This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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New school sports facility for Hawick
24/10/2005
A trip down memory lane was on the cards for Education Minister Peter Peacock today when he visited his two former schools in Hawick and opened a new school sports facility in the town.
His days at Drumlanrig St Cuthbert's Primary School and Hawick High hold fond memories for the Minister and today he took the opportunity to meet with staff and pupils of each school and discuss how times have changed since his own schooldays.
His first visit was to Drumlanrig St Cuthbert's Primary School where he met staff and pupils before being given a tour. He then met a number of new primary teachers from the Hawick area. These teachers form part of the largest ever intake of teachers to Scotland's schools as a result of the Executive's drive to cut class sizes.
The next stop was Hawick High School, the Minister's former secondary school.
Hawick High is one of Scotland's recently announced Schools of Ambition. Here Mr Peacock spent time with pupils and teachers in the e-zone library. There was then an opportunity to meet probationary secondary teachers before he formally opened the schools new all weather pitch.
Following his visit, the Minister said:
"Like most people I look back on my schooldays with great fondness, they were some of the best of times.
"Friends you make in school, the insights you gain into the world and what makes it work and the skills you learn stay with you for the rest of your life. These schools, and the staff here at that time, left a lasting impression on me!
"It's great to come back and not only see how things have changed, but also how they have moved on and are planning for the future. The teachers here today will change the lives of all the young people they encounter, widening their horizons and deepening their understanding of the world in which we live.
"The way we educate our children and young people is always developing and changing. The High School is one of the 20 schools just entered into the Schools of Ambition programme. The programme is designed to allow schools to lift their ambition for all their pupils and provide them with new opportunities and challenges. We want these schools to be among the most enterprising and imaginative in the country and help lead us all to new standards of excellence. That's all about encouraging enterprise and a 'can-do' attitude within the school and in the wider community.
Hawick schools have provided many fine citizens over generations, people who have gone on to support their families and community well and to make their mark in sport, business and public service. Tomorrows challenges for our youngsters are greater than ever and we need to equip them to make their mark by providing them with the best possible education.
"The probationary teachers I've met today are part of the future of Scottish education. In the Borders, 41 probationary teachers have started their careers this year, at a time when the latest vacancy statistics show the council has just one primary and five secondary posts which have been vacant for more than three months.
"I was particularly pleased to be invited to open the new all weather pitch at Hawick High. Sport was a big part of my schooldays and it is great to see this tremendous new facility. I wish we had had such good all weather facitlites, facilities which can be used all year round by the school and the wider community. I want to see sport play a greater role in the future in schools and I have authorised the recruitment of many, many more PE teachers to let this happen. With those extra teachers joining the existing staff and with new facilities like this available the future for sport in schools is good."
Schools of Ambition is an initiative designed to raise the ambitions of schools and instil a 'can do' culture within the school and wider community as well as belief and ambition in pupils. Schools which can demonstrate that they have the capacity to undergo transformational change can be nominated by local authorities for inclusion in the programme.
Hawick High School is one of 20 schools accepted into the first phase of the programme. The school is now working up a detailed, costed transformational plan. The Scottish Executive is providing assistance and support tailored to the schools need. The first 20 schools to be accepted onto the programme were announced in June. Schools on the plan will receive around £100,000 per year, depending on the school roll and the scope of the plans they have submitted.
Scottish Borders Council received almost £1.4m through the NOPES opportunities programme. The Hawick all weather pitch is just one of the projects to benefit.