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Here's our latest newsletter - summer 2026.

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Schools Go Smarter newsletter summer 2026

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New for W2SW 2026 Living Streets have created an assembly for schools to promote W2SW.

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Newsletter for spring term 2026.

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Newsletter Autumn 2025.

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Newsletter Summer 2025.

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Newsletter for Spring Term 2025

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Schools Go Smarter Autumn 2024 newsletter.

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Schools Go Smarter Autumn Nwsletter 2024

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Sustainable Travel Calendar- we are updating this document it will be back soon!

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Sustainable Travel Calendar- we are updating this document it will be back soon!

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See at a glance what's coming up and plan all your schools Sustainable Travel activities using our handy calendar.

For Road Safety information and advice contact highwaysprogramme@northumberland.gov.uk or check out the Road Safety Padlet

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Walk to School Week is the national celebration of walking to school organised by the charity Living Streets. It is usually held during the third week of May and is part of National Walking Month every May
Schools can run a five-day walking challenge with classroom packs provided by Schools Go Smarter or use our guide to develop your own activities.

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See what happened during Walk to School Week in 2023

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See what happened during Walk to School Week in 2023

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Check out our W2SW pack, full of ideas and inspiration for schools to pick and choose from.

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June is Northumberland Bike Month, which incorporates National Bike Week usually during the second week of the month.
We use the month as an opportunity to promote all things cycling or scooting (we don't mind). Schools could hold an Active Break Time or Bling your Bike activity or go on a bike ride.
Each year we will share a resource pack of ideas and ask schools to tell us what they are doing, so we can celebrate it.
Check out this year's resources above.
Pencil in June for next year and start planning now.

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In October we support International Walk to School Month with 4 themed weeks covering walking, scooting and cycling, road safety, the environment and some suggestions for half term.  Sign up for Walk to School Month 2024 here

Check out our roundup from Walk to School Month 2021.

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We will be adding more resources to our Padlet over the coming months, including.

How to set up a Walking Bus?

Just what is the difference between a Park and Stride and a Five Minute Walking Zone - all will be revealed!

How to get started with Modeshift STARS?

Case studies

Resources for schools

Information about Bikeability

and much more, so come back and see us soon!

If you've done something amazing you'd like to share with other schools or if you have a burning question that needs answering, contact us at tracy.aitken@northumberland.gov.uk

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At their recent parents evenings Abbeyfields First School, staff and the Go Smarter Team spoke to families about their travel habits and discussed practical alternatives to parking at the school gate.

'Engaging with our families at our parents' evenings worked really well, talking to them in person had much more impact. The map made them think about the more sustainable options available to them for their journey to school and we were able to carry out the whole exercise in a friendly supportive way rather than coming across as nagging.' Business Manager Abbeyfields First School

What do you need to do this?
You don't need much

A large map of your school- ask the Schools Go Smarter team.

Sticky dots or pens to mark where families live.

A method to capture any comments.

A fun activity or an icebreaker to encourage parents to come and talk to you.

Take some photos of your event and report your findings on your newsletter.

Remember if you are taking part in Modeshift STARS an event like this will count towards your accreditation and consultation initiatives.

Ask the Go Smarter team for help, we are happy to come to parents' evenings or similar events or can help you organise one yourself.

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School Council pupils keeping their School Streets free from traffic

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Involve pupils in monitoring the traffic

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Involve pupils in monitoring the traffic

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School Council pupils from Bishops Primary School in Ashington have been helping to support their School Street scheme by monitoring traffic at the school gate on a regular basis. The school has found that parents are more likely to adhere to the rules if staff and pupils are outside to remind them and Deputy Headteacher Heidi Barnes said ‘children love supporting the staff and being more present outside the school has had a big impact, the majority of parents are now Parking and Striding’

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W2SM template - everything you need to organise W2SM- update coming before summer 2026

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W2SM template - everything you need to organise W2SM- update coming before summer 2026

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Use this template to plan your own W2SM, just pick which activities you'd like to do, and if you need a bit more information about how to deliver anything get in touch with tracy.aitken@northumberland.gov.uk

See what our schools got up to in previous years here.

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Adapt this to use in your school newsletter or parent mail.

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Use these slides in assembly.

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Download and use.

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Use this guide to see how you Walk to School Month could help you gain Modeshift STARS accreditation.
You can book an introduction to STARs session here which will help you get started with the basics or ask for a refresher if you signed up but it's a while since you've used the system.

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Climate Change and Sustainability resource pack

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Climate Change and Sustainability resource pack

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Northumberland County Council has developed a Climate Change and Sustainability Resource Pack especially for schools in the county. It supports teachers to tell the story of climate change through a Northumberland lens school can use this resource during Walk to School Month.

You can also find out more about NCC Climate Change Team's work with schools here and the teams wider remit at Northumberland County Council - Climate Change

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Hold a Community Litter Pick for Walk to School Month

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Hold a Community Litter Pick for Walk to School Month

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Did you know that schools can borrow a litter picking kit from our Local Services Team to clean up the area around their school and raise awareness of the impact of litter on the environment? Some of our schools did this as part of W2SW in May, including Holy Trinity First School in Berwick.
Please contact samantha.wilkie@northumberland.gov.uk to request a litter picking kit.

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Here's our Schools Go Smarter newsletter from Summer Term 2024.

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Schools Go Smarter Autumn 2023

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Schools Go Smarter Autumn 2023 newsletter

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Grab a cuppa and have a read of our Creative Walkbook and see if you can come up with your own 'walking recipe' which could be included in our school's booklet.
We will be adding a template here very soon which you can use to submit your ideas and if you'd like to run an activity at your school to come up with some creative walking recipes, please get in touch tracy.aitken@northumberland.gov.uk
If you'd like to find out more, check out the Walk Create project who kindly allowed us to adapt some of their ideas from The Walkbook-Recipes for Walking and Wellbeing.

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Check out Allendale Primary Schools Creative Walking Book, get in touch if you'd like to do something similar at your school.

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You can download this image to promote W2SM at your school.

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Download this template and ask your students to plan a week of walks.

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Use a blank sheet of paper and follow the instructions to make your own Walking Randomiser- and have some very random walks!

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Print out this sheet and follow the instructions to make a Walking Randomiser.

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Download this lesson plan about and investigate how different generations have walked to school.

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Use this flyer to promote W2SM at your school.

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Use this flyer to promote W2SM on your social media channels.

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Download this lesson plan all about animal footprints and habits..

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Download this lesson plan to help pupils find out how they can be safer when walking to school.

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Download this lesson plan focussed on litter and how that makes us feel when we are out walking.

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Download this lesson plan to help pupils learn about the physical and mental health benefits of walking to school.

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Download this lesson plan to investigate the benefits of a 5 minute walking zone at your school.

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Download this lesson plan to investigate how people travelled to school across different generations.

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Download this lesson plan to understand why we shouldn't leave litter- could a cleaner environment encourage more walking?

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10 stand-alone activities to set as homework or do as a class during W2SW., to encourage pupils to think more about the walk to school.

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Download this lesson plan to find out how to stay safe on the walk to school.

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Download this lesson plan to understand the physical and mental benefits of walking to school.

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Download this lesson plan to learn how to identify animal tracks and walking habits.

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Ask pupils to complete this scavenger hunt on the way to school or create your own using some of these ideas.

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Share this walking activity book with your families or use some of the ideas in school.

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Clean Air Day June 2026- update coming soon 

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Clean Air Day June 2026- update coming soon 

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You can find more information about Clean Air Day here:

UPDATE coming soon

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Ask your pupils to make a pledge for Clean Air Day.

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Use this template to promote any events.

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Cycle to School Week Certificate of Achievement

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Cycle to School Week Certificate of Achievement

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C2SW Certificate of Achievement PRINTA5 (1)

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Use this template to create some walking recipes for your school which could be included in our Schools Creative Walking Book.

If you'd be interested in a workshop for your school let me know.

tracy.aitken@northumberland.gov.uk

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Did you know we have our very own Sea Shanty written especially for us by the amazing local folk musician Sandra Kerr, who also wrote the music for Bagpuss the children's TV programme!
Let us know if you'd like a copy of the music and lyrics and when you've mastered it, maybe you could send us a short film of your school performing it, we'd love to see the Sea Shanty brought to life by our schools!

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The BIG Northumberland Gear Change | Northumberland County Council

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sign up to take part between 16-27 March 

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The Big Walk and Wheel challenge organised by the charity Walk Wheel Cyle Trust (formerly Sustrans) is an UK wide inter-school competition held every March which encourages pupils to walk or wheel to school.

Schools log their daily journeys to progress up the leaderboard and be in with a chance of winning a variety of daily prizes, all schools are entered into the daily prize draw if at least 15% of your school takes part each day.

Why not sign-up for 2026 - it's free to take part and an easy way to raise the profile of active travel at your school.

You 'll also find assemblies and curriculum resources to download, find some of them below.

Registration is open now.