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The School Today
Runner Smashes 42-Year-Old School Record! Laurence Petty, then F6, crossed the finish line for his school days in June, but not before he'd also raced his way to a brand-new HSD record for the 800m! The 18-year-old recorded a time of 1m57.8s at Grangemouth at the end of May, beating the previous mark of 2m00.3s which had been set by FP Callum Henderson back in 1979. Laurence said, “My first reaction was that I was pleased with the performance, as it was my first race since the start of the pandemic. However, after cooling down and speaking to my dad after the race we both realised what the performance meant, in terms of breaking the record, so that was a very pleasant surprise! “It’s very much an honour to break such a long-standing record. It has been a goal of mine since joining the school; I knew it would be a challenge but that, with hard work, I had a chance of getting it. It’s nice to leave a mark on my time at school with this record as well. Speaking to some Former Pupils who knew the previous holder makes it even more humbling.” Laurence, who was one of the Heads of School for session 2020/21, also runs with Hawkhill Harriers and holds the club’s U15 Boys 800m record. Before the Coronavirus pandemic, he had been invited to train with the Scottish Athletics team and, through his participation for Hawkhill in the UK U20 league over summer, he hopes to gain selection to line up for his country in competitive action.
HSD Pupils Train Up to Tackle Bullying Nineteen pupils from F1 through to F6 took part in an anti-bullying training session run by The Diana Award in April.
The programme has a strong peer-to-peer focus, with trainers giving young people the skills and confidence to become AntiBullying Ambassadors to tackle bullying long after the training has finished.
Taking place online, the event saw the youngsters – who hold the roles of Anti-Bullying Ambassadors at the School – work together to acquire vital skills to allow them to confidently address different situations which can occur, both online and face-to-face.
The School has been involved in the programme since 2019, and Louise Baxter, PT Guidance (Aystree), was delighted with the way the pupils responded to the training.
The session looked at how the Ambassadors can seek to change the attitudes and behaviours behind various bullying scenarios. At the end of the day, the pupils went on to make an action plan of how to approach bullying issues that may arise in schools, as well as committing to their roles as Ambassadors. The Diana Award’s Anti-Bullying Ambassador Programme sees trainers work with students and other young people to change the attitude surrounding bullying.
She said, “I was really pleased by how confidently and positively our pupils engaged with this training. They demonstrated a mature focus and determination, and I was extremely proud of their insightful and compassionate contributions to the discussions with Jade, who was an animated and inspirational speaker”.
