Hawick pupils hit YouTube in bid to find new headteacher

Pupils at Hawick High School are leading the search for their new headteacher '“ with a little help from YouTube.
Hawick High School.Hawick High School.
Hawick High School.

Kevin McClory, head at the Buccleuch Road school for two and a half years, was suspended from his post last summer as a result of his handling of staff issues.

Scottish Borders Council drafted in John Clarke, Berwickshire High’s head, to temporarily step into the breach, then in December last year Mr McClory resigned to take up a job opportunity elsewhere.

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Now the school has taken the unusual step of using YouTube in the search for a permanent replacement for him.

Scottish Borders Council convener Graham Garvie, architectural manager Ray Cherry and the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry, Richard Scott, at the opening of the new Leader Valley School at Earlston.Scottish Borders Council convener Graham Garvie, architectural manager Ray Cherry and the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry, Richard Scott, at the opening of the new Leader Valley School at Earlston.
Scottish Borders Council convener Graham Garvie, architectural manager Ray Cherry and the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry, Richard Scott, at the opening of the new Leader Valley School at Earlston.

In the video edition of Hawick High School News, two pupils advertise the £75,000-plus -a-year vacancy and call for the “very best educational leaders in the country to come and work in Hawick”.

There follows a nine-minute film promoting the best of Hawick, highlighting the town’s rich cultural and sporting history.

There is also a section in which pupils and others reveal what they love about Hawick.

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A spokesman for the council said: “The recruitment process for a new headteacher for Hawick High School is under way, and we hope to make a permanent appointment at the end of April, with a start date to be confirmed thereafter.”

Scottish Borders Council convener Graham Garvie, architectural manager Ray Cherry and the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry, Richard Scott, at the opening of the new Leader Valley School at Earlston.Scottish Borders Council convener Graham Garvie, architectural manager Ray Cherry and the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry, Richard Scott, at the opening of the new Leader Valley School at Earlston.
Scottish Borders Council convener Graham Garvie, architectural manager Ray Cherry and the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry, Richard Scott, at the opening of the new Leader Valley School at Earlston.

Applications for the post, worth £75,108 a year, close on Sunday, April 16.

Among notable former pupils of the school are Nigel Griffiths, Labour Party MP for Edinburgh South between 1987 and 2010.

Stuart Hogg, the Scotland international rugby player, is another notable alumnus.

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And only last year another ex-pupil, Angus Deaton, was awarded the Nobel Prize for Economics.

The pupils’ video can be seen at www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrHjwQvlZeM

The council is holding a recruitment event next Friday and Saturday, March 24 and 25, at the Galashiels Transport Interchange in a bid to encourage teachers to apply for the Hawick headship and several others currently vacant.

The Friday session will run from 2pm to 4pm, and the Saturday one is on from 10am to 2pm.

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Those going along will be able to seek advice from existing heads and other senior managers to find out more about what the jobs entail.

Donna Manson, the council’s service director for children and young people, said: “This is a council which is deeply committed to ensuring that all children and young people in the Scottish Borders are given the best possible opportunities in life in terms of academic achievement, vocational experience and social and emotional development.

“What we are looking for is dedicated professionals who are ambitious for the future, not only for their own career development but also for the children and young people of the Borders. This is an exciting time for education in our region, and I would encourage anyone who would like to be part of our vision to come along and talk to us about the range of opportunities that we have available.”

More information about teaching vacancies is available from [email protected] or at www.scotborders.gov.uk/jobs

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Depute headteacher jobs are currently up for grabs at St Ronan’s Primary at Innerleithen, Trinity Primary at Hawick and Walkerburn, St Boswells and Newtown primaries.

Headteachers are needed, as well at Hawick High, at Ayton and Reston primaries in Berwickshire, Burnfoot Community School in Hawick, Langlee Primary School in Galashiels, Parkside and Howdenburn primaries at Jedburgh, the new Leader Valley School at Earlston and Selkirk High.