Banchory Academy

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Banchory Academy is a secondary school serving Banchory, Scotland and surroundings. It accommodates roughly 950 pupils, however attendance has grown rapidly in recent years, putting severe strain on the limited space available. Banchory Academy was originally built for approximately 700 pupils, and as there is no room to expand, there is talk of building a new secondary school, as has recently occurred with Banchory Primary School.


Contents

[edit] Academics

Banchory Academy ranks amongst the top state schools in Scotland, in spite of its overcrowding issues, performing consistently well in SQA examinations. A large number of pupils remain at school for fifth and sixth year to take Higher and Advanced Higher exams.

[edit] Athletics

The Academy has use of the nearby Tillybrake playing field for PE and sporting events, allowing a range of sporting activities to be undertaken.

Banchory Academy were the first winners of the Scottish Schools Swimming Cup and continue to excel at watersports of all kinds, thanks to their olympic standard swimming pool.

[edit] Banchory in the News

Banchory Academy also received some (albeit limited) worldwide fame when it appeared on sale on Ebay in 2005, as part of the leaving year's last day of school.

School management approach to such days has changed severely in recent years, with a disproportionately vehement response to harmless events perpetrated by the 6th year leavers of 2008 resulting in the entire year group being banned from the school. An early-morning prank in which the Coffee Bar was partially turfed over with grass - though eliciting approval and amusement from the majority of teachers - was frowned on by the senior management team, who decided against allowing the 6th years further entry to the building. The 6th years' outrage at such a draconian response led to protests and hastily-organised talks with the school rector and depute rector, and culminated in the police being called, with one pupil being held as a 'hostage' in an effort to force the others to disperse. School pupils contacted the local and national press (including the News of the World, Press and Journal and Piper newspapers) and spoke with the Scottish Education Authority over the legitimacy of senior management's decision.[citation needed]

Banchory Academy's recent press has been largely unfavourable, with reportage in 'News of the World' of an affair between a member of senior management and a fellow teacher, labelled 'Bonkry Academy - Lessons in Lust.' Pupil use of the newspaper to report unsatisfactory occurences has led to increased publicity of other events, including those of the 2008 leaver's day. The low stature of the newspaper, combined with its reputation for poor quality tabloid reporting, ensures that any such stories are gratefully received.[citation needed]

[edit] The Coffee Bar

Banchory Academy's architecture, though largely uninspiring, has earned local (and, increasingly, international) fame due to the presence of 'The Coffee Bar,' a social area for sixth years to gather and relax. Until recently, this area was brightly decorated, with a large and well-recognised wall painting of Che Guevara, and a shop selling sandwiches, drinks, sweets etc. However, due to staff illness and managerial incompetence, the status of the coffee bar has declined throughout 2007/8, with the walls repainted white (apparently without reason) and the shop closed. Inexplicably, the two vending machines which used to serve sixth year pupils have also been removed.

The Coffee Bar contains a table football (foosball) table, the presence of which has led to a widely-recognised obsession for twenty-pence coins amongst current and ex pupils. A pool table, which has been kept locked for an unknown period of time, has recently been converted into a table-tennis table.

The Coffee Bar was the notable location for the prank underpinning the 2008 leaver's day fiasco (see above).

[edit] Notable alumni


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