August 19
Dear
Parent/Carer
I
wanted to take this opportunity to contact you to keep you informed regarding
the start of the new school year. We are very much looking forward to welcoming
our young people back to school and very excited about meeting our new S1
intake.
All
pupils return to school on Wednesday 14
August. School starts as normal at 8.30am. There will be an extended
registration on the 1st day and any S1 pupil who does not have their tie will
be issued one. Any other pupil out with S1 who requires a school tie can
purchase one for £5 from the school office.
Gracemount
High School continues to build its reputation in the community and all our
staff are committed to ensuring that Gracemount is a school our community can
be proud of. Our relationship with you, as a parent/carer, is extremely
important to us and we can only secure the best outcomes for all our young
people if we work closely with you.
Should
you wish to contact the school regarding any matter then please do so. Normally
your child’s Pupil Support Teacher (guidance teacher) would be the main point
of contact and we encourage you to contact them in the first instance. However,
should you wish to speak to another member of staff then please contact the
school office.
Depute Head Teachers
Ms
Michelle Gordon – Responsible for S2,
S4 and S6
Mrs
Dee Scott – Responsible for
S1, S3 and S5
Pupil Support Team
Lewis
House – Mrs Julie Wilson
(Mr Whale continues in his role as Senior Development Officer)
Skye
House – Mrs Sarah Ellis
Tiree
House – Mr Allan Doak
(Mrs O’Connell remains on maternity leave)
Support
for Learning – Mrs Moira Wilson
Exam Results
SQA
results were published on Tuesday 6th August and we have had some notable
successes again this year. Our analysis of results will be ongoing and an
attainment report will be provided in due course. I will ensure that you can
access this once completed.
It
is imperative that all students in the senior phase, S4-6 are coursed correctly
and some may have to change courses as a result of their exam results. There will
be a re-coursing evening on Wednesday 14
August in the school library after school. Parents/carers are invited to
attend if they wish to do so.
Re-coursing
will be completed by 30 August.
Dress Code and Free School
Meals
We
believe our full and proper Gracemount High School dress code is what sets us
apart. As a successful school, we are proud to dress for success and we expect
pupils to dress appropriately for the school day and adhere to our agreed dress
code. All our students are encouraged to play their part and support our school
community by adhering to our dress code at all times.
- Sky blue shirt / blouse
- School Tie
- Plain black skirt / trousers / skirt (please note torn jeans are not accepted and pupils should not wear these to school)
- Plain black top/ jumper which allows tie to be visible
- Hijab (if worn) in school colours
- Black Leggings (should only be worn with a skirt) and the same pair should not be used for PE
- Please note that whilst black shoes are encouraged any colour shoe can be worn
Please ensure you support the school by purchasing
the correct dress for our students.
Should you wish to seek any advice and/or support
regarding clothing grants or application for Free School Meals please contact
us at the school. We are here to help with this.
School
Priorities
Our School Improvement Plan will be published on the
school website in due course along with our Standards and Quality report from
last session. Our focus is very much on the national priorities as outlined
below:
1. Improving attainment,
particularly in literacy and numeracy.
2. Closing the attainment gap
between the most and least disadvantaged children.
3. Improvement in children’s
health and wellbeing.
4. Improvement in employability
skills and sustained, positive school-leaver destinations for all.
Within this we will be specifically looking at:
1. Focussing on teacher skills
in differentiating literacy work in the classroom to more effectively meet the
need of all our pupils.
2. Continued work with
Gracemount primary to focus on improving numeracy skills from P5 to S3.
3. Continuing to develop
alternative curricular options such as Skills for Work and National Progression
Award courses.
4. Improving learning and
teaching.
5. Utilising our resources to
support our most at risk pupils.
6. A whole school focus on
improving attendance.
7. A whole school focus on
improving behaviour and recognising success (in partnership with Pivotal
Education).
8. A whole school focus on improving
and supporting mental health.
9.
Further develop career education standards and links with employers to
support post-school destinations.
Staffing
1.
Susan McBeath – Clerical (Attendance Focus)
2.
Melissa Wheelan – Clerical (Office)
3.
Todd Little – Support for Learning
4.
Lydia Kowalczyk – English
5.
Megan Muir – CDT
6.
Marie McGarrol – Drama (1 day)
7.
Ian McLaren – SFL (1 day)
8.
Alan Gray – CDT
9.
Zoe Sellars – Business
10. Catriona
Murray – History
11. Lizzie
McGhee – Music (probationer)
We are currently recruiting for a Curriculum Leader in Maths/Science, a Pupil Support Officer and a Pupil Support Assistant.
Important Dates
· 14 August – start of new
term.
· 20 August – S1 School
photos.
· 30 August – re-coursing
deadline for all students.
· 2 September – Parent
Council Meeting
· 13 September – S3 tracking
issued
· 18 September – S1 Settling
in evening
· 4 October – Senior tracking
issued
· 4 October – Gracemount High
School and Gracemount Primary School fund raising event. Evening event at
Gilmerton Miners Club. Please save the date if you can.
Mobile Phone Policy
All
S1 parents have been made aware that S1 pupils are not permitted to use their
phone in school and should not bring this to school with them. Should they do
so then it should remain in their bag at all times.
All
other pupils in S2-6 are reminded that phones can only be used in class with
the explicit permission of the teacher. Our focus is on ensuring a positive and
focussed learning environment and misuse of this technology can significantly
compromise this. Parents are requested
not to directly call or message their child during the class times. Should they
require to make contact then this should be done out with class times or via the
school office.
We
very much look forward to welcoming all our students back for the start of
term. Should you have any queries please contact the school office on 0131 664
7440 or email GRA-Admin Account Admin@Gracemount.edin.sch.uk
Finally, last session we launched our Facebook page. This is a great way
to keep in touch with all that is happening in our school so we’d encourage you
to follow us on Facebook if you can.
I look forward to another successful school year and working alongside
you all.
Kind Regards
Ross Hunter
Head Teacher
