June 2026

HEAD TEACHER'S UPDATE 26 JUNE 2026
Published: 26 June 2026

Staffing

Chloe McNeill – a huge thank you to Chloe for her amazing work covering Mrs Gourlay’s maternity leave. Mrs Gourlay has now returned to Knox Academy and I am delighted to say that Ms McNeill has a permanent teaching post to go to in Edinburgh. All the very best to her for the future and for all she has done for us here at Knox – including all her work on Deaf Awareness and running extra-curricular classes too.

Teacher of Learning Support (1FTE)
Interviews took place on Monday 22 June and our preferred candidate, based on pre-employment checks, is Laura Waters. Start date has still to be confirmed.

ASN Auxiliary  (27.5 hrs - permanent) – Meadowpark – 2 staff were appointed to these positions, based on pre-employment checks. They are Scott Thomson and Steven Harrold.

Qualifications Scotland

Qualifications Scotland has published the Your Results Guide for candidates and includes information about results, appeals and their certificate. 

Revised School Uniform

Our revised school uniform can be found here. As this was a whole school consultation we would ask that all pupils adhere to this as it was a community descision and offers not only the traditional unform but a blended model too so pupils can mix/match for comfort too. Please note that hooded tops are not part of the revised uniform and should not be worn in school. Thank you for your support with this.

Rights Respecting Schools (RRSA)   

Our right of the week is Article 35

Governments must make sure that children are not kidnapped or sold or taken to other countries or places to be exploited (taken advantage of).

Pupil Successes

Pupil Leadership Team Session 2026-27

Following applications, manifestos, interviews and voting the last week of term, Iris Dunbar and Amelia Macnab as Head Pupils, and Ben Millar, Tiegan Cousins and Olivia Kelly as Depute Head Pupils. Thank you to all of our young people who applied for these positions and I hope we can harness their leadership skills too throughout the coming session.

Prefects and House Captains will be appointed early on in the new term.

Achievement Ties/Endeavour Certificates

The following pupils were presented with achievement ties for demonstrating one or more of our school values (Ambition. Respect, Community): Emily Westgarth – Full Colours (represented region and Scotland for squash); Hamish Westgarth – Full Colours – competing in swimming at regional level and at SNAGs; Beth Grigor – Half colours – Volunteering with Our Community Kitchen; Tilly Artiguebieille –- Half Colours – completion of FA Scientific Technologies; Alexander McBain – huge community engagement over the years; Izzy Corrin –Half Colours – coaching junior players for badminton at her club; Robbie Macdonald - Endeavour certificate –weekly training and playing with HRFC; Rory Knox– Endeavour – Edinburgh leisure climbing and passed U18 assessment;  Rory Mackay –Endeavour – Charity walk to raise money for Chest, heart and stroke

Congratulations to all!

General Information

Lammermuir Larder

Thanks to all pupils, staff. Parents/carers who donated items for our collection for the Lammermuir Larder. As a result of this, they are even better stocked for the summer.

End of Term

It has been an exceptionally busy end of term with various trips and events, our school show and Evening of Celebration. We will also gather together this morning to sing ‘We’re All Going on a Summer Holiday’ (school tradition) and watch Mr Dempster’s review of the year (montage) which is always brilliant!

On behalf of all at Knox Academy, we wish everyone a great summer break and we will look forward to seeing everyone in August, bright eyed and bushy tailed. For those receiving exam results, we hope you get what you wished for (and worked for).

Dates for your diary:     

26 June – End of term – school finishes at 12.15

12 August – Session 2026-27 begins – 8.28 am start

Our school calendar is updated regularly and should be used to access all information throughout the year and allows you to plan ahead too.

Sue Cook

HEAD TEACHER'S UPDATE 19 JUNE 2026
Published: 19 June 2026

Staffing

Teacher of Learning Support (1FTE)
Interviews will take place on Monday 22 June..

ASN Auxiliary  (27.5 hrs) – Meadowpark – 4 posts –interviews take place next week

FA Scientific Coordinator post – Congratulations to David Rice (Chemistry) who was appointed to this post with ELC. He will do this 2 days per week and stay at Knox Academy for the other three days.

Thank you and best wishes for the future for staff who leave us next Friday

I would like to take the opportunity to wish Aileen McSherry a long, happy and health retirement and for all her hardwork and commitment over the last 4 years at Knox Academy. Aileen not only taught PE but contributed massively to our extra-curricular programmes too.

All the very best to our two probationer teachers to who have been with us this year – Kate Allen in Modern Studies and Jordan Brunton in History. We wish them luck in securing posts in the near future and thank them for their passion and commitment across the year and their contributions to the wider school.

P7 Transition

It was a great few days welcoming P7s pupils to Knox Academy as part of their transition. They spent Friday getting to know their register teachers and also in team building activities. On Monday and Tuesday they followed their class timetables (the ones they will follow in S1 in August). They all seemed to have really enjoyed their time here and we are very much looking forward to welcoming them to S1 in August. We wish them all well for their last week of primary school. 

Qualification Scotland – Appeals

We hope that all of our young people get the results they hoped for when they receive their exam results on Tuesday 4 August. If they don’t, they may be able to appeal their grade if there is relevant evidence to do so. The information below, provided by Qualifications Scotland, provides advice around this process.

Appeals

If you have concerns about a grade (or grades) on your results certificate, you can use the free appeals service. You can appeal directly to us or ask your school, college or training provider to do this for you. (Ms Machen, our Qualifications Scotland Coordinator will be able to support you with this).

The service will open on results day, Tuesday 4 August at 9 am, and the learner direct submission deadlines are:

Tuesday 11 August at 11.59 pm for priority appeals

Tuesday 25 August at 11.59 pm for all other appeals

If you appeal through your school, college or training provider, the deadlines are:

Thursday 20 August at 5 pm for priority appeals

Friday 28 August at 5 pm for all other appeals

You can ask for a priority appeal but only if you have a conditional place at university or college, or in training or employment that depends on your grade.

How does the Appeals Service work?

You should only appeal if you believe a mistake has been made in the external marking of your work.

If you do appeal your grade, a senior marker will carry out a marking review of your Qualifications Scotland-marked assessments. This means that they’ll review your answers to all questions and assignments marked by us. They check that the marks awarded by the original marker are in line with the marking standards agreed at the markers’ briefing and the marking instructions.

In addition, they also check that:

All parts of your Qualifications Scotland assessments have been marked;

The marks given for each answer have been added correctly; and

The correct result has been entered on our system.

Please note that after being reviewed, your result could stay the same, go up or go down.

Rights Respecting Schools (RRSA)   

Our right of the week is Article 34 - the Government should protect children from sexual exploitation (being taken advantage of) and sexual abuse, including by people forcing children to have sex for money or making sexual pictures or films of them.  

Events/Trips

Evening of Celebration

It was a pleasure to come together last night, as a school community, to celebrate the achievements of our young people. This included both our S1/2 pupils and those in S3–S6. The evening highlighted a wide range of successes, with many awards recognising academic excellence as well as contributions to our local and wider community.

Congratulations to all of our young people who received awards, and thank you to the parents, carers, staff and partners who joined us to support them. We are also very grateful to the Haddington Rotary who kindly donated a number of awards on the evening.

We were delighted to welcome Callum Booth as our Guest Speaker.  Callum was a Knox Academy pupil and was a professional footballer, who played for a variety of clubs including St Johnstone, Dundee United and Hibernian. It was inspiring to hear him reflect on his time at Knox and share insights into his journey and career and the highs and lows within it. Callum’s reflected on the need to develop resilience to be able to deal with setbacks and get back on track. It was a very inspiring speech, from the heart, and which the audience really appreciated. .

I would also like to extend a sincere thank you to all staff for their continued dedication and unwavering support of our young people throughout the year, helping them to achieve their potential and reach their goals. Likewise, we recognise the vital role of parents and carers, whose encouragement and support underpin so many of our young people’s successes. A huge thank you also goes to our musicians on the night – William Gold, Emily Westgarth, Euan Evatt, Iris Pathirina and Anwen and Elyn McInnes. Many thanks to all who did the hard work behind the scenes to bring this ceremony together - Lorraine Arnot, Colin Dempster, the Music and Art Departments and our Janitors.

Finally, as I said last night, on behalf of everyone at Knox Academy, I would like to offer our very best wishes to those who are leaving us this year. As you move on to new opportunities, we hope you go on to lead meaningful and fulfilling lives, and use your experiences to make a positive difference to others. Please do keep in touch and let us know how you are getting on.

Army Leadership Course (S6)

It was great to have the Army in taking a course on Leadership for some of our own S6, as well as S6 from other East Lothian secondary schools.

Royal Highland Show - Edinburgh

A large group of our senior pupils are heading to the Royal Highland Show on 18 June. This is a great trip offering education about the countryside and food.

Sky Academy in Livingston

Twenty-seven of our pupils are off to Sky Academy, on 25 June, to make and record their Film Projects – how exciting!

Knox Academy celebrates Pride Week

This week we have been celebrating LGBTQI+ Pride week here at Knox Academy. Pride is a vital time for those who are part of the LGBT+ Community as it is a time to celebrate their identities and share their experiences. There have been numerous events taking place at lunchtimes to celebrate Pride week. We are also holding a Pride themed bake sale today, Friday 19 June, to raise funds for resources. All pupils (and staff) have been invited to wear a splash of rainbow today to show their allyship. We look forward to seeing everyone's colourful support! (by Lucy Fletcher).

Higher Spanish Trip

S5/6 Higher pupils will go to a Spanish restaurant to enjoy tapas.

Pupil Successes

Green Stories Award

Congratulations to Emelia Dawson (S2) who has just won the Green Stories writing competition. Her poem was entitled Our Planet. She wins a gift voucher for herself and the school!

Brain Tumour Charity

A huge well done to Boyd Fearnside (S4) who completed a charity skydive for the Brain Tumour Charity on Sunday 14th June. He has raised over £1000 to date. I've

His JustGiving page is still open and accepting donations. You can donate here to this great cause and for Boyd being so brave as to do a sky dive to raise funds.

 

Squash

All the very best to Jamie Pearman who is competing in the Portugese Junior Open Squash Championships over the coming days.

Music

The Music Department would like to thank members of Knox Choir and the following young people who showed our school values of Ambition, Respect and Community by giving up their lunchtimes on Monday and Tuesday to perform to the visiting P7s:

Gregor Mitchell

Emily Westgarth, Poppy Davidson-Kelly, Robyn Carter

Neil Presley & William Nathan

Faye Lenk-Anderson

Holly Thomson

General Information

U13 and U14 Boys' rugby pre-season

Training starting on Tuesday 7 July. It will run every Tuesday & Thursday throughout the summer from 5.30 - 7pm at Neilson Park. New and existing players all welcome and free of charge.

Dates for your diary:     

26 June – End of term – school finishes at 12.15

12 August – Session 2026-27 begins – 8.28 am start

Our school calendar is updated regularly and should be used to access all information throughout the year and allows you to plan ahead too.

Sue Cook

 

 

HEAD TEACHER'S UPDATE 12 JUNE 2026
Published: 11 June 2026

Staffing

Teacher of Music (Part-Time - permanent)
Following interviews yesterday, Sandie Munro has been appointed to this position.

Teacher of Learning Support (1FTE)
This post closes on 14 June and interviews will take place on Monday 22 June..

ASN Auxiliary  (27.5 hrs) – Meadowpark – 4 posts –closes on Sunday. Interviews will take place prior to the end of term.

School Improvement Plan 2026-27

Thank you to all parents/carers, pupils and staff for helping us devise our school improvement priorities for next session. We will also be discussing these at assemblies in August and we look forward to working with our school community to achieve these

School Handbook

This has now been updated for Session 2026-27 and can be accessed here.

Reading Schools Core Award

We are thrilled to announce that Knox is now officially a Reading School as we have now earned our Core Award. The Core award is given to schools in Scotland who show a real love for books and reading. Pupils and Staff have been working hard this year to achieve this award. Some of the fantastic work we undertook to achieve the award included creating book trailers, celebrating World Book Day, taking part in the Carnegies Book award, and attending the Edinburgh Book Festival. We are thrilled to be able to end the year with the award and, after a well-deserved break, are looking forward to starting work on our Silver award very soon. 

Rights Respecting Schools (RRSA)   

Our right of the week is Article 33 - Governments must protect children from taking, making or selling harmful drugs.  

Events/Trips

We Will Rock You

A heartfelt thank you to all parents, carers, pupils, staff and members of our wider school community who came along to support our show. Your presence made the evening truly special.

The talent on display—from our performers on stage to our exceptional musicians—was nothing short of amazing. It was an unforgettable evening, and one I am sure will stay with us all for years to come.

Productions like this are only possible through teamwork. My sincere thanks go to everyone involved behind the scenes—our lighting and sound teams, our dedicated stage crew, our school office and janitors—whose hard work ensured everything ran seamlessly.

I would also like to recognise and thank all staff who have supported the many months of rehearsals, offering their time, energy and commitment throughout the year.

A very special thank you must go to the driving force behind the entire production, Ashleigh Breslin. Your passion, creativity and dedication have brought this show to life in the most incredible way. We are so fortunate to have you.

Thank you once again to everyone involved. We are already looking forward with excitement to the next production.

Stars Shine on S2 Adventure at Lennox Love

A lucky group of 30 S2 pupils enjoyed an unforgettable overnight camping experience as part of the Outdoor Education programme at the stunning Lennox Love estate.

The trip, aptly named A Night Under the Stars, saw pupils swap the classroom for the great outdoors as they took part in a range of exciting activities. The group set off on a scenic hike through the estate, taking in the beautiful countryside and developing their teamwork and resilience along the way.

As evening fell, pupils gathered around a campfire, where they enjoyed sharing stories, laughter, and time together in a relaxed setting. The clear night sky provided the perfect backdrop, with many pupils taking the opportunity to look up and appreciate the stars.

Staff involved praised the group for their enthusiasm, positive attitude, and willingness to embrace new challenges. The trip was described as a great success, giving pupils the chance to build confidence, strengthen friendships, and create lasting memories.

For those who attended, A Night Under the Stars was an experience they are unlikely to forget any time soon. A huge thank you to staff for leading the trip.

County Sports

Huge congratulations to all our young people (57 of them) who represented Knox Academy at the County Sports, at Meadowmill, on Tuesday of this week. Some sterling performances and we came 2nd overall – the race is on for a first place next year! Thanks to all the PE staff who have prepared them for the event and took them on the day.

Advanced Higher English

Some of our Advanced Higher English pupils have the pleasure of a visit from author Brian Conaghan, who will be leading a writing workshop for them.  

S4/5/6 Healthfest at QMU

15 of our S4/5/6 pupils will attend the Healthfest at QMU on Wednesday 17 June. This is an exploratory Health Science Festival where pupils you are invited to discover more about the Careers and the courses within the School of Health Science. They will attend a mixture of workshops related to careers and get a tour of all the facilities. Some of the current QMU students will be on hand to answer any questions they may have and to give tours of the specialised facilities on the day.

Pupils’ Successes

Football

Congratulations to Ava Smith (S6) who has captained Hearts under 17s team this season and led them to to a league win and Next Gen Cup double. What a great achievement!

 

Willie Bauld Memorial League Cup

Congratulations to Cameron Shearer, who plays for Edinburgh South CIC, who was part of the football team who won the Willie Bauld Scottish Cup under 14s a week past Tuesday. They beat  Musselburgh Windsor in the final.

Inspire Volunteer Awards

Congratulations to Hannah Fairbairn (new S6), seen below, receiving her award at the Inspire Volunteer award ceremony for the ‘Young Volunteer’ category. She was awarded this for her dedication and support at the youth clubs in Haddington. 

Music News

Knox Music Department, and all at Knox Academy, would like to congratulate a trio of pianists who have all achieved outstanding results in their recent exams:

S3 Gregor Mitchell Grade 6 Piano Distinction

S4 Emily Westgarth Grade 7 Piano Distinction

S6 Iris Pathirana Grade 8 Distinction

General Information

For Parents and Carers

A Free Beauty Course for those interested in a career in Beauty. East Lothian Works, in partnership with Beauty by Francesca, is offering a free 10-week course leading to an NPA Make Up and Eye Treatments SCQF Level 5 qualification. Course details: • 17 Aug – 16 Nov (no October break week) • Mondays, 9:15am – 2:30pm • Tranent • Free (uniform & travel support included). You must be unemployed, living in East Lothian, and meet certain parent/low-income criteria. To apply or find out more: elworks@eastlothian.gov.uk 01620 827262

Summer Camps

The Autism FA Team United is a programme of The Autism FA, a charitable organisation registered in Scotland. We promote an environment where young people with Autism can play football and be part of a team, whilst adapting to the intense social and communicative demands they are likely to experience when involved in football. Join us in the Summer holidays at our sports camps for neurodivergent children and young people! (Haddington Monday 20 July – Thursday 23 – all abilities welcome). We have developed a person-centred player journey which provides opportunities for everyone. Whether starting out in the game, looking to be part of a team, wishing to play fun or progress to a more competitive environment. The pathway provides opportunities for everyone. We use the power of football as a learning platform to break down social barriers that young people with Neurodivergent conditions face when participating in football and being part in team environments. Contact: ben@teamunited.org

Dates for your diary:                             

18 June – Evening of Celebration (Awards Evening) – 6-7pm (S1/2) and S3-S6 – 7.30-8.45pm

26 June – End of term – school finishes at 12.15

12 August – Session 2026-27 begins – 8.28 am start

Our school calendar is updated regularly and should be used to access all information throughout the year and allows you to plan ahead too.

Sue Cook

HEAD TEACHER'S UPDATE 6 JUNE 2026
Published: 05 June 2026

Staffing  

Teacher of Modern Languages (1FTE)
Congratulations to Marie Elder, who was appointed permanently to this post on Monday 25 May.

Teacher of Music (Part-Time)
Interviews will take place for this in the next few weeks.

Teacher of PE (maternity cover)

Paul Gleeson will join us in August to cover Lana Borwick’s maternity leave until she returns in January 2027.

Teacher of Learning Support (1FTE)
This post closes on 14 June and interviews will take place on Monday 22 June..

ASN Auxiliary  (27.5 hrs) – Meadowpark – 4 posts – interviews taking place on 22 June 2026.

PT Equity (permanent) – interviews took place on 2 June and Laura Bates was appointed to this positon. She will start in August.

Pre-registered teachers (previously known as NQTs – newly qualified teachers)

Next session – 2026/27 -  we will be welcoming 5 PRTs.

Susan Andrews – Chemistry; Jodie Gare – Drama; Hugo Pengelley- History; Yvonne Huddart – Maths; Stephen Hogg – Physics and Science.

Our School Show – final tickets remaining!

The final performance of 'We Will Rock You' takes place tonight. For those of you who have already seen it you will know it was a night to remember with stunning performances from all. A few tickets are still available on the door or via IPay.

School Improvement Plan

Thank you to all parents/carers, pupils and staff for helping us devise our school improvement priorities for next session. We will also be discussing these at assemblies in August and we look forward to working with our school community to achieve these.

School Uniform

All parents/carers (including P7s – sent to primary HTs to send out) should have received a letter from me, on Wednesday, about our new approach to School Uniform as of August. This details what items pupils can wear to school as part of that uniform and also details where badged uniform can be purchased. If anyone in the new S1 wishes to wear a school tie, this can be purchased from our school office.

As part of our Eco-school approaches we look to recycle nearly new or lightly used uniform. We are running particularly short of blazers, so if any S6 who had just left would like to donate theirs we would be very grateful. Please pass it into the office.

School Communication

As a school, we receive a high volume of daily enquiries. Many of these are handled by our office team and Pupil Support Leaders (who are also teaching during the school day) which can sometimes affect response times.

We aim to respond to all emails and phone calls as promptly as possible. However, please be aware that we have up to 48 hours to acknowledge these and up to 5 working days for a full response. If it is an emergency these will be prioritised.

We value your communication with us and greatly appreciate your patience, understanding, and continued support. Thank you.

Library Book Amnesty 

The library is hosting a book amnesty for the month of June in order to recover as many overdue books as possible. Please can all pupils, parents, and carers check at home for any library books that may be lying around the house. Library books tend to be very easy to spot having a plastic covering on them as well as the Knox Academy stamp and labels inside the first page. If a book is on a pupils account but is believed to be lost, then please speak to Miss Robertson before the end of term to sort this out. Any overdue books left on pupils' accounts at the end of term may restrict future borrowing.

Registration teachers will be receiving a list of overdue books and will pass these to pupils.

There will be a small prize for any registration class that manages to return all of their overdue books by June 24th! 

Rights Respecting Schools (RRSA)   

Our right of the week is Article 32:  Protection from harmful work

A child hammers a nail as an adult watches. There's a hazard symbol beside this, and the whole image has a red line struck through it.

Children have the right to be protected from doing work that is dangerous or bad for their education, health or development. If children work they have the right to be safe and paid fairly.  

Deaf Awareness

This week's sign is homework - something everyone will be getting familiar with in their new classes.  Did you know that lighting is really important? You need to make sure that you’re facing the light source when signing with someone!

Events/Trips

S1 Careers Inspiration Day – Friday 29 May

Through meaningful employer engagement, young people are beginning to understand who they are, what skills they have, and where these skills could take them. This is about early career education. Together with Capital Theatres - Festival Theatre, King's Theatre & Studio Theatre, Tangram Furnishers EDF Leonardo Skills Development Scotland Metlen Energy & Metals Queen Margaret University British Army Aviation Preservation Society, Scotland. We are raising aspirations and awareness, building foundations for informed future subject choice decisions and career pathway choices.

A huge thank you to our employer partners for bringing careers to life and helping our young people make those vital curriculum-to-career connections.

Skills and insights developed by S1, 12-13 year olds pupils included:

Communication & interpersonal skills – engaging with professionals, asking questions, and working collaboratively

Problem solving & critical thinking – exploring real-world scenarios from healthcare, energy, creative industries, and business environments

Teamwork & resilience – participating in interactive activities that required cooperation and adaptability

Career awareness & self-reflection – beginning to recognise personal strengths, interests, and possible pathways

Understanding the world of work – gaining insight into diverse sectors and the skills employers value

Confidence & aspiration building – seeing relatable role models and broadening perceptions of future possibilities

A few words from our pupils, “ I liked the experience and learning new things” I appreciated, “The time that people took to come see/talk to us” (thank you to our DYW Coordinator, Elaine Gorman for writing this). A huge thank you to Elaine Gorman and David Russell for organising this morning for our S1 pupils.

Pupils’ Successes

East Lothian Courier Community Champion Awards

A massive congratulations to Connor Docherty (just left our S6) who won the Heart of Gold Category at Wednesday evening’s awards. A very worthy winner after donating his stem cells for lifesaving treatment. This was as a result of a visit to the school by the Anthony Nolan Trust a year past December.

(Photo credit: Mark Gibson for Newsquest Media/East Lothian Courier).

Duke of Edinburgh

A massive congratulations to Jamie Towler, Murray Calder. Bella Gold and Molly Macfarlane (just left in S6) on completing their Duke of Edinburgh Gold award.  They are looking forward to receiving their invitation to the celebration ceremony which will be held in the gardens of the Palace of Holyroodhouse this summer.  

Please do contact admin@knox.elcschool.org.uk to tell us about your young people’s successes so we can share these with our school community.

General Information

Summer opportunities with Haddington Football Club

Haddington Athletic CFC will be running free football sessions on Thursdays through the summer holidays, starting on Thursday 2nd July and finishing on Thursday 6th August (6 sessions). 

The first session will be between 10am-12pm for Girls aged between 5-12 years old. 

The second session will be between 1-3pm for teenagers, both boys and girls. 

This is part of our Summer of Football, to help celebrate Scotland’s World Cup Journey and to ensure that football is fun, inclusive and accessible to all. 

The approach will have a ‘come and play’ feel, whilst removing pressure and building enjoyment and confidence. 

We are looking to involve young people that aren’t already involved at the football club but it is also open to those currently playing at Haddington Athletic CFC.

The sessions will be led by Andrew Jeffrey from Centred Coaching (also coaches at Haddington Athletic). Andrew will be assisted by Tobie Craig who plays for our U20 team. 

Update on Prom

It was a fantastic evening, last Thursday, celebrating with our S6 leavers at their Prom at Coulston House. The sunny and warm evening made for some stunning photos in the grounds to show off their beautiful dresses and suits/kilts. All the young people looked amazing (and so did the staff too). We wish them all the very best for the future and ask them to keep in touch to let us know how they are getting on.

Dates for your diary:                             

9 June – P7 Information Evening

18 June – Evening of Celebration (Awards Evening)

26 June – End of term – school finishes at 12.15

12 August – Session 2026-27 begins – 8.28 am start

Our school calendar is updated regularly and should be used to access all information throughout the year and allows you to plan ahead too.