Craigmount High School

For the former private school see Craigmount School.

Craigmount High School

[[File:|center|frameless]]
Motto	"Life is a journey not a destination"
Headteacher	Dr John Campbell
Deputy Heads	Mr Stephen Kelly Mrs Elizabeth McDonald Mr Mike Irving Mrs Karen Jarvis
Location	Craigs Road Edinburgh EH12 8NH Scotland
Website	Craigmount High School

Craigmount High School is a non-denominational secondary school in Edinburgh, Scotland with 1400 pupils located in the west of Edinburgh, Scotland. It moved into new premises at the beginning of the 2003 academic year. The current headteacher is Dr. John Campbell.

History

The first school premises were built in 1970 on the site of a farm to provide accommodation for increasing numbers of pupils from new housing developments. The school's distinctive 1970s architecture and campus layout provided flexible accommodation and space. However, various design faults result in the science corridor being too narrow and the dining hall not being able to hold all of the students. The school also contains an extensive music department and drama studio. However the design of the drama studio is also often criticised with complaints made about lack of size, audience and stage space, shape and design amongst many other issues.

New building

By the late 1990s the school was catering for more pupils than it was designed for and the low-quality fabric of the building was deteriorating fast. It was obvious that something had to be done and, with renovation of the existing building looking expensive and difficult, the decision was taken to build a new school. In the summer of 2003 work began on the new building under a PPP (Public-Private Partnership) scheme which involved selling the existing building and the upper sports pitches to a property developer. The new building was built on the site of the old playing fields. Work was completed on schedule and staff and pupils moved into the school in August 2003.

Sport

Sporting activities in Craigmount High School include:

• Curling
• Basketball
• Football
• Jiu Jitsu
• Gymnastics
• Badminton
• Mountain Biking
• Hockey
• Netball
• American Football
• Rugby

Extracurricular activities

The School has an Environmental Management group who works to improve the school's environmental impact and the area around the school. The school has achieved the Silver Eco schools award and is continuing on to its Green Flag Award. The Eco Committee is made up of staff, students and parents.

Once a year, Craigmount holds a three day alternative timetable when upwards of fifty activities are offered to students in years S1, S2 and S3. Students can choose between three single day courses, one three day course or even a week long excursion abroad.

In addition to this week several annual trips take place organised by various departments of the school. The music department runs a tour every two years (locations have included Paris 2000, Brittany 2002, Barcelona 2004, Austria 2006, The Netherlands 2008, and Germany 2010). The history department runs a trip to the WWI trenches in Belgium each year. The music department is one of Craigmount's great successes, with credit due to the heads of departments; Linda Stewart who held the position until 2007 and Fiona Morrison who is the current head of department.

The school runs a musical production or play every year which is run by either a senior student or a drama teacher. Recent productions include Les Miserables (directed by Nick Hayes), Hired Man (directed by Nick Hayes), Battle of the Bands (directed by Laura Thompson), Little Shop of Horrors (directed by Gavin Laing), Bold Girls (directed by Sam Farr), Black Comedy (directed by Amy Stuart, Claire Dougherty and Emma Hindle) and The Wedding Singer (directed by Tom Chalmers, Neil Christy and Adam Brand)

The school debating club has enjoyed considerable success in recent years, competing regularly with other local and national teams. In 2007 two S6 pupils won the Scottish Donald Dewar Memorial Debating Tournament, beating three independent schools to win the title. In 2010, Gavin Todd and Adam Brand reached the Grand Finals of the Scottish Donald Dewar Memorial Debating Tournament, coming in 2nd place after a debate held in the Scottish Parliament debating chamber. Following this, in 2011, Euan Stamper and Joseph Deans reached the Semi-Finals of the Scottish Donald Dewar Memorial Debating Tournament, beating many other schools to get that far. Shortly after this, also in 2011, Aparna Potluru reached the grand finals of the ESU (English-Speaking Union) public speaking competition and came in what was a very close 2nd place. Aparna was said to be the only state school in the Scottish finals of this competition and she has beaten many schools to gain this position.

The school Photography Club provides many of the school's needs in the area of photography, including the school planners, Christmas Cards, and promotion posters, as well as providing students with a better eye in photography.

Craigmount also runs an Achievers International Group whereby students, particularly gifted in the area of business studies, are invited to join and run an international trade business; trading goods and services with schools around the world in countries such as the USA, Germany and Spain.

Headteachers

• Dr. John J. Campbell - (2006-Present)
• Mr. John Fraser - (1999-2005)
• Mr. Andrew Bruce - (1993-9)
• Mr. William Trotter - (1970-93)

Notable former pupils

See also: Category:People educated at Craigmount High School

• Keith Shannon, Ambassador to Moldova since 2009
• Michael Stewart - Professional footballer who has played for Manchester United, Hearts, Hibs and Charlton Athletic
• Richard Baillie - Independent film producer
• We Were Promised Jetpacks - Indie band

External links

• Craigmount High School Website
• Craigmount Environmental Group (Greenmount)
• Craigmount High School's page on Scottish Schools Online
• City of Edinburgh Council Website
• The Craigmount Cougars American Football Team
• Craigmount High School Pictures
• Pipe Band

Coordinates: 55°56′42.34″N 3°18′16.51″W / 55.9450944°N 3.3045861°W / 55.9450944; -3.3045861