Firrhill High School
| Firrhill High School | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | |
9 Oxgangs Road North Edinburgh , EH14 1DP Scotland | |
| Information | |
| Type | State Secondary |
| Motto | Air carraig |
| Established | 1960 |
Local authority | City of Edinburgh Council |
| 5532639 Tables | |
Head teacher | Graham Hamilton |
| Staff | 121 approx |
| Enrolment | 1331 approx[1] |
| Grades | S1 to S6 |
| Website | http://firrhillhigh.org/ |
Firrhill High School is a secondary school located in the south-west of Edinburgh, Scotland. The school was established in 1960, and was officially opened by the city's lord provost. The school has around 1123 pupils and a teaching staff roll of around 121.[1] The school serves areas such as: Oxgangs, Colinton Mains, Colinton Village, Bonaly, Fairmilehead, Buckstone, Craiglockhart and Longstone.[2]
In 2001, the school underwent drastic refurbishing work, with several run-down buildings dating from the 1960s being either refurbished or demolished with new buildings built in their place. Work was completed in mid-2005,[3] and the school was refurbished by a private finance initiative.
Headteacher
The current headteacher is Graham Hamilton.[4]
Notable alumni and teachers
- Robbie Foy, formerly of Liverpool F.C. and Scunthorpe United FC, is a former pupil of the school. Foy, Sives and Vita represented Scotland Schoolboys in 2000 and 2001[5] respectively whilst at the school[6] and all three played in the Victory Shield.
- The Scottish actress and comedian Elaine C. Smith was a drama teacher at the school in the early-1980s.[7]
- The pianist and composer Stuart Mitchell who discovered the musical symbols in Rosslyn Chapel and has been celebrated in the Classic FM Hall of Fame for 15 years was a former pupil at Firrhill High School.[8]
- Margot Wells, the elite athletics coach, and the wife of 100-metre gold medallist Allan Wells, taught physical education at Firrhill in the late 1970s.
- Dougie Fife, a pupil at Firrhill in the 2000s is a rugby union player with over 120 appearances for Edinburgh Rugby and represented Scotland in under 20s, 7s and national team. Dougie currently plays in the US Major League Rugby competition.
- Jennifer Dodds, a pupil from 2003-2009 is a Team GB curler who won a gold metal in the Women's Team Curling at the Beijing Winter Olympic Games in 2022.
- Keanna Macinnes, a pupil in the 2010s, is a Team GB swimmer who competed at the Paris Olympics Games in 2024.
- Sarah Tait, a pupil in the 2010s, is a Scottish runner who holds the Scottish record for the 3000m steeplechase.
Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education
On 13 June 2006, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education reported on the school.[9] The inspectors identified as key strengths "The coherent and progressive programme of enterprise activities from S1-S6" and "The high standards of attainment at S5/S6". The report also commended the strong direction given by the Head Teacher Karen Prophet. The Report also commended the condition of the school saying that the school was well-designed and had good specialist teaching areas and had good social areas for pupils.
HM Inspectorate of Education issued a follow-up report on 22 April 2008.[10] The report identified "good" or "very good" progress regarding all the items identified for action in the 2006 inspection report, and found no need to conduct further follow-up inspections.
References
- 1 2 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2 November 2013. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ↑ Catchment Area Map
- ↑ Written Answer, Scottish Parliament
- ↑ "Senior Leadership Team". Firrhill High School. Retrieved 23 February 2025.
- ↑ "Football - Article - TES Connect". Archived from the original on 10 June 2011. Retrieved 14 January 2009.
- ↑ "Capital starlets to take off on a trip of a lifetime". The Scotsman. Edinburgh. 9 February 2002.
- ↑ "Elaine C Smith Comedy Instead Of Teaching". Retrieved 30 March 2011.
- ↑ "Composer cracks Rosslyn's musical code".
- ↑ Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education report on Firrhill High School, 13 June 2006 Archived 4 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education report on Firrhill High School, 22 April 2008 Archived 4 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine