Portree High School
Portree High School (Gaelic: Àrd-sgoil Phort Rìgh) is a state co-educational comprehensive school in Portree, Isle of Skye in Scotland. As of 2010[update], the school enrols 520 pupils and employs 55 teachers.[1] The school's catchment area draws from 15 primary schools across Skye and neighbouring Raasay.[2] The school also has a hostel with boarding provisions for a small number of pupils who live in more remote areas of the island. The school is represented by their mascot, the Big Ginge.
History
A school has existed at Portree since the 17th century. However it closed in 1825 due to the difficulty in finding a new qualified schoolmaster. Construction on the Portree High School buildings began in 1872. In 1905 it became a Higher Grade school. Margaret Carnegie Hostel for girls being opened in 1924, followed in 1933 by the Elgin Hostel for boys. Elgin Hostel is now a Category B listed building.[3]
Until late 2008, the school consisted of three buildings - the main building, the Elgin Hostel and the Technical Block, along with about a dozen demountable classrooms. In 2008, this arrangement was replaced by a new building, constructed by Morrison Construction as part of a regional PPP scheme to build eleven schools in the Highlands.[4] The demountable classrooms were then removed, and the main building and Technical Block demolished.
Curriculum
The school's curriculum includes provision for Gaelic medium education. In 2006, a Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education inspection resulted in a report that praised the "positive" relationship between pupils and staff,[5] while criticising "limited" IT and "very poor" physical education provisions, and highlighting "significant risks to pupils' health and safety",[6] thanks to poor traffic management outside the school, and a general lack of security. The building of the new school which opened in 2008 and the appointment of a new headteacher, Catherine MacDonald. [citation needed]
Notable alumni
- Sir Russell Johnston (1932–2008), Liberal Democrat politician, Leader of the Scottish Liberal Party 1974–88
- Hector MacKenzie, Baron MacKenzie of Culkein (born 1940), nurse and trades unionist
- Sorley Maclean, Scottish Gaelic poet and Nobel Prize nominee
- Roderick John MacLeod, Lord Minginish[7] (born c. 1953), known as Roddy John, Chairman of the Scottish Land Court since 2014
See also
References
- ^ Irene MacAskill. "Portree High School, Isle of Skye, Home Page". Portreehigh.highland.sch.uk. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ "Portree High School". highland.gov.uk. Retrieved 6 August 2016.
- ^ History of PHS
- ^ "Schools PPP". Highland.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ "Inspection and review". Hmie.gov.uk. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ HMIe report on Portree High School accessed 27 October 2008
- ^ "Biography: Roddy John MacLeod" (PDF). Stòrlann. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
