Moffat Academy Secondary News 2025/26, Term 4

For all photo albums, see https://www.beattockandmoffatacademycluster.org.uk/All-Galleries/

English Project - symbolism 

Last term in English, Miss McNaughton's S3 class were learning about symbolism and its relevance in literature and film. After studying what symbolism is and why it's so powerful, the class were tasked with identifying symbols from literature. Some chose symbols from the text they were currently studying - 'The Lighthouse by Agnes Owen' - while others chose symbols from previous class texts or books they have enjoyed during personal reading. They then moulded their symbols into clay magnets to take home, as well as creating posters to outline the relevance of their chosen icons. Well done to the class!

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Article 13 (freedom of expression) - Every child must be free to express their thoughts and opinions and to access all kinds of information, as long as it is within the law.

Article 29 (goals of education) - Education must develop every child’s personality, talents and abilities to the full. It must encourage the child’s respect for human rights, as well as respect for their parents, their own and other cultures, and the environment.

 

A Special Visitor for Our Childcare Class!

Our Early Years Childcare class had a lovely surprise on Friday when Mrs Metcalf visited with her beautiful baby daughter, Chloe.

The pupils had the opportunity to ask lots of questions and gained valuable first-hand experience from having a real baby in the classroom. It was a fantastic learning opportunity that everyone thoroughly enjoyed!

Baby Chloe was an absolute star and slept peacefully through the entire visit!

A huge thank you to Mrs Metcalf for taking the time to visit and share this special experience with our young people.

Moffat Mag

Secondary Sports Day 2026

What an absolutely incredible day we had out on the playing fields for Sports Day. The energy, the determination and the sheer volume of cheering from the spectators showed exactly what makes our school community so special. Every single one of you who ran, jumped, threw or cheered gave your absolute best for your houses today. Sports day isn’t just about crossing the finish line first, it is about pushing your limits, supporting your friends and celebrating together.

Beyond the competition, the event was a celebration of camaraderie and school pride, with staff, parents and students supporting their peers. Staff ensured that everything ran smoothly, creating an atmosphere of inclusivity and encouragement.

With another successful sports day in the books, the school community looks forward to next year's event, aiming for even greater achievements and more unforgettable moments as well as sustained sunshine.

New records for 2026 (starting from 2011, in the new school) were as follows:

S2 Boys 400m: Jack Daly, 62.22

S2 Boys High Jump: Orson McCulloch, 1.55m

S3 Girls High Jump: Eva O’Neil, 1.32m

S3 Girls Long Jump: Ellen Lauder, 3.82m

S3 Boys 400m: Cormac Thomson, 63.47

S3 Boys Javelin: Liam Ptak, 25.14m

Senior Boys High Jump: Alfie Thomson 1.80m

Art and Photography Exhibition 

Moffat Academy proudly hosted its End-of-Year Showcase on Thursday 16th April, bringing together a collection of work from across Art and Design, Photography, Creative Industries, and Technical subjects.

The evening was a fantastic success, with a busy and vibrant atmosphere as visitors explored a wide variety of projects on display. Pupils from all year groups contributed, from S1 through to S3, alongside impressive coursework from National 5, Higher, and Advanced Higher students.

The showcase highlighted the incredible creativity, skill, and dedication of Moffat Academy’s young people. From striking visual art pieces to innovative design and technical work, the standard of work on display was truly outstanding.

Staff were thrilled to welcome so many parents, caregivers, and members of the community who came along to support and celebrate the achievements of our young people. Their enthusiasm and encouragement made the evening even more special.

Moffat Academy is extremely proud of the talent within its school community, and this showcase was a wonderful opportunity to recognise and celebrate the hard work and creativity of all involved.

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Article 29 (goals of education) Education must develop every child’s personality, talents and abilities to the full.

Barony Fun Day

Three pupils from Moffat Academy attended a special fun day at the Barony College in Dumfries on Tuesday, organised by Annandale and Eskdale Rotary Clubs.

The young people enjoyed a range of activities, including fairground attractions, sporting activities, music, entertainment and refreshments. It was a valuable opportunity to have fun, make new friends and grow in confidence.

The school would like to thank the Rotary for providing such a wonderful event.

BGE Awards

Our BGE Awards Ceremony 2025/26 took place 4^th June and celebrated the achievements and accomplishments of young people in S1-S3. Special awards were given out for various categories and certificates given out to all pupils highlighting their successes from the last year. We enjoyed fantastic musical interludes from Aila Crossan, Faith Padmore, Thomas Brown and Grayson Ladd-Smith and a huge thank you to Head Boy William Gilby for presenting the event with such flair and confidence.

Congratulations to all of our young people and well done to all staff involved for organising a great event to recognise and applaud the hard work and dedication of our S1-S3 cohort.

Corehead Dig

Moffat Academy S1 young people made the most of the sunshine this week with a rewarding morning at Corehead. During their visit, they planted an impressive 181 trees, contributing positively to the local environment. The experience also included an exciting archaeological dig at an Iron Age site, where learners uncovered a range of fascinating artefacts, including a knife blade believed to be around 2,000 years old. It was a hands-on day of learning, combining sustainability with a glimpse into the past.

Do the right Thing Workshops

‘DO THE RIGHT THING’ visited Moffat Academy recently. It is a partnership programme delivered to the S3 cohort at every secondary school in Dumfries and Galloway. The programme consists of 7 inputs which are rounded together with a drama production exploring the topics delivered throughout the day. The main aim of the programme is to provide information, advice and signposting in relation to a number of topics that could affect young people in different ways throughout their lifetime. Below is a list of the inputs delivered to the young people throughout the day and the agency delivering the input:-

• Domestic Abuse – Women’s Aid
• Smoking/Vaping – NHS Quit it Matters
• Mental Health – School Nursing Team
• Sexual Health – NHS Sexual Health Team
• Sexual Consent – Rape Crisis
• Drugs/Alcohol – Police Scotland
• Reducing Violence amongst Youth People – Police Scotland
• The Toon on Tour Drama Production – Youth Work/Youth Volunteers

A huge thank you to all the speakers who joined us at Moffat Academy and shared their invaluable advice and insights. We’re also incredibly grateful to the Youth Workers for their creativity, dedication, and fantastic performances in The Toon.

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Article 24 (health and health services) Every child has the right to the best possible health.

Glasgow Engineering for Frieda and Bella

Bella and Frida have been lucky enough to secure a place at Glasgow University's 3 day outreach event 'Glasgow Engineering Experience'. They will take part in a series of creative, hands-on workshops and demonstrations at the end of May. The event is designed to inspire and involve girls and students from under-represented groups in typically male dominated STEM subjects. Each day will offer the students an engaging introduction to engineering, combing practical, collaborative activities with the opportunity to learn directly from university students and academic staff.

Secondary Health Week

Health Week is a school-based initiative aimed at educating secondary school students about various aspects of health, such as physical health, mental health, nutrition, and exercise. This involves workshops, talks, and activities to encourage students to prioritise their health and well-being. We have enjoyed Petanque, hockey, football, walks and much more including a trip to Dynamic Earth and Alton Towers.

Thank you to all of our staff for running fantastic activities and to Mr Colquhoun for arranging an amazing week for our S1 and S2 young people.

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Article 31 (leisure, play and culture) Every child has the right to relax, play and take part in a wide range of cultural and artistic activities.

Seniors Last Day and Pizza Day

New Secondary Library Leaders

Prom

Our Seniors all looked amazing dressed up for their 2026 Prom!

Thank you to Moffat House for giving us your grounds to congregate in, Moffat Town Hall Redevelopment Trust for the use of the hall and all your help, Tantrum Events, Booths4You, Mr Calum Yuill for piping, Moffat Academy Parent Connect's assistance on the night and paying for the Prom sign, Hugo's for the best food and finally well done to all those in the Senior Prom committee, what a great evening you arranged for everyone!

Raclette Party

Senior French students enjoyed the annual raclette party with Miss Denholm before going off on study leave.

 

Alfie T High jump Success

Alfie does it again!

You may remember we posted a video of Alfie Thomson in S6 achieving a new school High Jump record of 1.80m a little while ago, which we were all amazed at.

Alfie, full of confidence, attended the National Competition at the weekend. Whilst there, he achieved yet another Personal Best and jumped an unbelievable 1.81m. Being a National competition, this placed him in 4th place, just missing out on a medal.

However, not content with what was already another incredible achievement, Alfie attended the regional competition on Tuesday 16th June in Dumfries. With a clear goal in mind of winning the event, he competed in the senior High Jump competition. He made his goal a reality by winning the event but in scarcely believable style. The previous regional record was 1.79m. Alfie easily beat this and then continued to have success at heights up until 1.85m! Alfie now officially has the highest competition jump in schools regional athletics history! Literally a historic achievement, we could not be more proud of Alfie and we already cannot wait to see how he competes this time next year with another year of training under his belt!

As an, admittedly ridiculous aside, Alfie also decided to enter the senior 400m running event and achieved a silver medal in this. What an athlete. Well done, Alfie!

Senior Awards Ceremony

On Wednesday 4th June we held our annual Senior Awards Ceremony. It was a great evening led by Depute Head Teacher Pete Colquhoun with musical interludes from Ryan and Kathryn Wilson. Our Speaker (former pupil Calum Hutchison, now a dentist jointly running his own practice) shared lots of useful tips and advice for the future with our seniors. Thank you all who came along to hand out awards; Esme Moores-Poole, Jeff Brown (Jeff Brown Achievement Award), Mr Alan Carmichael (Rotary Award), Mr Jeff Furner (PROBUS Award) and Mr Liam O'Neil (MDCC Award). Thank you also to the office staff and Miss Gibbon for all their contributions to the evening.

Writing Competition

Congratulations to Moffat Academy's winners of the national Young Writers' Competition: Cora Smith (S1), Megan Purdie (S1), Max Walton (S2) and Aniya Thomson (S6). Students participated in the Stranger Sagas - Into the Multiverse writing competition, submitting their short stories to Young Writers. Out of all who submitted entries, they were successfully selected to be published in the upcoming Young Writer's publication. This will be published on the 20th April this year - we're so proud of our writers and can't wait to see their stories in print!

YPI National Event

We are incredibly proud of one of our S1 YPI groups who were invited to perform at the YPI National Event in Perth on 11th June.

Taking to the stage in front of an audience of 1,000 people is an amazing achievement, and they represented our school with confidence, passion and professionalism.

Well done to all involved – what a fantastic experience and a moment to remember!

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Article 29 (goals of education) Education must develop every child’s personality, talents and abilities to the full.

Zoolab

S3 Biology Students had an exciting visit from ZooLab on 18th June. They had the opportunity to handle and learn about lots of small creatures. Look away if you don't like spiders - James Gardinor S4 got some amazing close up shots

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Article 28 (right to education) Every child has the right to an education.

Global Burger Challenge

All of Mrs Kirk's S3s took part in The Global Burger Challenge, a collaboration between Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) and Food and Drink Federation (FDF) Scotland. The challenge encourages young people aged 11 to 15 across Scotland to explore the journey of food from farm to fork. Students developed a burger inspired by world cuisines while considering nutrition, sustainability, cost, and marketing.

We are delighted that Ellen Lauder has won the competition with her Ancient Rome inspired 'Pork and Pip Stacked Burger'. Ellen has won a goody bag which she will be presented with on Friday 26th June at the Highland Show.

Public Speaking

The Moffat Academy Junior Public Speaking Competition was a hotly contested event, with competitors delivering speeches on a variety of thought-provoking topics, ranging from “Footballers are paid too much” to “Animals should have as many rights as humans.” After careful deliberation, the judges, Mrs Woods and Kathryn Wilson (Deputy Head Prefect), selected Elsie Dickinson (S2) as the 2026 winner.

The Moffat Academy Senior Public Speaking Competition focused largely on the motion, “It is rubbish being Scottish.” Delivering a well-structured and compelling speech that highlighted the many virtues of being Scottish, Cassie McDade (S6) was named the winner by Mr Colquhoun.

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Article 12 (respect for the views of the child) Every child has the right to express their views, feelings and wishes in all matters affecting them, and to have their views considered and taken seriously.

Sports Awards

After Secondary Sports Day was unfortunately postponed twice due to the weather, some of our fantastic sports award winners missed out on having their special moment on stage during our recent awards ceremonies.

Today, we were delighted to put that right by holding a special assembly to celebrate their achievements and recognise their hard work, dedication and sporting success.

A huge thank you to Mr Scott and Mr Meola for leading the celebration — we loved hearing about all the incredible records broken this year! A particular highlight was seeing the demonstrations showing just how far Liam Ptak’s amazing javelin throw travelled (longer than the length of the whole assembly hall!) and the incredible height achieved by Alfie Thomson in his recent high jump success making his jump officially the highest competition jump in schools regional athletics history!

There is so much sporting talent here at Moffat Academy, and we couldn’t be prouder of every one of our young people. Well done to all our award winners — what an inspiring year of sport!

Wider Achievement

Rhuairidh Watson

A huge congratulations to Ruairidh Watson S1 who had a fabulous achievement over the weekend. On Friday, he played in his first golf competition at Moffat Golf Club against adults and other juniors and he won! Well done Ruairidh!

Harry Weatherstone

Congratulations to Harry Weatherstone who has achieved ‘Corporal’ in the Lockerbie Detachment of the Minden Cadets, and after qualifying to represent his battalion in the national athletics team, won gold in relay, silver in 200m, bronze in discus and bronze in 400m. Well done Harry!

Ocean Kerr and Eloise Graham

Congratulations to Moffat Academy pupil Ocean Kerr and former pupil Eloise Graham and the rest of the U15 Girls Dumfries Saints team who won the West Youth Cup final against Cambuslang at the weekend. The final score being 41-10.

Photos courtesy of Melanie McEwen.

Well done girls!

Ryan and Kathryn Wilson

Ryan and Kathryn Wilson achieved great success in the Robert Burns World Federation National Secondary Schools Festival 2026. Ryan was awarded 1st in S5/6 piping and Kathryn 2nd S5/6 reciting. Well done to both!