Dear Parent/Carer

I do hope that you and yours are well. Welcome to the “Rector’s Log”, it’s the KHS way of keeping you informed and feeling part of our school. Can I suggest that you also use our website or Twitter feed @KirkcaldyHigh too.  Each day we tweet our daily bulletin and post photos, news items etc.

Last week I mentioned that we had been shortlisted in the Kingdom FM “Local Hero” Awards. KHS was up for “Best School” and Mr Young and I attended the awards ceremony at the Rothes Halls in Glenrothes on Friday evening. To be shortlisted was pleasing enough but to be named as “Best School” is a great honour indeed. I am very proud of everybody involved at all with KHS … all our staff, pupils and you our parents and carers. Many thanks to the KHS Parent Council which nominated the school. However, please rest assured that we fully understand that we can do better still. That was the very message I shared at assemblies this week, and I am thoroughly looking forward to working with you to do just that this session.

The S1 pupils have continued to make a very good start, and have greatly impressed their teachers, Mr Young (Yearhead) and myself with their cheerfulness, good attitude to learning and good manners. Thank you for your ongoing support with uniform too. It makes a real difference. Learning is a team game.

Just another wee reminder that our dress code is quite simple. We expect a plain white shirt and visible school tie, knotted near the throat. Any jumper worn should be plain dark or of the KHS branded type (preferably v-necked and definitely without a hood) and trousers/skirts should be plain black. Same goes for shoes, and trainers are acceptable so long as they are black. Our blazers are particularly smart, hard wearing and practical. They are available from the school or online form “Academy Uniforms” at a very good price. Leggings without pockets are not acceptable, nor are very thin leggings/jeggings through which underwear can be seen. Hoodies are not acceptable wear in class. Should any parent/carer need help in acquiring uniform, please just ask. We have a “bank”, and much of it is new stock.

Also, all mobile ‘phones must be switched off and out of sight in lessons and in corridors unless the teacher makes it clear that their use can be part of learning. There should be no use of earphones in classes or corridors; it’s rude and can be dangerous. Pupils are welcome to make use of a ‘phone during break or lunch eg to listen to music or browse the internet. Please do not call or send messages to your son/daughter during lesson times as this can be a real distraction. If you do need to be in touch for an important reason, please call 01592 583405 and we will have your son/daughter taken out of class to speak to you. Any pupil who breaks our ‘phone rules may have their phone confiscated for the lesson and we’ll contact you if this is a persistent problem. That said, staff are reporting that most young people have understood and respected our firmer line on ‘phones.

This week we held House Assemblies with the usual pattern; Adam Smith on Tuesday, Carlyle on Wednesday and Oswald yesterday. Apart from the Kingdom FM Award, we had the Guidance Team and House Leaders talking about ways to get involved. As you know, we greatly value the “pupil voice” in KHS.

We also had Ms Mahr make an appeal for stationery and other items in advance of our trip to Rwanda in September. We are accepting gifts of; coloured chalk, footballs, football strips, biro pens (blue or black only), any loom band kits people still have or trainers/others shoes suitable for teenagers to be used for going to school (must be in good condition). We are also taking any small change/cash donations and already have a “pot” of £350 to support the street kids education programme in Kigali. Any help at all would be greatly appreciated. Pupils should hand in donations to room C12. There is a very good story in this week’s Fife Free Press about the Africa trip. Best wishes to our group of senior students and our party leaders Ms Mahr, Miss Cunningham and Dr Murray. I must also thank our chief sponsors, Fords Daly Legal and “Friends of Kirkcaldy High School”, who have contributed to travel costs.

At lunchtime on Tuesday, it was my pleasure to accompany Jake Ramsay, Megan Ramsay and Liam Nisbet (left) along to the regular meeting of Kirkcaldy Rotary Club where they gave an illustrated talk about their experiences at Nethybridge in the Cairngorms over the summer. All three were sponsored to take part in outwards bounds adventure training as part of the “RYLA” programme and we are very grateful to the club members for their most excellent support. All three of our students were excellent and spoke without notes, but with great passion, about the challenges and rich learning they experienced.

On Tuesday evening there was a regular meeting of the “Friends of Kirkcaldy High School”. If you are interested in this excellent support group, please respond to this email message and I will give you a call to discuss. FoKHS gives terrific support to the school in so many ways. Our fund raising Race Night on 8 November is the next date for your diary. Again, you can call to book tickets. The last round of fund raising has gone towards the purchase of a 3D printer for the CDT Department. This equipment has also been partially sponsored by National Oilwell Varco, an energy company with a plant in Glenrothes. We greatly value business support of this kind. Again, if you think you can help build links like this, please do give me a call.

Yesterday we enlisted the help of “Skills Development Scotland” to train up our new group of “My World of Work” Ambassadors. These are S6 students who will help younger pupils to plan career and subject choices, working with S1-3 pupils and supporting vocational initiatives in our local primary schools. I am grateful to Mrs Davidson for her work with this, and also to Julie Lautredou, our lead SDS Careers Advisor.

It was also the first of a series of swimming lessons for our new “Supported Learning” class which has been established in KHS. The base is on our top floor and the young people have settled in very well. I am very grateful to Mr Broadway for his exceptional commitment to “getting it right”. The group will visit the pool every Thursday over the next few months.

We are particularly busy today, with our Assembly Hall being given over to a training event for over 100 new teachers from across Fife. Meanwhile our S6 Sports Leadership group has been at the Michael woods Centre in Glenrothes taking part in the “Go for Gold” event, supported by Robert Greenhorn, our Active Schools Coordinator. Our school nurse drop-in is on again today (and every Friday) at lunchtime. All youth services are available, including pregnancy testing and contraception advice if required. No appointment is needed.

Next week we have no morning assemblies but our Tutor teachers will be having a focus on our fire evacuation procedures. We’ll have a full scale drill soon. On Tuesday we will welcome a guest speaker for all of S2. Ms Mahr (RME) has arranged for the Humanist Society of Scotland to give a talk in the hall in the afternoon. After school that day, we’ll be having another study support session with the St Andrews University First Chances Programme. Those involved should have a letter, but if anyone is in doubt they should contact Ms Nessel of Business Education. On Thursday, we’ll have a “STEM” engagement team from the Army working with groups of students in our Assembly Hall. The week ends with our trip to Hampden Park to catch Scotland taking on Russia in the Euro Qualifiers. I am grateful to Mr English (PE), who is leading this. We’ll be back for the Belgium match on the following Monday.

The hot meal menu for next week is as follows;

Monday: Lentil soup, Stovies with crusty bread, turnip Tuesday: French onion soup, Chicken korma, boiled rice and vegetables Wednesday: Tomato soup, Steak pie, potatoes and vegetables Thursday: Green pea soup, Sweet chilli beef and noodles, vegetables Friday: Vegetable soup, Breaded fish/Scotch pie, chips, peas.

We also have baked potatoes, pizza, pasta, sandwiches and salad available every day as well as our outdoor snack bar. Please do be aware that we offer a free cup of soup with bread for all our young people, regardless of their “free school meals” status. We also have our “Breakfast Club” (sponsored by Stephens the Bakers) available from 8.10am and this is free for those facing hardship. We have cereal, toast and jam and juice on offer.

Looking ahead, parents of the new S1 will soon receive a letter from Mr Young about our outdoor activity days at Fordell Firs (25 – 27 September). This is a great team building exercise for our new intake and costs only £15 for the day. There is no charge for those entitled to free meals.

Finally, it would be remiss not to comment on the disastrous arson attack on Woodmill High School in Dunfermline last Sunday. The scale of the devastation is heartbreaking and we are joined with our friends along the road in sadness and shock. I have been in touch with Mr McIntosh (Rector). We are also working with the Council to see what we can do to help in the period ahead. I would just ask that you make sure you know where your kids are and what they are up to at weekends and in the evenings. This seems, according to reports, to have been a malicious act on the part of a 14 year old. Let’s be vigilant. Here in school, Mr Reekie (Business Manager) and I have now conducted an enhanced risk assessment around the school premises and perimeter in light of this dreadful crime.

Looking ahead, I do hope that you will be able to join us for the next regular meeting of the KHS Parent Council which takes place in our Boardroom at 6pm on Tuesday 24 September. All parents/carers are automatically regarded as members and the more of you who come along to support and advise our school the better. Gillian McIntyre is our new Chairperson and she would like to extend this welcome to you:

“At the start of the new term I would like to extend a welcome all our new parents/carers who have S1 pupils entering our school, as well as parents of pupils already attending KHS. As parents I know we all want the best for our children, but have you considered how you can work with Kirkcaldy High to fully understand what goes on in the school, and how you can support your child to achieve their full potential?

First of all, let me assure you that you won’t be pestered to join fundraising activities or lumbered with a time-consuming job on the Parent Council. We would rather that you come along and chat about what we can do to work together – are there any information sessions you might find interesting? Is there something that you just don’t understand about exams or classes? Is there some feedback that you feel the school should have about an event they hosted or do you have any questions about what is going on generally?

You don’t need to commit to come to every meeting, but it would be great if you could just pop in if you think it might be interesting. We are really informal and dates and times for meeting will be posted on the “twitter” page and in the latest school newsletter. If you haven’t already done I urge you to make sure that you are signed up for Mr Allan weekly log (available via email) that is always interesting and full of what’s going on in school. Thanks you.” Gillian.

Do have a great weekend whatever your plans. If you require any help, please do be in touch.

Derek Allan

RECTOR

30 August 2019