Head Teacher Blog
Dear Parent/Carer
I hope you are well.
Suddenly it’s March and if you are a Senior Pupil, we are very much into the home straight. In just over a month we will be at the point of Easter Holidays and the looming start of the exam season. There are a number of pieces of information in relation to this in this week’s blog and I hope you find them all helpful in different ways. As always, if you have any concerns in relation to the exams please don’t hesitate to be in touch.
As always, if you have any questions in relation to the information contained within this blog or any other school matter please do not hesitate to be in touch with the school. Moreover, I’m always delighted to share good news of pupil achievements outside of school as many pupils are participating at an exceptionally high level in a range of activities. If your son/daughter is involved in something, please do share this with me.
LGBTQ+ Disco
On Wednesday Night of this week it was fantastic to host our annual LGBTQ+ Disco. As a school who has been awarded it’s Silver Status by LGBTQ+ Scotland, it was great to see so many of our young people who identify themselves as members of this group coming together and having such a great night. A big thank you, as always, to Mr Brown for his leadership of this school area.
Seachdain na Gaidhlig at Greenfaulds
On Friday Night we were delighted to be able to host the North Lanarkshire Family Ceilidh as part of World Gaelic Week. This was supported by NLC, CLD and Bhord na Gaidhlig. On the night we had a range of performers including some amazing young people who are future, current and ex-pupils including the Tollbrae Nursery Class, Isla Duke, the school trad band and the Mod Gold Winner Caitlin Yule. With over 170 young people and families in attendance it was a great night and a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the Gaelic Language and Culture.
S3 Family Night
A big thank you to all the families who were able to come along to our S3 Parents’/Carers’ Night on Tuesday. We hope that everyone who was able to come along found the information helpful in terms of the progress of their young person as well as being aware of their next steps.
Step into Medicine
If your son/daughter is considering a career path in medicine, you may wish to engage with the following opportunity on the 17th of March.
Transport During Exams
Mrs Beattie has shared the following information this week, but in case it has missed you:
Any S4/5/6 pupil who is NORMALLY entitled to school transport should have returned their EXAM transport requests to Mrs Beattie already.
This is if they need transport for an exam on:
the Inservice day – Thursday 7th May
the holiday – Monday 25th May
any Friday afternoon, or any other day where the exam ends after the end of the school day. For other exams, pupils are welcome to get school buses at the normal times if they wish.
Also, if a pupil normally gets a taxi to school, and needs a taxi for an exam, we must book this. In the past, most pupils have preferred to make their own arrangements for exams which is understandable, but otherwise we need to know asap.
Please ensure your child has made a return to Mrs Beattie right away if exam transport is required and they are normally entitled to school transport.
Cumbernauld Creates Winners!
This week, we received news that a number of our pupils had been successful in the Cumbernauld Creates at Palacerigg 2026 Schools Art Competition.
Visual Arts Winner (High School):
James Hagerty (S3), Study of a Goldfinch – Greenfaulds High School
Runner Up:
Iona McKune (S3), Setting Sun, Palacerigg
Literature Winner:
Lovely Night – Matthew Speirs, Greenfaulds High School
Runner Up:
Happiness – Lara Hughes
We all look forward to seeing their works in the exhibition at Cumbernauld Creates at Palacerigg.
Hair and Beauty Offer
I was contacted last week after the blog was published with a great offer from the Pretty Perfect Hair Salon here in Cumbernauld.
We are excited to be launching our new Junior Masterclasses for young people aged 12–16 years old who are interested in gaining experience within a real salon environment.
Our first masterclass will take place on Sunday 8th March at 1pm, and spaces are limited.
During the session, students will:
– Experience working in a professional salon setting
– Speak with experienced stylists about training routes and career opportunities
– Learn practical skills such as curling, washing, blow-drying, braiding, and more
Each month we will introduce different techniques and training focuses, giving young people a varied and inspiring introduction to the hairdressing industry.
If you would like any further information, booking details, or promotional material to share with students, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
Kind regards,
Sharon
Pretty Perfect
Cumbernauld
07881095584
Prettyperfectsalon.co.uk
S.marshall27@icloud.com
Parent Council Reminder
The Parent Council is a hugely helpful and informative body for me as Head Teacher and for the wider school. If you would like to attend any or all of the sessions this year the dates are as follows:
Monday 30th of March
Monday 27th of April
Monday 25th of May (in person and always a bring a dish night for a catch up and some lovely food).
If you would like to find out more, please contact me at the school.
Exam Stress Support for Families
Kooth, the online, mental health support which is accessible for all pupils in North Lanarkshire are running sesions for families to help and support their young person/people during the upcoming SQA exams. If you would like more information this is contained below.
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Evening Study Support 2025-26
Registration for this year’s evening webinars is now live. Study Support | e-Sgoil
Study support is for Senior Phase learners (S4-S6) who are working towards National Qualifications.
This year’s programme offers 55 weekly webinars covering 29 subjects across N4 to Advanced Higher levels.
PLEASE NOTE THAT YOU WILL NEED TO BE LOGGED INTO GLOW TO ACCESS THE REGISTRATION FORM.
If you do not know your Glow username and password, please speak to a member of staffwho will be able to provide you with these.
Webinars will start week beginning 27th October 2025 and will run through to the SQA exams. Timetable is below:
Support for pupils with ASN
As a parent with a child who has an additional support need, I know that information can be particularly helpful to ensure you are supporting your young person in the best possible way. The Support for Learning department work closely with Speech and Language therapy, Occupational Therapy, Hope for Autism and the Neurodevelopmental Team. If your child is on a waiting list to see any of the services, or have been given an identification of an Additional Support need, the following Facebook pages may be useful to you. They share hints and tips, have rolling programmes of local workshops for parents and children on common themes such as Sleep, Anxiety, language processing, sensory difficulties.
NHS Lanarkshire Children and young people, Occupational Therapy
https://www.facebook.com/share/19hopRtsiN/
Speech and language therapy NHS Lanarkshire
https://www.facebook.com/share/1BevUC39FW/
Neurodevelopmental service-CYS NHS
Hope for Autism
https://www.hopeforautism.org.uk
Young Scot Cards
Increasingly, the use of Young Scot Cards for our pupils are very important, both in and out of school. As such, if your son/daughter loses their card it can be problematic. We are able to apply for a replacement card on their behalf. However, we would ask that if you would like the school to do this, that parents/carers need to email Mr Adler with a photo, their address to send the card to and give permission to apply for a card.
Free School Meals
A reminder to all families, if your family normally receives Free School Meals please remember to reapply for continuation of this service as it does not automatically continue each year. Families need to apply annually. There have been a few incidences since we returned of pupils not having money on their cards. We did of course ensure that they received lunch but please do ensure that you have reapplied for Free School Meals. Please apply here: Free School Meals and Clothing Grant Application | North Lanarkshire Council
EMA 2025-26 session
The new EMA form is now live on the NLC website for the new session 2025/2026 starting in August. Any students who got EMA last years has to reapply this year.
To apply you must meet the following criteria
| Gross Taxable income | No. of dependent children in household | Award |
| Up to £24,421 | 1 | £30 |
| Up to £26,884 | 2+ | £30 |
Please note – dependent children are all those up to the age of 16 and those over the age of 16 and up to age 25 if they are in full time Further or Higher Education (proof required).
Once students have their form completed and a letter confirming they are getting EMA they should bring their EMA contract to Mr Adler who will then discuss attendance requirements with the students, but to get EMA students must have excellent attendance and be on time to school.
Community News
I am always happy to share community news within the HT Blog and this week have a few information posters to share with you. If you would like to engage with the following relevant bodies, their contact details should be noted on the information posters.
Dates for your diary
Monday 2nd of March: Parent Council (6.30pm)
Tuesday 3rd of March: S3 Parents’/Carers’ Night (4.30pm – 7pm)
I hope you have a lovely weekend.
Moran Taing
Jamie
Jamie Vaughn-Sharp
Head Teacher
