Member Article

Time capsule marks special moment in Scotswood’s history

School children from Scotswood have made their own special mark on the history of the area, with the burial of a time capsule.

When opened by a future generation in many years’ time, it is hoped that the project – undertaken by year six pupils from Bridgewater Community Primary School – will offer a snap shot of what life was like in Scotswood in 2016.

Pupils worked with local artist Tommy Anderson on the project - which was funded New Tyne West Development Company (NTWDC) - to create collages that represent and recognise the things they value most about Scotswood, whilst also exploring the changes they can see in their community, as it continues to evolve.

NTWDC - a partnership which comprises Newcastle City Council and developers Barratt Homes and Keepmoat - is building The Rise in Scotswood, a regeneration project that will see 1,800 properties constructed over the next 15 years.

The pupils’ art pieces were combined to produce one large collage for burial in the capsule, with a master copy kept by the school and posters displaying their individual work, given to the children as a keepsake.

The children then joined Lord Mayor Hazel Stephenson, to bury the capsule at a special event to celebrate the opening of the southern section of The Shard - the green corridor that will run from the north to the south of The Rise - eventually linking Armstrong Road and Hadrian’s Way.

Lord Mayor of Newcastle and ward member for Benwell Scotswood, Councillor Hazel Stephenson, said: “It was fantastic to see the completion of the first part of The Shard and what better way to celebrate this key point in the development progress, than by interring this very special time capsule.

“As the community continues to grow, the views and experiences of these children in 2016 will be forever captured in these beautiful collages. They are a true and valuable gift to the future people of Newcastle when this capsule is opened, many years from now.”

Lee McGray, Development Director with NTWDC, said “As our work progresses and new homes are built, the appearance of this area will continue to change.

The children have created a snap shot of Scotswood from a child’s-eye view that not only informs us of how they see their community but will show future generations what the area looked like as the development was taking place. This is one of many exciting community projects that we are involved with and we are delighted that the children have created such a brilliant piece of work.

Margaret Cooney, local resident and Lady Mayoress, has been actively involved in the regeneration of Scotswood for many years. She said: “It is wonderful to be here today, to see how the area is changing as the developments we helped to plan come to life.”

Sam Robson, Headteacher at Bridgewater Community Primary School said: “Our year six children worked on the time capsule and art work when they were in Y5 - before the summer break. They thoroughly enjoyed working with the artist and are immensely proud to have been involved in the project. All of the children in school have visited The Rise at one time or another and have enjoyed numerous activities that we have worked on with NTWDC. Our students even named one of the streets – Featherwood.

“We are really excited about the new housing development and lots of children who live there now attend Bridgewater. We look forward to more houses being built and community facilities – such as The Shard – being created, continuing and adding to what is an exciting new era for Scotswood.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Paul Dobbie .