Look Ahead in the North (LAN) is a residential weekend taking place each year at The Calvert Trust, Kielder. The event sees members from all of the Northern branches of Headway come together to enjoy a weekend of activities and socialising.
In 2025 the event took place from 14th-16th March. We had 26 people from Headway Tyneside join us this year!
Outdoor adventures
For the adventurous ones among us, there were lots of outdoor activities to get involved with. From the Zip Coaster – and the King Swing for the really brave – to archery, axe throwing and climbing for the outdoorsy types. Everyone got so stuck into the outdoor fun, with axe throwing competitions and super high swings on the King Swing! Bells were rung at the top of climbing walls and arrows met lots of bullseyes. There were buggy rides down to the reservoir, as well as canoe trips out on the water.
We had a wonderful visit from the birds of prey centre, who let us meet (and hold!) some of the cutest owls we’ve ever seen.
Indoor activities
There was also lots happening inside, we started off a quiz on Friday evening, which challenged us on our flag knowledge. The self-proclaimed ‘Headway Tyneside B team’ came in an admirable 2nd place, so perhaps they should have been the A team! Our mornings started with a 1920’s Charleston dance class ran by our very own Jo at Headway Tyneside, kicking the day off with a swivel!
African drumming followed, continuing the very musical theme of the weekend. Holistic therapies were running throughout the weekend for members to get involved with.
Evening Entertainment
There were craft tables to make your ‘worst t-shirt’ for the worst t-shirt competition on Saturday evening, with a very stylish catwalk and many questionable t-shirt choices on display. We had live music on Saturday evening courtesy of Headway Berwick, including a rendition of happy birthday for Tina’s 60th! This was continued with some fantastic karaoke with a huge spotlight on some of our super Headway Tyneside members.
Memories to last a lifetime
LAN 2025 was a great experience, allowing our members and carers to get involved in fun activities. One of our members, Dan, who had not been before described the setting as a ‘haven’, adding, “there’s no real words really for the place, apart from ‘fun fun fun!’”
We can’t wait for next year!
