Children at Lingey House Primary School in Gateshead were in for a big surprise when they welcomed a special new addition to their playground in the shape of a double-decker bus, donated by Go North East. Although pupils had been anticipating the bus’s arrival, the final delivery date was kept under wraps, and they remained indoors with blinds drawn while Go North East’s engineering team dropped off the bus just in time for break time.
The bus has been designed to provide a calming space for children who find the busy playground overwhelming, as well as a sheltered area that allows play to continue whatever the weather. Assistant Head Teacher at the school Michaela Flowdy said: “We’re so grateful
to Go North East – not just for donating the bus, but for bringing the children’s vision to life. Originally, a lot of the children wanted slides and swimming pools on board but with a bit of guidance they’ve come up with some lovely ideas to make the bus a brilliant space for the whole school to enjoy. It will create many opportunities and further enhance our current play offer.”
Go North East’s engineers modified the bus based on designs created by the children themselves – who chose everything from the bus colours to the internal layout, which now features hammocks, bean bags, and a board games area.
Charlie Newman, a second-year coachbuilding apprentice at Go North East, played a key role in transforming the bus. He said: “Working on this project has been such a rewarding experience – the children’s ideas were fantastic, and we’ve done our best to make them a reality. It was brilliant to see their reaction to the finished bus. It’s great that Go North East can give something back to the community.” The operator also recently donated 27 laptops to Chopwell Primary School. The laptopts are no longer able to be updated with the latest software that the company uses, but will still be a welcome addition to the classroom for both teachers and pupils, especially for children with special education needs and children without access to a computer. Finance Director at Go North East Steven Elstob said: “It was a pleasure to meet the children from Chopwell Primary today and see how excited they are about their new laptops. It’s brilliant that children in our local community – many of our buses stop just metres from the school – will be able to give these laptops a second life.”
