Fife school becomes first in Scotland to be recognised as School of Character

Auchmuty High School in Glenrothes was awarded the School of Character honour following assessment by the Association for Character Education. The association has existed in England for a number of years and began operating in Scotland three years ago.

The award recognises the work and initiatives the school has run over the period to support the flourishing of character in its students.

Craig Finlay, principal teacher of continuous improvement and teacher of business education at the school, said that whilst qualifications remain at the heart of education, research now shows how important character education can be for future employment opportunities.

He said: “From research, interpersonal skills and values within a person are now the number one choice of employers. We identified that especially with that kind of demographic area we are in. We identified that actually, the flourishing of good character is of the utmost importance.”

The pupils at the school recently held conversations around empathy and gratitude and Mr Finlay said that the award of the kitemark is recognition for the work that the school has put in already.

He said: “The fact that we've gained this kitemark is really just a good recognition of what we've accomplished so far. There's a significant amount of criteria in order for us to have been able to get it.

“It recognises that and then we're able to then celebrate that. It gives assurance to everybody that we've met that kind of quality threshold for character education. That's from things such as how well we've embedded, kind of our values and skills and our core values.”

However, the work doesn’t end there. Pupils are continuing their work. With groups of pupils working towards their character badges.

Mr Finlay explained: “We've got our S1s and S2s currently working towards their character badges. They have to do a number of different things in order for them to get, for example, the R part of the badge which is the Respect element. They need to get X amount of what we call merits in a term.”