Annan Academy – Annan Academy

OUR RULES & AIMS

Education Services Aims

Our Aim is to raise levels of attainment, achievement and participation in all our children and young people.

Our Objectives
1. We will ensure that children and young people will be at the centre of our plans.
This means planning by schools and support from Education Services will be focussed on delivering to all our children and young people the entitlements embedded in Curriculum for Excellence and Getting It Right for Every Child.
2. We will improve our partnership working
This means an emphasis on Cluster working, training on Getting it Right For Every Child themes, parental involvement, multi-agency working, partnership with Community Learning and Development (CLD); Professional Learning Communities and collaboration with Education Scotland, the Care Inspectorate and Further Education Colleges.
3. We will encourage innovation, creativity, collaboration and a culture of sharing and learning in all our staff
This means a focus on transformational leadership, professional autonomy and local solutions and building capacity in all our staff.
4. We will streamline our business processes
This means empowering our schools and staff to find better ways of working, with an emphasis on professional autonomy, local solutions, developing leadership, capacity building, effective Continuing Professional Development and implementing Getting It Right for Every Child processes.

Annan Academy Vision and Aims

It is the fundamental vision of Annan Academy to be a leading school in learning and teaching and to ensure the personal, social and moral welfare of the young people in our care. We strive to work with students, parents and the wider community to continually improve opportunities for all learners, enabling each individual to achieve her or his potential.
We aim that the school will: • encourage all students to achieve their full potential
• foster a welcoming, positive environment for all students, staff, parents and the wider community
• provide a rich curriculum which caters for all students
• provide opportunities for quality learning and teaching which motivate students to become successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors
• offer effective support for all students to encourage health and well-being
• value and support its staff to enable them to provide opportunities to develop students to their maximum potential.

At Annan Academy we value:

1. the individual
• by generating an ethos of fairness for all
• by creating a safe encouraging environment where young people feel respected and valued through encouragement and praise
• by promoting a sense of self discipline and responsibility for ourselves and others
• by nurturing an atmosphere of self-respect and respect for others
2. personal achievement
• by celebrating the successes of students and staff
• by helping individuals to participate and to achieve success
• by creating an environment which promotes confidence and support for others
• by maintaining high expectations of attainment for all our pupils
3. the school community
• by respecting and caring for our environment
• by showing pride in our school
• by developing strong partnerships with the wider community and encouraging their involvement in school life
• by including all members of the wider community in the policy making process
• by building the idea of learning as a lifelong process.

Accomodation

During the past 20 years our school has been rebuilt in phases. There are now over 30 General Classrooms, 11 Science rooms, 4 Home Economics rooms, 3 Business Studies rooms, 5 Technical rooms, 4 Art Rooms, 1×30 workstation Computer room, 9x 20 plus workstation Computer rooms (plus two netbook trolleys for portable access to over 50 netbooks. 4 Specialised Language rooms, a Guidance Suite, a Gymnasium, a Games Hall, a Swimming Pool, a Library, an Assembly Hall. There is, of course, a staff room, a Sick room, 1 Conference room, a Learning Support Suite and several departmental bases. A Video Conferencing Suite has also been established in this area. Sports fields, extending to eleven acres, adjoin the school.
Since November 2012, accommodation at Annan Academy has been significantly enhanced through the opening of the new ‘Performing Arts Centre’. This purpose-built facility includes Dance studio, Drama studio, two Music classrooms, Media Studies room, recital room, Drama workshop area and four music practice rooms.
There are three sets of boys’, and three sets of girls’ toilets situated in various areas in the school.
Sports Facilities On site we have a games hall, swimming pool, gymnasium, a dance studio, fitness room, and extensive playing fields. All these facilities are utilized fully both during the school day and in the evening by the community. Use is also made on a regular basis of the Council tennis courts situated at Seaforth Avenue, together with the Council facilities at the Everholm. The close proximity of the river Annan has allowed canoeing to be developed within the school. All PE changing areas have been recently refurbished.

History

Visitors to the Academy will notice that, while most of the school buildings are modern, there is a part which dates back further. The old building incorporating the bell-tower, dates back over a century to 1895. This is a constant reminder of the school’s history and its origins.

The present school resulted from an amalgamation of Annan Academy and the Greenknowe Public School in 1921. The original Academy was a fee-charging, burgh controlled school whereas the Public School was controlled by the Dumfries Education Authority. This newly amalgamated school was situated on the site of the current school and many traces of it can still be seen today, including the honours boards in the school library which display the names of many duxes and sports champions from both of the original schools.

The Public School’s history can be traced back to the 17th century when the law stipulated that each parish had to provide a school and a schoolmaster. Eventually, in 1840, the Public School was moved to a new building in Greenknowe, which was then replaced in 1895 by a much larger building. This is what is now known as the old school which houses the library and is still in use today.

The original Annan Academy at Port Street.

The Second Annan Academy building

The more illustrious, fee-charging Annan Academy was originally founded in 1802 and was first situated on the corner of Port street and High street in the Bridge House building. It was in this building that local writer Thomas Carlyle was educated as a boy.
The town council built a new home for the Academy in 1820 in Ednam street. This building was extended in the 1890’s and was still used by the school for certain classes as late as the 1970’s. The building is still there although now it is used for local council offices.

In the 1960’s, a new series of buildings were erected beside the old Greenknowe school on St. John’s road, creating the Annan Academy which we know today.