil, and form group, who read the most books.
If you require any further information, please contact Miss Ling.
Wednesday this week saw Northgate pupils take to the water to represent their houses in the annual swimming gala at Dereham Leisure Centre. Nearly a hundred pupils donned their swim gear to compete for points for their respective houses. Pupils showed fantastic levels of resilience and competitive spirit giving their all to do their best for their houses and there was a great atmosphere around the pool with 6 new records set on the day.
After the first few events it was Holmes in first place followed by Attenborough, Rowling and Hawking. During this session two records were broken; Megan Staples (Attenborough) broke the record for the Year 7/8 girls 25m backstroke in a time of 18.24s and Callum Stedman (Holmes) from Year 10 set a new record in the 25m breaststroke in a time 16.73s
After the medley relay’s the standings changed with Attenborough now in first followed by Holmes, Hawking and then Rowling dropping to 4th. In this session more records went with Ruby Dagless breaking her own previous record of 16.17s in the 25m butterfly with a new time of 15.36s.
In the final session another three records were broken with Ruby Dagless (Rowling) in Year 8 beating the Year 8 girls 50m breaststroke record in a time 39.22s beating the old record set by former pupil Marcella Aris by over 3 seconds. Sam Rose (Hawking) also broke two records setting a new Year 10 boys record in the 50m backstroke in a time of 30.00s and beating the Y9/10 boys 50m freestyle record in a new time of 27.22s.
Record Breakers – Megan (left), Ruby (right).
Record Breakers – Sam (left), Callum (right).
A huge well done to all the competitors for stepping up to represent their houses and a particular big congratulations to the four pupils who broke records during the event.
Now…… the bit you have all been waiting for….the final standings:
Tuesday 13th March saw two events take place. The first was in the morning, where the Mayor took part in a blindfold challenge, to navigate her way around Dereham with the use of a sighted guide or a long cane. This was organised by Guide Dogs for the blind. The walk was to raise the awareness of what it is like to be blind and with a disability, walking in the town. The Mayor actually wore a ‘mindfold’, a blindfold which allowed her to keep her eyes open, however she could not see anything. It also meant that her other senses were heightened. It proved challenging with many hazards to negotiate. She was joined by visually impaired and blind members of the community, some of whom had guide dogs. Two guide dogs in particular stood out, Ellis who was retired and 9 years old and 19 month old Lloyd who was about to qualify. Northgate students David and Kayla joined the Mayor for this walk about town and started to get a feel for the obstacles that those who are blind or partially sighted have to face on a daily basis. However, it’s not just the visually impaired that may struggle with access around the town centre, those in wheelchairs, on mobility scooters or parents with pushchairs may also encounter difficulties. You can read about the Mayor’s experience in the Dereham Times article 
