Welcome to this weeks Rector’s log. I hope you and your family are doing well. This is the last Rector’s log of the term.

The week that’s been…

It has been a very busy week here at KHS with exam season well underway and a range of learning and activities taking place across the school.

Last Friday, our U18 Senior Football team won the Fife cup, beating Beath H.S. 5-1. The boys rallied from 1-0 down, showing great grit and determination to come back and seal a comprehensive win. Well done to all the boys involved and to Mr Caldwell and Mr I’Anson for supporting them. This marked a league and cup double success for the team.

This week, we have had the start of the SQA examinations ranging from PE Higher on Monday, through to Geography Higher and National 5, Music (all levels), Physics (all levels) and finally French (all levels) today. Our chief invigilator has remarked on how well our young people are doing and attendance, attitude and application have been high. Well done to all on their first week. Week 2 starts on Monday with some big exams coming up in Modern Studies (all levels) on Tuesday and National 5 Mathematics on Friday amongst others.

Masterclasses continue to run throughout the week in school. For any young person undertaking National 5 Mathematics, Mrs Hamilton and I will be in KHS from 9am until 12pm tomorrow (Saturday 27th April) to support anyone studying National 5 Maths in S4-6 with their preparation for this. Just head to KHS and we will be in B5 and B6. Young people will be responsible for their own transport to and from KHS.

We have also subscribed to Achieve, an online platform that provides young people with study guides and practical help for National 5 – Advanced Higher for almost all subjects. Young people can sign up via online using their glow email and entering the school code. A support guide is and the link to sign up is on our website.

With our S4-6 year groups off on study leave, some of our S3 young people have stepped into the role of supporting our school by becoming S3 Prefects. They have been supporting around the school, helping out at various times. They have had a great start to their duties this week and I am sure this will continue over the coming weeks. Well done to all, we are incredibly proud of you!

On Wednesday, we had a new group of young people in S3 attend the trade hub in Leven. We have had a great partnership with the trade hub over the last couple of academic sessions, with young people undertaking study in construction, hospitality and mechanics. The courses have allowed participants to then undertake college study in S4 and move on to positive destinations after school. Massive thank you to Mrs Davidson, Jayne Preece and the wider team who organise, support and ensure that this amazing opportunity continues for our young people.

Yesterday, we had a small group of S1s attend the Fife Off-Road Programme, in conjunction with partners from Police Scotland and the Community team. Young people got the opportunity to take part in off-road activities and make links with community partners. I had the pleasure of speaking to 2 of the participants who thoroughly enjoyed their time out of school, and engaging positively in all activities.

Finally, some staffing news…Mrs Donaldson (PTG Adam Smith) starts her maternity leave today. We wish Mrs Donaldson, the new arrival and her family well. Mr Walsh will take her place in an acting capacity for the duration of her maternity leave. An email has been sent out to Mrs Donaldson’s caseload to update families about this.

Mrs Dempsey was successful at interview on Wednesday for the permanent role of PTG (Carlyle). Mrs Dempsey is currently off but is due to return by the end of May. Again, Mr Sanderson is currently supporting, taking on Mrs Dempsey’s caseload until her return. Congratulations to Mrs Dempsey and we look forward to her return.

Lastly, Ms Grubb, PTC Mathematics has decided to demit from her role as PTC Mathematics. Ms Grubb is currently off school but will return as Teacher of Mathematics from August 2024. Ms Grubb has been a fantastic PTC and has supported our full community in her capacity as PTC over the years. We wish her well in taking on this new challenge here at KHS. The PTC post is advertised now, and we hope to share news once the recruitment process is concluded in the coming weeks.

As ever, please check on our blog to keep up to date with all the latest goings on and celebrate the success of our young people too..

The week ahead…

Tomorrow, we bid adieu to some of our young people as they set off to the Battlefields of the first World War in Europe. We look forward to hearing from them on their return and wish them a safe trip filled with excitement and opportunity.

On Monday and Tuesday next week, we have colleagues from across the local authority joining us for a Validated Self Evaluation process, with a focus on our Support and Guidance work. Our Education Manager, and other senior officers will be taking part in a range of activities from focus groups to lesson observations. The purpose of this visit is to support us in validating where we think we are with these areas, what’s working well and helping us to shape future improvements.

As shared before, we are always looking for your feedback on how things are going here at KHS. Please take a few minutes to complete this online survey. As ever, this information is a key element in understanding and driving forward our improvements. Thank you to those who have already taken time to share your views.

Finally, we have had some issues with young people riding bikes, scooters, e-scooters etc. around school grounds.  We welcome young people using these modes of transport to and from school but would ask that they are dismounted before entering the school grounds and that they do not ride these within the school grounds during school times, breaks and lunch.  We have had 1 or 2 accidents which could have been avoided by not cycling / scooting on the school grounds, especially at busy periods in the day.  I would be grateful if you could discuss this with your child(ren) if applicable.

I hope you enjoy the weekend!

Best wishes,

Chris McKay

Rector

26 April 2024