Paisley Grammar School
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| Paisley Grammar School | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
 | |
Glasgow Road , , PA1 3RP Scotland | |
| Information | |
| Type | Grammar School |
| Established | 1577 |
| Local authority | Renfrewshire Council |
| Head Teacher | Janice Levens |
| Staff | 100 Full-time staff |
| Gender | Coeducational |
| Enrollment | 945 |
| Houses | Mull, Skye, Iona and Lewis |
| Colour(s) | |
| Publication | The Grammarian |
| Website | http://www.paisleygrammar.com |
Paisley Grammar School is a secondary school in Paisley, the largest town in Renfrewshire, Scotland. The school was founded in 1576 by royal charter of King James VI and is situated on Glasgow Road. The school is recognised as one of Scotland's oldest schools with an established history.
The present school building (which was called the 'Paisley Grammar School and William B. Barbour Academy' due to a bequest by the former Member of Parliament for Paisley, William B. Barbour, and until recently was the school's proper title) was opened in 1898 by Lord Balfour of Burleigh, then Secretary of State for Scotland.
The school was fee paying until the mid-1960s and in 1986, when threatened with imminent closure by Strathclyde Regional Council, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher intervened personally to ensure the survival of the school. The law was changed so that local councils could no longer close schools which were more than 80% full without approval by the Secretary of State for Scotland.
The Head Teacher is Janice Levens, who joined the school in January 2016 as Acting Head Teacher and was formally appointed to the post on 13th May 2016.
Notable former pupils
Notable former pupils include:
- Sir William Cockburn (1891–1957), banker and cricketer[1]
- Colin Campbell – former Member of the Scottish Parliament (SNP)
- Rev James Carlile (1795–1841) – Irish Commissioner of National Education
- David Chaplin - CIO BP
- Alasdair Fraser – aquaculture pioneer and businessman
- Prof Thomas Gibson FRSE (1915-1993) eminent plastic surgeon and bioengineer[2]
- Fred Goodwin – former CEO of Royal Bank of Scotland
- Peter Howitt (1970) – actor and film writer/director
- Omer Hussain – Scottish cricket internationalist
- John Jackson (1887–1958) – astronomer
- Jacqui Lait (née Harkness) – former Member of Parliament (Conservative) and first ever female Conservative Party Whip
- Lord McEwan – former Judge in Scottish Court of Session and High Court of Justiciary.
- Ann McKechin – Member of Parliament (Labour)
- Archibald McLardie (1889–1915) – lawyer and footballer
- John Macquarrie (1919–2007) – sometime Lady Margaret Professor of Divinity, University of Oxford, and Canon Residentiary, Christ Church, Oxford
- Alexander Munro MacRobert KC (1873–1930) – former Lord Advocate and Member of Parliament (Conservative)
- Jim Mather – former Member of the Scottish Parliament (SNP)
- Andrew Neil – journalist and broadcaster
- David Nish – Chief Executive of Standard Life plc
- Brian Reid – former professional footballer and present manager of Ayr United Football Club.
- Andrew Robertson (businessman) – former President of the Montreal Board of Trade etc.
- Robert McGill - actor, The Hobbit Film Trilogy etc
- David Stow
- David Tennant – actor, (the tenth Doctor in Doctor Who)
- Frank Walker (Scottish footballer) (1897–1949), Scottish footballer
- Kenyon Wright – former Chairman of the Scottish Constitutional Convention
- Lord Wylie (1923–2005) – former Lord Advocate and former Member of Parliament (Scottish Unionist Party)
- Kenny Ireland (1945-2014) Theatre Director & Actor, notable for his role as Donald in ITV's Benidorm.
- Scott Reid actor, (Actor, known for playing Methadone Mick in "Still Game").
Old Grammarians
The Old Grammarians Club is the society formed by and for former pupils and staff of Paisley Grammar School.[3]
Mrs Faye Carruthers is the current president who was elected to office in 2015.[4]
The Old Grammarians Club also contributes to the school's annual prize giving; giving the Old Grammarians Prize to one pupil in the sixth year.
External links
- Paisley Grammar School's page on Scottish Schools Online
- [1] www.PaisleyGrammar.com
- [2]
References
- ^ "Bank director". Glasgow Herald. Glasgow, Scotland. 3 September 1957. p. 3. Retrieved 19 December 2015 – via Google News.
- ^ BIOGRAPHICAL INDEX OF FORMER FELLOWS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH 1783 – 2002 (PDF). The Royal Society of Edinburgh. July 2006. ISBN 0 902 198 84 X.
- ^ http://www.old-grammarians.co.uk/who-are-we/
- ^ http://www.old-grammarians.co.uk/committee/