It’s hard to believe that our September weekend is already over. The first few weeks have flown in and I am sure both staff and pupils welcomed the short break.

A week past on Friday half our S2 pupils had the opportunity to visit the Global Market in Kilmarnock with the Modern Languages department. The other half of the year group visited this earlier in the year and both visits have been very successful and enjoyed by the pupils.

Our Senior awards Ceremony took place last Tuesday evening where we celebrated the many successes of our pupils from last year’s S4/5/6. So many of our pupils achieve so much and get involved in the life of the school both in and out of the classroom and it was so good to recognise their achievements. It was a great evening and we had the pleasure of welcoming Willie Mackie as our guest presenter who gave a motivational message to our pupils. We were also delighted to welcome Provost Jim Todd, Leader of the Council, Dougie Reid and local Councillors Maureen McKay and Bobby McDill as well as Chief Executive Fiona Lees and Head of Education Alan Ward.

Our S5 Inspire Day took place on Wednesday with sessions for the pupils from the Samaritans, Whitbread, RAF Teambuilding, Mentors in Violence Protection, Skills Development Scotland, and Creative Minds. These days have always been successful in providing the pupils with opportunities to address issues they may not otherwise get a chance to in classes.

Mr Cowan and I started our visits to introduce ourselves to the new P7s who will be joining us in St. Joseph’s next August. Our partnerships with the Primary schools are vital for a smooth transition for our pupils. We managed to meet all the young people in P7 from Mount Carmel & St. Andrew’s Primary. And we’re off to visit St. Patrick’s in Auchinleck and St. Sophia’s in Galston this week.