St Columba's School (Kilmacolm)
Encyclopedia
St Columba's School is an independent
day school
in the village of Kilmacolm
in the Inverclyde
council area
and the historic county
of Renfrewshire
in the west central Lowlands
of Scotland
. St Columba's was founded in 1897 as a school of girls and is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
group of schools.
St. Columba's is a non-denominational school, open to all religions but has strong Christian roots.
Today the school provides both primary and secondary education
between its Junior and Senior Schools for around 730 pupils between the ages of five and eighteen years. St Columba's generally draws its pupils from its own county of Renfrewshire or the neighbouring county of Ayrshire.
The school was named The Sunday Times
' "School of the Year" in 2004/05 after attaining the best examination results of any school in Scotland. The present Rector
is Mr David Girdwood.
at St Columba's was formerly located at Shieldhall on Bridge of Weir Road. Boarders
were once accepted and accommodated in Shallott, the current junior school building. The junior school was then located at Shieldhall on the Bridge of Weir Road. During the Second World War, Shieldhall was utilised as dormatories for evacuee
s from other schools, particularly those also owned by the Girls' Schools Company.
St Columba's became co-educational in 1982.
's village centre. The junior school and new sports facilities are located on Birkmyre Park.
The main buildings of the senior school are to be radically renovated in the near future, pending planning permission. The first stage of these renovations involves the demolition of two adjacent houses in Gryffe Road and the construction of a long two storey high building consisting of new classrooms, administrative offices and staff facilities. The school has already purchased two adjacent buildings to be used to this end. The second stage of these renovations involves the demolition of the school's ageing science block to make way for a two storey high circular auditorium to be joined to the new building constructed during stage one of the renovations .
There is also an astroturf playing field nearby to the senior school
and hockey
. In the summer months, athletics and cricket
are also played. The school also has a very active debating society, which over the last few years has done exceptionally in a number of competitions across Scotland.
The school's academic results in 2005 were considered the best in Scotland on the basis of Higher
passes. Other measures for example those including Standard Grade
performance also saw the school performing exceptionally.
Private school
Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...
day school
Day school
A day school—as opposed to a boarding school—is an institution where children are given educational instruction during the day and after which children/teens return to their homes...
in the village of Kilmacolm
Kilmacolm
Kilmacolm is a village and civil parish in the Inverclyde council area and the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies on the northern slope of the Gryffe Valley south-east of Greenock and around west of the city of Glasgow...
in the Inverclyde
Inverclyde
Inverclyde is one of 32 council areas used for local government in Scotland. Together with the Renfrewshire and East Renfrewshire council areas, Inverclyde forms part of the historic county of Renfrewshire - which current exists as a registration county and lieutenancy area - located in the west...
council area
Council Area
A Council Area is one of the areas defined in Schedule 1 of the Local Government etc. Act 1994 and is under the control of one of the local authorities in Scotland created by that Act.-Legislation :1889...
and the historic county
Counties of Scotland
The counties of Scotland were the principal local government divisions of Scotland until 1975. Scotland's current lieutenancy areas and registration counties are largely based on them. They are often referred to as historic counties....
of Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire (historic)
Renfrewshire or the County of Renfrew is a registration county, the Lieutenancy area of the Lord Lieutenant of Renfrewshire, and one of the counties of Scotland used for local government until 1975. Renfrewshire is located in the West Central Lowlands of Scotland, south of the River Clyde,...
in the west central Lowlands
Central Lowlands
The Central Lowlands or Midland Valley is a geologically defined area of relatively low-lying land in southern Scotland. It consists of a rift valley between the Highland Boundary Fault to the north and the Southern Uplands Fault to the south...
of Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. St Columba's was founded in 1897 as a school of girls and is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference is an association of the headmasters or headmistressess of 243 leading day and boarding independent schools in the United Kingdom, Crown Dependencies and the Republic of Ireland...
group of schools.
St. Columba's is a non-denominational school, open to all religions but has strong Christian roots.
Today the school provides both primary and secondary education
Secondary education
Secondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually college or university...
between its Junior and Senior Schools for around 730 pupils between the ages of five and eighteen years. St Columba's generally draws its pupils from its own county of Renfrewshire or the neighbouring county of Ayrshire.
The school was named The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
' "School of the Year" in 2004/05 after attaining the best examination results of any school in Scotland. The present Rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
is Mr David Girdwood.
History
The preparatory schoolPreparatory school (UK)
In English language usage in the former British Empire, the present-day Commonwealth, a preparatory school is an independent school preparing children up to the age of eleven or thirteen for entry into fee-paying, secondary independent schools, some of which are known as public schools...
at St Columba's was formerly located at Shieldhall on Bridge of Weir Road. Boarders
Boarding school
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers and/or administrators. The word 'boarding' is used in the sense of "bed and board," i.e., lodging and meals...
were once accepted and accommodated in Shallott, the current junior school building. The junior school was then located at Shieldhall on the Bridge of Weir Road. During the Second World War, Shieldhall was utilised as dormatories for evacuee
Emergency evacuation
Emergency evacuation is the immediate and rapid movement of people away from the threat or actual occurrence of a hazard. Examples range from the small scale evacuation of a building due to a bomb threat or fire to the large scale evacuation of a district because of a flood, bombardment or...
s from other schools, particularly those also owned by the Girls' Schools Company.
St Columba's became co-educational in 1982.
Sites
The senior school is located on Duchal Road to the north of KilmacolmKilmacolm
Kilmacolm is a village and civil parish in the Inverclyde council area and the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies on the northern slope of the Gryffe Valley south-east of Greenock and around west of the city of Glasgow...
's village centre. The junior school and new sports facilities are located on Birkmyre Park.
The main buildings of the senior school are to be radically renovated in the near future, pending planning permission. The first stage of these renovations involves the demolition of two adjacent houses in Gryffe Road and the construction of a long two storey high building consisting of new classrooms, administrative offices and staff facilities. The school has already purchased two adjacent buildings to be used to this end. The second stage of these renovations involves the demolition of the school's ageing science block to make way for a two storey high circular auditorium to be joined to the new building constructed during stage one of the renovations .
There is also an astroturf playing field nearby to the senior school
Sports and academic achievements
St Columba's fields a number of teams to complete competitively against other schools in the area, most notably rugby unionRugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
and hockey
Hockey
Hockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...
. In the summer months, athletics and cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
are also played. The school also has a very active debating society, which over the last few years has done exceptionally in a number of competitions across Scotland.
The school's academic results in 2005 were considered the best in Scotland on the basis of Higher
Higher (Scottish)
In Scotland the Higher is one of the national school-leaving certificate exams and university entrance qualifications of the Scottish Qualifications Certificate offered by the Scottish Qualifications Authority. It superseded the old Higher Grade on the Scottish Certificate of Education...
passes. Other measures for example those including Standard Grade
Standard Grade
Standard Grades are Scotland's educational qualifications for students aged around 14 to 16 years, which are due to be fully replaced in 2014 when Scottish Qualifications Authority's Higher Still system becomes the main qualifications as part of the major shake up of Scotland's education system as...
performance also saw the school performing exceptionally.