MUSSELBURGH GRAMMAR SCHOOL

THE GRAMMARIAN

Friday 26th June 2026

Our trip to Normandy returned early this morning, thankfully before the thunder and lightning storm, and a wonderful time was had by all.

We know how valuable trips are for young people (and staff!) for lots of different reasons, and can only run if teachers give up their time so my thanks to Ms Dudley, Mrs Dias, Mrs Watson, Mrs McIntosh, Mr Mainds, Mrs Scott, Ms Fraser and Mr Dewar.

And… the summer holidays are now here so few words of thanks from me.

Together everyone achieves more

We have achieved a great deal this year, commemorating our 400th anniversary, resetting our vision and values of honesty, respect and perseverance, and continuing to improve the Grammar experience for our young people.

My heartfelt appreciation to all my MGS colleagues who continue to go above and beyond every day, whether in the classroom, taking trips, or running events. I am very fortunate to work with such a committed team of people and wish all my colleagues a well deserved and restful summer break.

Thanks to all parents and carers for your support in various ways over the past year and I look forward to continuing this partnership next year.

And of course, to the stars of the show- the Grammar pupils. You continue to be a joy and we look forward to more of this from August.

Whatever your plans for the holidays, wishing you all a wonderful time.

Jodie

PARENT COUNCIL MEETINGS

The dates for next session’s Parent Council are now set.

Links to the online briefings will be shared next session.

Thursday 27 August briefing 7-8pm
Tuesday 29 September AGM 6.30-8.30pm
Tuesday 27 October briefing 7-8pm
Thursday 14 January briefing 7-8pm
Tuesday 9 Feb briefing 7-8pm
Thursday 1 April briefing 7-8pm
Wednesday 9 June 6.30-8.30 in school

KEY DATES

Monday 10 & Tuesday 11 August: Inservice days for staff

Wednesday 12 August: all pupils return to school

PHONE FREE LEARNING

From August 2026 our policy to support phone free learning and wellbeing at MGS is changing. This follows feedback from staff and parents and pupils in June.

From August, all students are expected to put their phone in the box upon entry to the classroom. If they do not and it is then visible during the lesson, even if just on one occasion, it will be removed and stored in the school office until the next social break whether that is break or lunch or end of the day. Pupils will be permitted to have their phone at morning break and lunch time.

This approach will be shared with students in assemblies on Wednesday 12 August and a full letter to parents will follow.

Thank you for supporting our phone free learning policy.

CAREER AND EMPLOYABILITY SUMMER DROP IN SESSIONS

Anne Hoffman (Employability & Partnership Officer) and Elsa Olaru (Careers Adviser) will be in Musselburgh Grammar School from 10am–3pm for drop-in appointments on the following dates:

Tuesday 30 June

Tuesday 7 July

Tuesday 14 July

Pupils are welcome to come along for a 1:1 appointment to discuss career planning and pathway exploration, college and university applications/UCAS, Foundation/Modern and Graduate Apprenticeships, digital tools, and jobs. Employability support will also be available for CV and cover letter writing and job interview preparation.

ARE YOU LOOKING FOR WORK EXPERIENCE, EMPLOYMENT OR A MODERN APPRENTICESHIP?

The job vacancy links below highlight a range of opportunities. Please follow the links for further information and application details.

If you require assistance to complete the application or would like to chat it over, please see Ms Hoffman B16.

Job vacancies - East Lothian Works | East Lothian Council

https://edinburghfuse.com/

https://rscfortkinnaird.co.uk/

https://www.jobs.service.gov.uk/

https://myjobscotland.gov.uk/

https://careers.nhslothian.scot/

https://www.edinburghguarantee.org/support-job-seekers/find-a-job

MUSSELBURGH LOOP

Looking for activities in Musselburgh over the summer holidays? Get yourself in the Loop!

Email musselburghloop@gmail.com to find out more about everything that’s going on in our community all year round.

SPORTS DAY 2026

Huge thanks to Team PE for another brilliant Sports Day down at Pinkie. We all enjoyed the tug o wars between Houses, sack races, volleyball sprint races, football and the inaugural 400 relay race to commemorate our 400th anniversary.

The sun shone, Moray House enjoyed their Luca’s ice creams as House point winners and Team Music provided the gig opportunities for our musical talent- all in all, a perfect Thursday.

Thanks also to Lothian Hire centre in Musselburgh who lent us the two generators to ensure smooth running of the whole event..

WATER SAFETY IN HOT WEATHER

I’m sure we are all looking forward to the summer holidays and hoping for sunshine.

It is very tempting in warm weather to head for the beach and other outdoor water spaces to cool down and so I thought it would be helpful to share with you water safety risks that we all might be unaware of, and guidance on what to do in an emergency to discuss with your child/ren.

MUSSELBURGH

FESTIVAL WEEK

NOTES FROM THE OFFICE

Reminder that all absences should be reported before 8am by texting 07860 049075. We have noticed that there are a few parents leaving pupil absence messages on out staff absence line. This line is not always manned after 8am therefore pupil absences will not be pick up in time. Please help us cut down on staff time and costs by notifying us before we have to contact you.

Please also remember to let us know in advance of any healthcare appointments for your young person, to save time at the point they need to leave school. If we haven’t been notified in advance, we will need to call you to verify, which may delay their departure from school.

We would like your help to ensure that all young people arriving in school after 08:30am sign in with the QR Code or office staff to avoid any unnecessary messages home.

THE HONEST THREAD

Our Honest Thread, “free to a good home” initiative is a new way to share gently used school uniforms within our school community. Anyone who is in need of these items are welcome to request them free of charge.

If you would like to receive any uniform items, please complete the short Google Form below. This allows us to organise requests and prepare your order for collection from the School Office.

https://forms.gle/8NGk3eGnr5M9bMd56

The form will be added to on a regular basis and we hope that we will be able to include items other than schoolwear; this scheme is entirely donation based, so families are always invited to donate clean, good-quality items they no longer need. All donations are much appreciated and can be dropped off at the School Office.

UNIFORM REMINDER

I appreciate that parents may not want to buy all new items school uniform at this point in the school year, but do ask for your support in ensuring that our dress code is followed, even in warm weather:

Black shorts or skirts of an appropriate length for school, or trousers;
White shirt- long or short sleeved with a tie;
Black shoes or trainers

Please note that items such as coloured t-shirts, band t shirts, crop/ bra tops, tracksuits etc are not part of the dress code, and pupils may be asked to return home to change or wear clothing items from our store.

And please do let us know if we can help with uniform from our store.

Thank you as always for your support with our uniform.

WEEKLY ATTENDANCE

As a reminder, school absenteeism remains a significant challenge across Scotland. In 2023/24, 31.4% of pupils were persistently absent, missing 10% or more of the school year. While this has since improved, with a 2.9 percentage point decrease to 28.5%, absenteeism continues to impact learning, wellbeing, and attainment.

LOST PROPERTY

A black Northface body warmer and a black Hollister hoodie have been handed in, if you think this may belong to your child, please ask them to go and see Ms Harvey in the Medical room.

SCHOOL TOILETS

Our pupil toilets are checked on a regular basis to ensure everyone’s comfort and safety. These checks may be done by male or female staff members, and signage is in toilets to make pupils aware of this.

MEDICAL

Asthma - All pupils who have Asthma please make sure you have an inhaler with you at all times.

Our Healthy Respect drop in service runs in school every Wednesday lunchtime. This NHS run wellbeing service is in a discreet area of school, is free and confidential, and offers support and advice to young people on a range of matters including sexual health information for pupils over the age of 13.

MGS WEBSITE AND SCHOOL HANDBOOK FOR PARENTS

Our website has lots of useful information for parents, and includes our School Handbook and School Policies. Have a look! We welcome your feedback.

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