Bearsden Academy

Last updated

Bearsden Academy
Bearsden Academy Badge.png
New Bearsden Academy - geograph.org.uk - 1607340.jpg
Bearsden Academy building in 2009
Address
Bearsden Academy
Stockiemuir Road

Bearsden
,
East Dunbartonshire
,
G61 3SU

Scotland
Coordinates 55°55′39″N4°20′51″W / 55.9274°N 4.3476°W / 55.9274; -4.3476
Information
Type State secondary school
MottoCommitted to excellence
Established1911;112 years ago (1911)
Local authority East Dunbartonshire
Chair of Parent CouncilIain Pringle [1]
Head teacherGeorge Cooper [2]
Staffc. 100 [3]
Gender Co-educational
Age11to 18
Enrollmentc. 1188 [4]
Colour(s)Navy, red, gold, green
    
Accreditation Investors in People
PublicationThe BAnner
Website bearsdenacademy.e-dunbarton.sch.uk

Bearsden Academy is a non-denominational, state secondary school in Bearsden, East Dunbartonshire, Scotland.

Contents

History

Bearsden Cross site (1911–1958)

In 1911, the school was situated on the corner of Roman Road and Drymen Road north of Bearsden railway station in the Bearsden Cross area of the town. It was originally known as New Kilpatrick Higher Grade School. It comprised both a primary school and a secondary school. The building was designed by the architectural firm James M. Monro & Sons. It opened on 17 August 1911. The first headmaster was Hugh Primrose. In 1920, the school was renamed Bearsden Academy. In 1958, with the town expanding, and becoming a burgh, a new secondary school was built on Morven Road and Bearsden Academy was moved there and the whole of the remaining building became Bearsden Primary School. [5]

Morven Road site (1958–2010)

From 1958 to 2010 the school was located on the south side of Morven Road in Bearsden. The old Morven Road site was redeveloped as a new housing estate, comprising detached and flatted dwellings known as Academy Grove in 2009–12. Norman McLeod was a rector at the school and one of the streets in Academy Grove is named in his honour. [6]

Stockiemuir Road site (2010–)

St Peter's College

The Stockiemuir Road site the academy occupies was originally a Roman Catholic seminary for the Archdiocese of Glasgow and then a teaching college. In 1874, the Archbishop of Glasgow, Charles Eyre originally established St Peter's College in Partickhill. In 1892, he decided to move it to Bearsden. The college chapel was the first to serve the local Catholic population. [7]

With the arrival of a railway to the area, the population increased and the college chapel was expanded. In 1946, a fire destroyed the college, razing it to the ground. The decision was made by the archdiocese to abandon the site and build a new seminary in Cardross. The seminary was moved to Darleith House in Cardross and then Kilmahew House, before the new purpose-built St Peter's Seminary in Cardross was ready in 1966. [8]

Teaching College

In 1966, to replace the seminary, a teaching college was built on the site. It was designed by the same architects as St Peter's Seminary, Cardross, the firm of Gillespie, Kidd & Coia (GKC). It was built in a U-shape, with two teaching blocks, a physical education building and five student accommodation buildings. In 1969, the complex was opened, as the Notre Dame College of Education. [9]

In 1981, it merged with Craiglockhart College and was renamed St Andrew's College of Education. On 4 March 1998, it was registered as a category A listed building. [10] In 1999, it joined with University of Glasgow to become the Faculty of Education of the University of Glasgow. [11] In 2002, the teaching college was relocated and the site was declared surplus to university requirements. After negotiations between Historic Scotland and East Dunbartonshire Council, it was decided to demolish the site and build a school. [9]

The new building was built under a public-private partnership. In August 2010 the new site for Bearsden Academy opened to staff and students.

Controversies

32-year-old pupil

In September 1995, it was discovered that Brian MacKinnon, a 32-year-old former student, had attended the academy for a year on the pretext of being a Canadian teenager named Brandon Lee. He had shaved his eyebrows to look younger and permed his hair. He starred in a school production of South Pacific and gained six highers (including five A grades, taking English, Maths, Chemistry, Physics and Biology), before going on to study medicine at Dundee University. Teachers had remarked on his mature appearance. [12] [13]

A 2022 documentary film about the events, My Old School , was made by one of Mackinnon's fellow pupils. It contains interviews with students and staff from the time; Alan Cumming plays the adult MacKinnon, lip syncing to the audio of MacKinnon's interviews. [14] [15]

Sex offenders

In November 2011 a married father of two was sentenced to a year and two months in jail for sexual offences relating to two pupils at Bearsden Academy. 39-year-old Maths teacher Muir McCormick admitted a total of four sex charges involving the girls, aged 16 and 17. [16] He had been suspended when the allegations first emerged, and later resigned. [17]

In 2005 East Dunbartonshire Council launched an inquiry into an allegation that another teacher had an affair with a former pupil. The teacher, who was not named, was sent home from the school after the 17-year-old girl's father made an official complaint. [18]

In 2007, a person training to be a teacher, while on placement at Bearsden Academy's music department, was convicted of 31 sexual offences committed against boys as young as twelve and sentenced to five years in jail. [19] Andrew Oliver Kingsley committed them between 2006 and 2009 in Glasgow, Ayrshire, London and a Fife secondary school where he had his probationary year. None of these offences took place at Bearsden Academy. [20] [21]

School roll

School yearTotal rollS1S2S3S4S5S6References
2000/20011373 [22]
2001/20021375 [23]
2002/2003 [24]
2003/2004 [25]
2004/20051303 [26]
2005/2006
2006/20071201207206206232198152 [27]
2007/20081186209206208199218146 [28]
2008/20091183199208206209187174 [29]
2009/20101185208207212209207142 [30]
2010/20111211
2011/2012 [31]
2012/20131188 [4]

Notable alumni

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milngavie</span> Town in Scotland

Milngavie is a town in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland and a suburb of Glasgow. It is on the Allander Water, at the northwestern edge of Greater Glasgow, and about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Glasgow city centre. It neighbours Bearsden. Milngavie is a commuter town, with much of its working population travelling to Glasgow to work or study. The town is served by Milngavie railway station on the North Clyde Line of the SPT rail network, which links it to Central Glasgow.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Dunbartonshire</span> Council area of Scotland

East Dunbartonshire is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders Glasgow City Council Area to the south, North Lanarkshire to the east, Stirling to the north, and West Dunbartonshire to the west. East Dunbartonshire contains many of the affluent areas north of Glasgow, including Bearsden, Milngavie, Milton of Campsie, Balmore, and Torrance, as well as many of Glasgow's commuter towns and villages. The council area covers parts of the historic counties of Dunbartonshire, Lanarkshire, and Stirlingshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dunbartonshire</span> Historic county in Scotland

Alan Reid is a Scottish Liberal Democrat politician who has been a councillor in the East Dunbartonshire ward of Bearsden North since 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clydebank</span> Town in Scotland

Clydebank is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. Situated on the north bank of the River Clyde, it borders the village of Old Kilpatrick to the west, and the Yoker and Drumchapel areas of the adjacent City of Glasgow immediately to the east. Depending on the definition of the town's boundaries, the suburban areas of Duntocher, Faifley and Hardgate either surround Clydebank to the north, or are its northern outskirts, with the Kilpatrick Hills beyond.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bearsden</span> Town in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland

Bearsden is a town in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the northwestern fringe of Greater Glasgow. Approximately 6 miles (10 km) from Glasgow City Centre, the town is effectively a suburb, and its housing development coincided with the 1863 introduction of a railway line. The town was named after Bearsden railway station, which was named after a nearby cottage.

In the United Kingdom, there are many 'local authority maintained' Roman Catholic schools. These are theoretically open to pupils of all faiths or none, although if the school is over-subscribed priority will be given to Roman Catholic children.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Douglas Academy</span> State secondary school in Milngavie, East Dunbartonshire, Scotland

Douglas Academy is a non-denominational, co-educational, comprehensive secondary school in the town of Milngavie, East Dunbartonshire, serving the Milngavie, Craigton and Baldernock areas. Douglas Academy is one of Scotland's top performing state schools. In 2007, Douglas Academy was ranked as Scotland's top performing state school, and with every year the school continues to place among the highest in the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cardross</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Cardross is a large village with a population of 2,194 (2011) in Scotland, on the north side of the Firth of Clyde, situated halfway between Dumbarton and Helensburgh. Cardross is in the historic geographical county of Dunbartonshire but the modern political local authority of Argyll and Bute.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Torrance, East Dunbartonshire</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Torrance is a relatively affluent village in East Dunbartonshire, formerly Stirlingshire, Scotland, located eight miles north of Glasgow city centre. Torrance used to mainly consist of farmland. The village was once famous as a resting place for workers on their way to the Campsie Fells four miles north. The Forth and Clyde Canal has a wharf nearby at Hungryside, and the A807 runs along its southern edge. The village has an active community charity whose aims are to improve the village facilities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dalmuir</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Dalmuir is an area nine miles northwest of Glasgow, Scotland, on the western side of Clydebank, and part of West Dunbartonshire Council Area. The name is a lowland Scots derivation of the Gaelic meaning Big Field. The area was originally two separate villages with Dalmuir Shore joining with Clydebank in 1886 and Dalmuir Village in 1906, during a period of rapid industrialization and expansion. Dalmuir is bounded by the village of Old Kilpatrick to the west, the Mountblow and Parkhall housing schemes to the north, and the Clydebank town centre area to the east. To the south is the River Clyde.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lenzie Academy</span> Comprehensive school in Lenzie, Scotland

Lenzie Academy is a co-educational comprehensive secondary school located in Lenzie, East Dunbartonshire, Scotland. The catchment area covers Lenzie, Auchinloch and southern parts of Kirkintilloch.

Turnbull High School is a co-educational comprehensive secondary school located in Bishopbriggs, East Dunbartonshire, Scotland. The school was named after William Turnbull, Bishop of Glasgow from 1448 to 1454, and founder of the University of Glasgow in 1451, of which he was the first Chancellor. Whilst enrollment is open to pupils of all religious denominations and none, the School's religious ethos emphasises practice of Roman Catholic moral values both in the church and in the community, with its own Chaplain and many associated charitable and community-based activities undertaken.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Peter's Seminary, Cardross</span> Former Roman Catholic seminary near Cardross, Argyll and Bute, Scotland

St. Peter's Seminary is a former Roman Catholic seminary near Cardross, Argyll and Bute, Scotland. Designed by the firm of Gillespie, Kidd & Coia, it has been described by the international architecture conservation organisation DOCOMOMO as a modern "building of world significance". It is one of only 42 post-war buildings in Scotland to be listed at Category A, the highest level of protection for a building of "special architectural or historic interest". It has been abandoned since 1987, and is currently in a ruinous state. In July 2020, the site was gifted to the Kilmahew Education Trust Ltd who plan to reinstate the educational elements of the Seminary Complex after a process of conservation and restoration. The wider Kilmahew Estate is to be brought back to its former glory with new landscaping and features but is currently closed to the public due to safety concerns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bishopbriggs Academy</span> State secondary school in Bishopbriggs, East Dunbartonshire, Scotland

Bishopbriggs Academy is a secondary school in the town of Bishopbriggs, Scotland, in the district of East Dunbartonshire. Bishopbriggs Academy is a non-denominational, co-educational, comprehensive school taking pupils from S1 to S6. It is currently one of two secondary schools in Bishopbriggs, along with Turnbull High School at Brackenbrae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boclair Academy</span> State secondary school in Bearsden, East Dunbartonshire, Scotland

Boclair Academy, a co-educational comprehensive secondary school located in the Greater Glasgow suburb of Bearsden, East Dunbartonshire, Scotland, serves pupils aged 11 to 18 from Southern Bearsden, Westerton and Torrance. Boclair Academy is affiliated with four local primary schools within its catchment area: Westerton Primary School, Killermont Primary School, Colquhoun Park Primary School and Torrance Primary School. The school's exam achievement has improved in recent years: in 2011 27% of S5 gained at least 5 Higher passes (A-C), ranking Boclair 11th in Scotland for a state school.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Ninian's High School, Kirkintilloch</span> Comprehensive school in Kirkintilloch, East Dunbartonshire, Scotland

St. Ninian's High School is a Roman Catholic co-educational comprehensive secondary school, located in Kirkintilloch, East Dunbartonshire, on the banks of the Forth and Clyde Canal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scotus College</span> Former seminary in Bearsden, Glasgow, Scotland

Scotus College was a seminary in Bearsden, Glasgow. It was founded in 1985 under the name of Chesters College and in 1993 was reconstituted as Scotus College. It was then the only remaining Roman Catholic seminary in Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dumbarton Academy</span> Secondary school in Dumbarton, West Dunbartonshire, Scotland

Founded in 1485, Dumbarton Academy is a mixed secondary school in Dumbarton, West Dunbartonshire, Scotland.

Notre Dame College of Education was a Catholic teacher training college in Glasgow, Scotland. It was opened in 1895 as a women's college by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, admitting male students from 1967 and merging with Craiglockhart College in 1981 to become St Andrew's College of Education. St Andrew's College become the Faculty of Education of the University of Glasgow in 1999.

References

  1. ↑ Parent Council from Bearsden Academy Archived 5 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ↑ "School Profile". Archived from the original on 19 October 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  3. ↑ Scotland. "Bearsden Academy – East Dunbartonshire – Scottish Schools Online 2010/11". Government of the United Kingdom. Archived from the original on 24 December 2012. Retrieved 24 November 2011.
  4. 1 2 List of Primary Schools with pupil roll information as at September 2012 from Scottish Government. Retrieved 27 February 2015
  5. ↑ School History Archived 26 February 2015 at the Wayback Machine from Bearsden Primary School. Retrieved 25 February 2015
  6. ↑ "Gladedale Group – Academy Grove". Archived from the original on 1 March 2008. Retrieved 7 April 2008.
  7. ↑ Parish history from St Andrew's Bearsden. Retrieved 23 July 2013
  8. ↑ Buildings at Risk. Retrieved 15 September 2013
  9. 1 2 riskybuildings.org.uk Archived 8 June 2007 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 15 July 2023
  10. ↑ British listed buildings. Retrieved 15 September 2013
  11. ↑ Buie, Elizabeth (6 April 1999). "A degree of concern over college merger". The Glasgow Herald . Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  12. ↑ John Arlidge (20 September 1995). "Bogus pupil set to lose place at university". The Independent. Retrieved 26 April 2010.
  13. ↑ Ron Mackenna (27 September 1995). "EXCLUSIVE: Brian MacKinnon tells The Herald HOW I WAS UNMASKED". Herald Scotland. Retrieved 24 November 2011.
  14. ↑ Brian Ferguson (9 January 2022). "Alan Cumming to play 'Scotland's most notorious imposter' in new film". The Scotsman. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  15. ↑ "Brandon Lee: The model school pupil who was a 30-year-old imposter". BBC News. 3 March 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  16. ↑ "BBC News - Teacher jailed for having sex with pupils". bbc.co.uk. 24 November 2011. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  17. 1 2 "Teacher jailed after having sex with schoolgirls in classroom cupboard". The Scotsman. 24 November 2011. Archived from the original on 27 February 2019 – via Internet Archive.
  18. ↑ "UK | Scotland | Teacher inquiry over pupil claim". BBC News. 25 October 2005. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
  19. ↑ "HMA v ANDREW OLIVER KINGSLEY - Judgments & Sentences - Judiciary of Scotland". Scotland-judiciary.org.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2013.
  20. ↑ "BBC News - Paedophile teacher faces life in jail". Bbc.co.uk. 8 October 2010. Retrieved 18 August 2013.
  21. ↑ "BBC News - Paedophile teacher jailed for a minimum of five years". Bbc.co.uk. 28 January 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2013.
  22. ↑ "Scottish Secondary Schools League Tables : YOUR SCHOOL'S RATING. – Free Online Library". Thefreelibrary.com. 30 November 2001. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  23. ↑ "HOW YOUR SCHOOL IS RATED IN EXAM TABLE; Find out how every school in Scotland performed in the academic stakes with our easy-to-follow guide. – Free Online Library". Thefreelibrary.com. 27 November 2002. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  24. ↑ List of Primary Schools with pupil roll information from Scottish Government Archived 6 February 2013 at Archive-It
  25. ↑ List of Primary Schools with pupil roll information as at September 2003 from Scottish Government. Retrieved 27 February 2015
  26. ↑ "HOW DID YOUR SCHOOL DO. – Free Online Library". Thefreelibrary.com. 15 December 2005. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  27. ↑ East Dumbarton School Rolls 2006
  28. ↑ East Dumbarton School Rolls 2007
  29. ↑ East Dumbarton School Rolls 2008
  30. ↑ East Dumbarton School Rolls 2009
  31. ↑ List of Primary Schools with pupil roll information as at September 2011 from Scottish Government. Retrieved 27 February 2015
  32. ↑ Nicolson, Stuart (18 February 2008). "UK | Defining the sound of young Scotland". BBC News. Retrieved 6 October 2012.
  33. ↑ Martin Williams (4 August 2012). "Olympic triumph at last for our brains trust in a boat". The Herald. Glasgow. Retrieved 6 October 2012.
  34. ↑ "School pain for Aasmah". Evening Times . 24 July 2017.
  35. ↑ "Bearsden's David Moyes lands Fergie's job at Manchester United". Milngavie Herald. 9 May 2013. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.