Newsletter All the latest news from in and around the school... Issue 44—June 2018 www.stranraeracademy.org.uk

Head Boy & Head Girl Appointments Following an application process for the student leadership positions of Head Boy, Head Girl and their respective Depute roles, interviews were held on Tuesday 26th June to appoint our new 6th year repre- sentatives. The successful candidates have been appointed to the following positions for Session 2018/19 and are as follows:

Head Girl: Fiona Ramsay Head Boy: Max Cole Depute Head Girl: Emma O'Neill Depute Head Boy: Finn Onori

Congratulations to the pupils who have been appointed for these important roles.

Announcements p1-5 | News p6-9 | Sports p10-15 | DYW p16 | Information p17-18 | Parent Council p18 Page - 1 -

Announcements

Retirements & Staff Changes Stranraer Academy will undergo more changes to staffing after the summer with several members of staff retiring and others taking up new posts at other schools.

Our Headteacher, Mr Dawson has announced that he will be retiring at the summer after 11 years at Stranraer Academy. In a letter to staff, pupils, parents and the wider community Mr Dawson had some words to reflect on his time in the school:

“Having been eleven years in post, I think it is now time to allow someone else the opportunity to become Headteacher of this great school. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at the school and thank you all for your support over the past years.”

Other staff retiring are: Mr G. Clyne, Mr G. Jenkins, Mrs J. Proudfoot, Mr D. Carruthers, Mrs H. Manderson, Mr A. Moffat and Mrs C. Moffat. Staff leaving to continue their careers elsewhere are: Miss F. Martin, Miss M. Turner, Mr W. Russell, Mr B. Bethune, Mr I. McLatchie, Mr G. Mokwa, Mr C. Hyslop and Mr A. Lang.

Everyone at Stranraer Academy would like to thank Mr Dawson and wish our other retirees a long and happy retirement! We would also like to say good luck to those who are moving onto other schools and wish them well in their careers.

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Announcements

S4/5/6 Awards Ceremony The S4/5/6 Awards Ceremony was held on Thursday 26th April 2018 and was very well attended. Well done to all pupils who received an award!

S4 Students of the Year: Jake Rice & Heather Nicol S5 Student of the Year: Finn Onori S6 Student of the Year: Jemma Ramsay

The full list of Awards are available on our website: http://www.stranraeracademy.org.uk/s456-awards-ceremony.html

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Announcements

S1/2/3 Awards Ceremony The S1/2/3 Awards Ceremonies were held on Thursday 7th June 2018 and Wednesday 13th June with both being well attended. Well done to all pupils who received an award!

S1 Student of the Year: Craig Agnew

S2 Students of the Year: Ryan Edgar & Bronagh Gibb

S3 Student of the Year: Anna Ramsay

The full list of Awards are available on our website: http://stranraeracademy.org.uk/s123-awards-ceremony.html

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Announcements

Acting Headteacher & Acting Depute Headteacher Appointments

Following MrDawson’s retirement, interviews were held on Tuesday 26th June, to appoint Acting Senior Management posts.

Mr A. Law has been appointed as Acting Headteacher at Stranraer Academy as from August 2018.

Mr R. Lockwood has also recently been appointed Acting Depute Headteacher.

S4/5/6 Exam Results Day & Subject Changes Exam Results Day The SQA Exam results will be published on Tuesday 7th August. On that morning, Mr Dawson will be available to speak to pupils with any queries or problems regarding their results.

Subject Changes Prior to his official retirement date, Mr Dawson will be available on Wednesday 15th August to make subject changes for pupils in light of their exam results.

Out of Bounds Areas & Street Closure With the Summer and better weather, the Street will be closed to all S1-S4 pupils.

S5/6 will be the only pupils allowed in and will assist the supervision of entry and exits points with staff.

In the event of adverse weather, ALL pupils will be permitted inside during break / lunch at the discretion of Senior Management. Any such decision will be announced over the school speaker system.

Finally, please note that the front entrance foyer of the school is out of bounds to all pupils, before, during and after school. This area is for visitors only and pupils who sit or loiter in this area will be moved.

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School News

S2 Cancer Research Charity Fundraising Early in this school year a group of, then, S1 students led by Gavin Ramsay approached their register teacher, Mr Dornan and their Pupil Support Teacher, Ms McCulloch to discuss how they could raise mon- ey for Cancer Research. This initial group of 7 pupils each have a family member or close family friend who has been diagnosed with cancer. It was decided that 2 main events would be organised – a raffle and a sponsored walk. The youngsters gathered a great selection of raffle prizes through generous support from local businesses and this raised over £600.

On Tuesday the 26th of June, a larger group of 25 pupils now in S2 and mainly from Glenapp House group completed a 10km walk from Stranraer to Castle Kennedy and around Castle Kennedy gardens. Everyone had worked hard to get sponsorship for the walk and so far the total sponsorship money exceeds £1400 with more to come. Sincere thanks are due to Stair Estates for support and permission to walk through the estate and also to the adult helpers who accompanied the group on the day. It was a great day made even better by the terrific weather! Well done to all the pupils who took part in the walk and particularly to the “magnificent 7” pupils (Gavin Ramsay, Owen Toal, Charlotte Russell, Halle Arnott, Connor Erskine, Ailsa Erskine & Julian McNally), together with Mr Dornan, who continue to work tirelessly to raise more money for this very worthy cause. If anyone would like to make a donation they can do so on our Just Giv- ing page: https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/beat-cancer-sooner-s1-stranraer

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School News

Pupil Equity Funding Report Stranraer Academy have provided a brief report on the success of the Pupil Equity Funding pro- vided by the Scottish Government.

This initiative has seen £120m provided to schools across Scotland with the purpose of "Closing the Gap".

Stranraer Academy has seen a significant improvement across the school in many ways as a result of this additional funding and our Senior Management Team have decided to communicate this to you in the form of a report.

To view the report, please use the following links…

App: More > Files > PEF Report 2018

Website: http://www.stranraeracademy.org.uk/pef-report-2018.html

For more information on PEF, please visit the following link: https://beta.gov.scot/policies/schools/pupil-attainment/

Parliamentary Reception for Teenage Cancer Trust Fundraising As a result of the work done and money raised by all of S2 Health & Wellbeing classes for Teenage Cancer Trust in recent months, there was an invitation extended to the school to attend the Parliamentary Reception at Holyrood on 28th March. Rona Mackay MSP welcomed those in attendance and thanks were extended to all schools involved.

The Teenage Cancer Trust have been coming to the school for a number of years now to deliver presen- tations to S2 pupils. The presentations are valued and well received by pupils due to the interactive and informative nature. For more on the Teenage Cancer Trust and the important work they do, please visit their website: https://www.teenagecancertrust.org/

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School News

Pupils Help Local Incredible Edibles Initiative! Pupils from the Learning Centre in Stranraer Academy have been busy helping the Stranraer "Incredible Edibles" Group by planting Garlic, French Beans and Runner Beans at the Garden of Friendship in the town. The pupils are helping the local group to provide a variety of edibles such as apples, strawberries, rhu- barb, herbs, pulses and other fruit/vegetables all over Stranraer with the aim of encouraging members of the public to pick the edibles when ripe and ready for consumption. The pupils enjoyed the experience and are looking forward to helping the group again in the near future!

If you would like to find out more about Incredible Edibles, please visit the following website: http://www.incredibleediblenetwork.org.uk/

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School News

Young Enterprise Narrowly Miss Out at National Finals "Home" the Stranraer Young Enterprise Company narrowlyu missed out on some awards at this years Na- tional Finals but enjoyed the experience. They qualified for the National Finals after being crowned win- ners in the Young Enterprise Dumfries & Galloway Company Programme 2018 Awards earlier this year. "Home" are a company that makes Scottish-themed laser-cut wooden products, also came joint second for presentation. Well done all, and to teacher Fiona Jean and Business Adviser Lee Michael Medd. You can find out more about the company via their official Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/YesCompanyHome Well done everyone!

Writing Competition Winners! The Literacy Group would like to announce the results from the annual Stranraer Academy Writing Competition! The results are as follows:

Overall winner: Sean Bingham S3 - Creative story "Solitary". Sean received a £25 voucher and the Writer of the Year shield.

Runners Up (all receive a £10 voucher): Gabriella Teears, Chloe Waugh and Stuart McCallum

Well done and thank you to everyone who entered!

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Sports News

Netball - Stranraer Girls Scoop Regional Awards! Well done to our Young Netballers who represented the school at the Regional Netball League Awards Night. Anna Ramsay, Ellie Arnott and Molly McLean were recipients of awards for the Under 15 age group and were up against pupils from schools all over .

Under 15 Coaches Player of the Year - Ellie Arnott “Ray of Sunshine” Award - Anna Ramsay “Workaholic” Award - Molly McLean

Well done girls!

School Golf Championship Results! The annual Stranraer Academy Golf Championships were held at Stranraer Golf Club on Friday 1st June. A total of 12 pupils entered the 18 hole competition and 4 pupils in the nine hole competition and in sun- ny conditions throughout, some excellent scores were recorded. Sam Mitchell as school champion for 2018 will now go forward to represent Stranraer Academy at the regional “Champion of Champions” tournament to be held in September (venue still to be confirmed). Well done to everyone involved!

John Monteith Trophy Winner Handicap section (open) Nine hole competition: (lowest scratch score) 1st: Ross Plant 1st: Ryan Johnstone 10 points 1st: Sam Mitchell 81 2nd: Findlay Hare 2nd: Halle Arnott 6 points (Better Inward Half)

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Sports News

Netball - Junior A Undefeated Regional Champions! Yesterday, the S1-3 Netball teams visited in Thornhill to take part in the annual Junior Netball Festival. The teams competed in the group stages over the morning and qualified for either the Shield, Plate or Bowl competition in the afternoon. A warm, but fantastic day. Well done everyone! The results were as follows: Shield: Plate: Bowl: 1st- Douglas Ewart High School A 1st- Douglas Ewart High School B 1st- Stranraer Academy C 2nd- Castle Douglas High School 2nd- Sanqhaur Academy 2nd- Douglas Ewart High School D 3rd- Stranraer Academy A 3rd- 3rd- B

Sportsmanship Award: Overall best player: A team- Elissa Fearn Shield Competition- Ellie Arnott B team- Imogen Raphael Plate Competition- Jenni Brooke (DEHS) C team- Kayla Agnew Bowl Comp- Kayla Agnew D team- Sarah Fisher

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Sports News

Football - Under 14 Boys League Champions! Well done to the Stranraer Academy Under 14 boys team who were crowned Champions in the Regional League. Some of the team are pictured below with the League trophy.

Swimming - Stranraer Swimmers Finish With Silver! Well done to the Stranraer Academy S3-6 Mixed Relay team that finished in 2nd place at the Good Neighbours Schools Relay Team Event in Dumfries on Thursday 7th June.

Stranraer Academy has won the event for the past 4 years and were denied their 5th consecutive win after being narrowly beaten by St Joseph’s College.

The team featured Ashton McKeand (S3), Katie McGeachie (S3), Lauren Anderson (S3) and Spencer Bullivant (S4). Well done to the team and better luck next year!

Stranraer Academy would like to thank Linda Duffy and Michael Bullivant of Stranraer Stingrays ASC for their help in organising the teams for the event.

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Sports News

Rugby - Regional 10's Tournament 2018 On 31st May, 3 Teams from Stranraer Academy competed in the Regional Rugby 10's at Stewarty Rugby Club, Castle Douglas. The teams consisted of S1 Boys, S2 Boys and S1-3 Girls. The best results saw the girls win their final game with the boys managing to get a hard fought draw. Despite some narrow defeats and not picking up any silverware, the pupils found the day enjoyable and gained much needed match experience that will see them well into next season. Photos from the day can be viewed on our website and facebook page from the following links:

Website: http://www.stranraeracademy.org.uk/regional-rugby-10s-tournament-2018.html Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StranraerAcademy/posts/1574669079269372

Well done to everyone involved!

Football - U14 Girls Cashback 7's Regional Finals

Back in May, the U14 girls football team attended the Regional Cashback 7's Finals and had a great day of football despite not progressing any further in the competition.

The girls found the experience to be very valuable and will hopefully have some better luck next year.

Well done girls!

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Sports News

Athletics Pentathlon Championship Pupils took part in the annual Athletics Pentathlon Championship on Monday 11th June 2018. With excel- lent weather, the Championships were a success featuring a fantastic atmosphere and great House ethos. Inch House were crowned overall winners of the Tannock Trophy. Individual titles are listed below. Thank you to all pupils, senior helpers and staff who helped organise the event and make it a continual success!

S2 Girls S2 Boys S3 Girls S3 Boys

Champion: Abi McKinstry Champion: Kian Govan Champion: Krissie Ramsay Champions: Kyle Tarr, Scott Runner Up: Emily Ferguson Runner Up: Arron McCann Runner Up: Bronagh Gibb Wood & Alistair Collins

S4 Girls S4 Boys S5/6 Girls S5/6 Boys

Champion: Kirstin McCulloch Champion: Ruairidh Wood Champion: Morgan Teears Champion: Harry Mitchell Runners Up: Molly McLean Runner Up: Kieran Graham Runner Up: Emma Drennan Runner Up: Dylan Fraser

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Sports News

Athletics Pentathlon Championship

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DYW Update

DYW Stranraer Academy works to develop sustainable links between our school, parents, employers & col- leges. Our Facebook page will include information regarding: business offers which we have created alongside our partner agencies, apprenticeships, DYW work experience opportunities, business presenta- tions due to take place in Stranraer Academy and assessment days. Search: @DYWStranraerAcademy

Work Experience : Morgan Sindall Construction

Stranraer Academy pupils are pictured starting off their Morgan Sindall induction this morning. They will return to the company after the summer holidays on a weekly basis. Good luck to Kyle Thompson, Ross McCracken, David Sprott, Christianna Henderson and Aiden Craig (a late addition to the programme). Once again many thanks to Morgan Sindall for helping us to allow our pupils to gain such valuable experi- ence in the workplace.

S5/6 DYW / Health & Wellbeing Days

Senior pupils have recently been taking part in the Health and Well-being/DYW days. Thanks to Barclays, DG Tap, Police Scotland, Dumfries and Galloway College, SDS, University of the West of Scotland and SAAS for coming into the school and working alongside our students.

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Show My Homework

For a while now, Stranraer Academy have been using Show My Homework - an innova- tive tool for managing, completing and moni- toring homework issued by the teachers. Show My Homework is a new web based initiative where all pupils, staff and even parents / carers can become more involved with homework issued by the school. We hope this approach will enable pupils to improve their organisational skills, time management and help them to keep on top of their workload.

Show My Homework can be accessed through an icon on the top right and footer area of the school website or by saving the following link to your favourites:

https://stranraer.showmyhomework.co.uk/

Download the Personal accounts have been created for all staff and pupils for effective manage- App Free! ment and tracking of homework tasks through a very intuitive user interface. All pupils have a gradebook and homework calendar that is automatically linked to their subjects, class and teacher.

For more information, please visit the Show My Homework page on the school website: http://www.stranraeracademy.org.uk/show-my-homework.html

Show My Homework provide a free mobile device App that is currently supported by Apple iOS and Android operating systems. Search for the App in your relevant App store to download.

Here are some sample screenshots from the pupil Show My Homework Interface. It is really intuitive and easy to use through a very user friendly layout.

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Information for Pupils, Parents & Carers Annual Data Check Forms Every pupil in the school has received Annual Data Check forms in their registration class. These forms contain very important information that the school may require in the event of an emergency or other serious matter.

Relevant details should be amended if there are any changes, such as addresses, phone numbers, emergency contacts or anything else that is important. If there are no changes, please note "NO CHANGES" on the form to indicate this.

Pupils should return the forms to their registration teacher who will then hand them to the school office staff for the changes to be made on the system. If your child/ward has lost their forms, please contact the office for a replacement.

Parent Council Meeting Dates Please note that dates for future Parent

Tuesdays Council Meeting have now been published. They are available to view on the left and also on the school website and Parent Council Facebook page.

The next meeting of the Parent Council

will be the AGM on Tuesday 11th September from 7pm to 9pm in the school library. Directions are available in school. The Parent Council would like to thank everyone for their support so far and hope you all have a great summer!

School App & Social Media The Stranraer Academy school App is completely FREE to download. It works on all Apple iOS, Android and Windows Phone devices. Please search for Stranraer Academy in your App store or visit the school website for details. Our Social Media Pages...

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/StranraerAcademy Twitter: @StranraerAcad

Stranraer Academy would like to wish everyone a Happy Summer Holiday!

Change of address or Phone Number? STRANRAER ACADEMY All newsletters are available in colour from McMasters Road our archive on the school website. They can Please remember to notify us if you Stranraer be viewed / downloaded from the DG9 8BY Information menu tab. move house or change phone number.

Please also notify us of any other Phone: 01776 706484 changes, such as for Emergency Fax: 01776 704748 Newsletters from May 2014 onwards are Contact Information. E-mail: [email protected] also available on the school App files www.stranraeracademy.org.uk section.

DO YOU HAVE A STORY OR SOME EXCITING NEWS RELATED TO THE SCHOOL? PLEASE LET US KNOW! WE’D LOVE TO PUT IT ON THE APP & SOCIAL MEDIA PAGES!

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