Williamwood High School
| Williamwood High School | |
|---|---|
.jpg?lang=en) | |
| Address | |
 | |
Eaglesham Road , G76 8RF Scotland | |
| Coordinates | 55°46′34″N 4°16′33″W / 55.77611°N 4.27583°W |
| Information | |
| Former name | Eastwood Senior Secondary School |
| Type | Secondary |
| Established | 1930 |
| Local authority | East Renfrewshire |
| Head teacher | Nicola MacGlashan |
| Gender | Mixed |
| Enrolment | 1750 |
| Colour(s) | Black, blue, green and gold |
| Website | blogs |
Williamwood High School is a non-denominational comprehensive secondary school in Clarkston, East Renfrewshire, Scotland, with a roll of around 1800 pupils. It was originally opened in the 1930s as Eastwood Senior Secondary School, located on Seres Road in the Williamwood area of Clarkston. In 2006 the school relocated to a new site at Eaglesham Road on the outskirts of Clarkston, about 1.5 miles from the original site. As of 2018, the school contained 1632 pupils out of a capacity of 1710.[1]
History
The school was originally opened as Eastwood Senior Secondary School in Seres Road, Williamwood in the 1930s, later being renamed Williamwood High School. It was announced in 2003/2004 that a new school would be built to replace the ageing facilities at Seres Road. It was funded under the PPP scheme by the private company HBG.[2] Once built, they would take control of the school ensuring it was well maintained, replacing any broken fixtures, and ensuring the running of the school building. The school feeds from Busby Primary School, Carolside Primary School and Netherlee Primary School.
In August 2006 the new £29 million school opened at the Eaglesham Road site. It features over 70 classrooms, each fitted with interactive whiteboards. The school has excellent sports facilities including astroturf pitches and running track, a video editing suite, and high standard drama studios. The new school was officially opened by the First Minister of Scotland, Jack McConnell, on Monday 11 December 2006.
Following an inspection in 2009, Williamwood became the first school in Scotland to be awarded a maximum of five "excellent" ratings by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education.[3]
The unoccupied former building was damaged by fire in February 2007. Within around a year of this the school was demolished, and townhouses were built on the old site. The former playing fields were redeveloped into the Eastwood Health Centre, alongside the old Isobel Mair School building. Some parts of the playing fields remain brownfield, however. Former headteacher John Fitzpatrick was awarded the OBE in 2011 for services to education, whilst at Williamwood.[4]
In June 2015, following the retirement of John Fitzpatrick, Mr William Inglis became head teacher.[5]
In 2021, Mrs Nicola MacGlashan took over as head teacher, having previously been the head teacher at nearby Woodfarm High School. Soon after the appointment, the school implemented a controversial new rule that toilets were to be locked during class time to prevent truancy. This prompted backlash amongst the school community, with a online petition set up to oppose the decision. The school later reverted the rule in view of the negative response.[6]
Curriculum
Williamwood follows the Curriculum for Excellence, the national curriculum for schools in Scotland.[7]
Student Body
The student body takes an active role in school activities, most notably with those students who stay for a sixth year. A committee of management is formed as a result of elections in June; in which 6th year students and teachers vote for a number of "Pupil Deputes" and the Head Boy and Head Girl. The current Head Boy and Head Girl are Jack Addie and Grace Allan respectively as of 2019.[8] Beneath the Head Boy are thirty two Depute Head Boy and Head Girls who must win a different election (usually a boy and a girl) are assigned a specific area of responsibility, for example: school public relations; yearbook; graduation prom; Mental Health; et cetera. Meetings of the 6th year committee of management are chaired by the Head Boy and Girl. Selected sixth year pupils are responsible for managing the school's Twitter page, @WilliamwoodHS.
Associated Primary Schools and Nurseries
Primary Schools
Netherlee Primary School is located in Netherlee, which is Clarkston's neighbour. Netherlee also has nursery facilities in buildings called the "Saplings" and "Acorns" buildings. The catchment for Netherlee Primary also includes the Stamperland area of Clarkston.
Carolside Primary School is located in the Carolside area. It also has nursery facilities, some of which are currently being extended (as of March 2020). Its catchment covers the large Carolside and South Williamwood areas, as well as the small area of Overlee (not to be confused with the Stamperland park of the same name), as well as most of Clarkston's town centre.
Busby Primary School is located in the village of Busby, next to Clarkston. A nursery is also currently under construction at this location. The catchment mostly covers the village of Busby, however small parts of Clarkston, including the Williamwood High School itself, are in the catchment for Busby.
St Joseph's Primary School, located in Busby, shares Williamwood's catchment area, but is a Catholic school, and students from this school normally attend St Ninian's High School.
Nurseries
Overlee Nursery is a nursery currently under construction in Overlee Park in the Stamperland area of Clarkston. The nursery is in the Netherlee Primary School catchment area.
Cart Mill Family Centre is a nursery located in the Spider Park next to Williamwood High School, in the Busby catchment area.
Happy Days Too is a private nursery located on Printers Land in the east half of Busby.
Notable alumni
- Aidan Connolly (born 1995), professional footballer[9]
- Joe Thomson (footballer) (born 1997), professional footballer.
- Richard Lochhead (born 1969), SNP MSP for North East Scotland 1999–2004, for Moray 2006–present[10]
- Euan Murray (born 1980), Scotland international rugby union player[11]
References
- ^ https://www.eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk/media/161/LDP2-education-background-report/pdf/ldp2-education-background-report.pdf?m=637239419593370000
- ^ "McConnell hails schools projects". BBC News. 11 December 2006. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
- ^ "Report first for five-star school". BBC News. 24 November 2009. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
- ^ "New Year Honours: Work of heroes in communities is recognised". The Scotsman. Edinburgh. 30 December 2010. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ "New head for Williamwood High". East Renfrewshire Council. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ Ferguson, Laura (21 August 2021). "School in U-turn over decision to close toilets during class time after backlash". GlasgowLive. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
- ^ "Williamwood High School Clarkson Inspection" (PDF). HM Inspectorate for Education. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
- ^ "S6 Elections". 14 June 2019. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
- ^ "Queen's Park youngster Aidan Connolly's big test is to be like his dad". Daily Record. 19 January 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
- ^ "Richard Lochhead: Personal Information". Scottish Parliament website. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
- ^ Smith, Duncan (3 June 2015). "Euan Murray leaves Glasgow Warriors to join Pau". The Scotsman. Edinburgh. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
External links
