We are extremely happy to report another very successful exchange between ourselves and The Morpeth School from Tower Hamlets in London.
The first exchange took place two years ago when a group of twelve students and 2 staff came up to visit, after they contacted us with regards to an exchange due to the name of their school.
It seems highly probable that The Morpeth School was named after Viscount/Lord Morpeth because of his work in the East End of London in the late 1800’s to early 1900’s.
A group of twelve students and 2 staff arrived into Alnmouth Railway Station on Wednesday afternoon for a three day exchange visit. Their base was Tomlinson’s Bunkhouse in Rothbury, which looked after their every need.
The students and staff were collected by Amanda Gilholm, Home School Liaison, and taken to Alnmouth beach for a paddle in the sea.
Thursday morning was a visit to the Morpeth Town Hall to meet the Mayor and Deputy Mayor and be given historical information from them about the links to the two schools. Sheila Clark was also present and was very informative about the history of Lord Morpeth.
Then it was off to Dr Tomlinson’s Middle School Rothbury for lunch and a Forest School Lesson taken by Middle School staff, in which the students immersed themselves. Friday morning was spent in school, where the student buddied up with KEVI students and sampled a lesson. After lunch at KEVI, it was off to Alnwick to see the Castle and visit The Garden, which the students found enjoyable. Friday evening they attended our Summer Concert which they loved. Saturday morning was a drive to Seahouses and a trip to the Farnes Islands, unfortunately in the rain, but seals, lots of varieties of birds and to top it all dolphins made the weather more tolerable. After a hot chocolate to warm them up, it was back on the minibus to Alnmouth Railway Station where they caught the 15.00 train back to Kings Cross.
The students and staff were amazed at our School, our County and our very different lifestyle to theirs. We look forward to a return visit to Tower Hamlet next year.