Williamwood High School

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Williamwood High School
WilliamwoodHSLogo.png
Williamwood High School (geograph 3279365).jpg
Address
Williamwood High School
Eaglesham Road

,
G76 8RF

Scotland
Coordinates 55°46′34″N4°16′33″W / 55.77611°N 4.27583°W / 55.77611; -4.27583
Information
Former nameEastwood Senior Secondary School
TypeSecondary
MottoMighty Oaks From Little Acorns Grow
Established1930
Local authority East Renfrewshire
Head teacherNicola MacGlashan
GenderMixed
Enrolment1700
Colour(s)Black, blue, green and gold     
Feeder schoolsNetherlee Primary School, Carolside Primary & Busby Primary
Website blogs.glowscotland.org.uk/er/Williamwood

Williamwood High School is a non-denominational comprehensive secondary school in Clarkston, East Renfrewshire, Scotland, with a roll of around 1700 pupils. It was originally opened in the 1930s as Eastwood Senior Secondary School, located on Seres Road in the Williamwood area of Clarkston. In 2006 the school relocated to a new site at Eaglesham Road on the southern edge of Clarkston, with fields and farm roads to the south, west and north, about 1.5 miles from the original site. As of 2018, the school contained 1632 pupils out of a capacity of 1710. [1]

Contents

History

The old Williamwood High School in 2005 Williamwood High School - geograph.org.uk - 23140.jpg
The old Williamwood High School in 2005

The school was originally opened as Eastwood Senior Secondary School in Seres Road, Williamwood in the 1930s, later being renamed Williamwood High School. It was announced in 2003/2004 that a new school would be built to replace the ageing facilities at Seres Road. It was funded under the PPP scheme by the private company HBG. [2]

In August 2006 the new £29 million school opened at the Eaglesham Road site. It features over 70 classrooms, each fitted with interactive whiteboards. The school has high quality sports facilities including astroturf pitches and running track, a video editing suite, and high standard drama studios. The new school was officially opened by the First Minister of Scotland, Jack McConnell, on Monday 11 December 2006.

Following an inspection in 2009, Williamwood became the first school in Scotland to be awarded a maximum of five "excellent" ratings by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education. [3]

The unoccupied former building was damaged by fire in February 2007. Within around a year of this, the school was demolished, and townhouses were built on the old site. The former playing fields were redeveloped into the Eastwood Health Centre, alongside the old Isobel Mair School building. Some parts of the playing fields remain brownfield, however. Former headteacher John Fitzpatrick was awarded the OBE in 2011 for services to education, whilst at Williamwood. [4]

In April 2015, the S6 year group from the school went viral on the internet after filming a video of themselves and various staff members miming to the song Uptown Funk by Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson. The video was made to be shown at their end of year graduation but amassed over one hundred thousand views after being posted online. [5] [6]

In June 2015, following the retirement of John Fitzpatrick, William Inglis became headteacher. [7]

In 2021, Nicola MacGlashan took over as headteacher, having previously been the headteacher at nearby Woodfarm High School. Soon after the appointment, the school implemented a controversial new rule that toilets were to be locked during class time to prevent truancy. This prompted backlash amongst the school community, with an online petition set up to oppose the decision. The school later reversed the rule in view of the negative response. [8]

Departments

The subject areas at Williamwood are separated into different departments. Each department has a principal teacher who has overall management responsibility and leads the learning and teaching. The departments are:

Curriculum

Williamwood follows the Curriculum for Excellence, the national curriculum for schools in Scotland. In the senior phase (S4-S6) students study for SQA qualifications starting at National 1–5 in S4, progressing to Highers and Advanced Highers in S5 & S6 respectively. [9]

Associated Primary Schools and Nurseries

Primary Schools

Map of catchment areas for Williamwood and associated schools Wiliamwood High School Catchment areas.png
Map of catchment areas for Williamwood and associated schools

Netherlee Primary School is located in Netherlee, which is Clarkston's neighbour. Netherlee also has nursery facilities in buildings called the "Saplings" and "Acorns" buildings. The catchment for Netherlee Primary also includes the Stamperland area of Clarkston.

Carolside Primary School is located in the Carolside area. It also has nursery facilities, some of which are currently being extended (as of March 2020). Its catchment covers the large Carolside and South Williamwood areas, as well as the small area of Overlee (not to be confused with the Stamperland park of the same name), as well as most of Clarkston's town centre.

Busby Primary School is located in the village of Busby, next to Clarkston. A nursery is also currently under construction at this location. The catchment mostly covers the village of Busby, however small parts of Clarkston, including the Williamwood High School itself, are in the catchment for Busby.

St Joseph's Primary School, located in Busby, shares Williamwood's catchment area, but is a Catholic school, and students from this school normally attend St Ninian's High School.

Notable alumni

Related Research Articles

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

East Renfrewshire is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It was formed in 1996, as a successor to the Eastwood district of the Strathclyde region. The northeastern part of the council area is close to Glasgow and many of the council area's northern settlements fall into the Greater Glasgow urban area.

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

Newton Mearns is a suburban town and the largest settlement in East Renfrewshire, Scotland. It lies 7 miles (11 km) southwest of Glasgow City Centre on the main road to Ayrshire, 410 feet (125 m) above sea level. It has a population of approximately 26,993, stretching from Whitecraigs and Kirkhill in the northeast to Maidenhill in the southeast, to Westacres and Greenlaw in the west and Capelrig/Patterton in the northwest.

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

Giffnock is a town and the administrative centre of East Renfrewshire in the Central Lowlands of Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Ninian's High School, Giffnock</span> Secondary school in Giffnock, East Renfrewshire, Scotland

St Ninian's High School is a six-year co-educational Roman Catholic state high school in Giffnock, East Renfrewshire, Scotland. The school, which opened in 1984, serves Giffnock, Clarkston, Thornliebank, Newton Mearns, Eaglesham, Netherlee, Waterfoot, Netherplace, Millhall and Busby in East Renfrewshire. The school roll was 1,714 as of September 2005, and the head teacher is Gerry O’Neil. The school's motto is "Floreat Iuventus" which translates as "Let youth flourish".

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

Netherlee is a suburban residential area in East Renfrewshire, Scotland. It is situated on the west bank of the White Cart Water about 4 miles (6.5 km) south of Glasgow city centre. Part of the Greater Glasgow conurbation, it is mostly contiguous with the city, and is just beyond the boundary of its local authority area. It is a separate census locality from Glasgow, like other areas such as neighbouring Giffnock and Clarkston. Netherlee is directly contiguous with Stamperland. It is also in a council ward with Clarkston and its neighbour Busby. As of 2012, Netherlee has a population of 4,550.

Eaglesham is a village in East Renfrewshire, Scotland, situated about 10 miles (16 km) south of Glasgow, 3 miles (5 km) southeast of Newton Mearns and south of Clarkston, and 4 miles (6.4 km) southwest of East Kilbride.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Muirend</span> Settlement in Scotland

Muirend is an area on the South side of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated about 4 miles (6.5 km) south of Glasgow city centre. Muirend became extensively urbanised in the 20th century, developing into a commuter suburb. In a 2014 Royal Mail survey, the G44 postcode – which includes Muirend – was rated as the most desirable area of Scotland to live in. Neighbouring areas include Cathcart, Merrylee and Newlands in Glasgow, and Netherlee and Giffnock in East Renfrewshire. Some buildings that are locally associated with Muirend, including the main row of shops, as well as Hazelden Park and Muirend Pavilion, are located in East Renfrewshire. Notable residents include Sam McAulay amongst others.

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

Stamperland is a suburban neighbourhood in Clarkston, East Renfrewshire, Scotland. Part of the Greater Glasgow conurbation, it is situated on the west bank of the White Cart Water about 4.5 miles (7.2 km) south of Glasgow city centre, and just outside the city boundary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastwood (Scottish Parliament constituency)</span> Scottish Parliament constituency

Eastwood is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering part of the council area of East Renfrewshire. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It is also one of ten constituencies in the West Scotland electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to the ten constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A727 road</span> Road in Scotland

The A727 road in Scotland runs from East Kilbride in South Lanarkshire, through East Renfrewshire, to Junction 3 of the M77 motorway in Glasgow.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastwood High School, Newton Mearns</span> Secondary school in Newton Mearns, East Renfrewshire, Scotland

Eastwood High School is a comprehensive, non-denominational school located centrally in East Renfrewshire to the south of Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of the successor schools to Eastwood Senior Secondary School which opened in 1936 in Clarkston, Glasgow.

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

Clarkston is a suburban town in East Renfrewshire, in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. A dormitory town with a population of around 10,000, Clarkston is on the southern fringe of the Greater Glasgow conurbation and directly adjoins the neighbouring suburban villages of Busby and Netherlee, as well as the towns of Newton Mearns and Giffnock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Overlee Playing Fields</span> Public park

Overlee Playing Fields, commonly referred to as Overlee Park, is a public park in Stamperland, Clarkston, East Renfrewshire, south of Glasgow, Scotland.

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

Eastwood is a residential neighbourhood in the city of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated south of the River Clyde, and is part of the Newlands/Auldburn ward under Glasgow City Council.

Millhall is a hamlet in East Renfrewshire, in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies 0.8 miles (1.3 km) southeast of Eaglesham, 8.3 miles (13.4 km) northwest of Strathaven and 3.6 miles (5.8 km) southwest of East Kilbride.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clarkston, Netherlee and Williamwood (ward)</span>

Clarkston, Netherlee and Williamwood is one of the five wards used to elect members of the East Renfrewshire Council. It elects three Councillors. The area covers the town of Clarkston, as well as the villages of Busby and Netherlee, all within East Renfrewshire.

Busby, Clarkston and Eaglesham was one of six multi-member wards used to elect members of the East Renfrewshire Council between 2007 and 2017. It elected three Councillors.

References

  1. Education background report eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk
  2. "McConnell hails schools projects". BBC News. 11 December 2006. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  3. "Report first for five-star school". BBC News. 24 November 2009. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  4. "New Year Honours: Work of heroes in communities is recognised". The Scotsman. Edinburgh. 30 December 2010. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  5. "Williamwood graduation video goes viral". www.glasgowworld.com. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  6. Williamwood High School Uptown Funk, archived from the original on 18 December 2021, retrieved 21 August 2021
  7. "New head for Williamwood High". East Renfrewshire Council. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  8. Ferguson, Laura (21 August 2021). "School in U-turn over decision to close toilets during class time after backlash". GlasgowLive. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  9. "Williamwood High School Clarkson Inspection" (PDF). HM Inspectorate for Education. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
  10. "Queen's Park youngster Aidan Connolly's big test is to be like his dad". Daily Record. 19 January 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  11. "Richard Lochhead: Personal Information". Scottish Parliament website. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
  12. Smith, Duncan (3 June 2015). "Euan Murray leaves Glasgow Warriors to join Pau". The Scotsman. Edinburgh. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
  13. "Michael Oakley Interview". Electricityclub.co.uk. 30 November 2017.
  14. "Scots schoolgirl is on the Eve of stardom as she lands dream TV role". 18 January 2015.