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Welcome to Scotsnet - discuss all aspects of life in Scotland, including relocating, schools and local areas.

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Original poster

East Lothian High school opinions

45 replies

Enidcat5 · 21/03/2023 04:31

We're Midlothian and my children are at a lovely ps but the high school isn't great. Love our house but not great area for kids unfortunately.

We're considering a move to East Lothian both to be in a nicer area than we are just now, and for better high school option. I've heard Dunbar, North Berwick both great. Musselburgh not so much. Knox I've heard issues with bullying and culture. I've heard not a lot about Preston Lodge and Ross high.

Can anyone help with opinions from first hand experience please? Which schools do you recommend and which to avoid?

OP posts:

Original poster

Enidcat5 · 26/03/2023 09:05

RomeoOscar · 25/03/2023 20:16

Musselburgh has a new HT with high ambitions for the school and extremely high standards for the staff.

They run about 70 Twitter accounts so you can get a feel of the school from there.

There was a question on a local Facebook group recently and several parents commented their children were thriving at the school.

The parents there recently won the right to single sex toilets for their children.

Also new high school opening in Wallyford. Rosehill High. It's going to have a STEAM plaza. (Science, technology, engineering, arts, maths).

Brand new school. Totally brand new with only S1-S3 pupils from August 2023

Maybe add that one to your list?

I know wallyford and Musselburgh very well as we used to live there, and we've made a conscious decision not to move back there. So Musselburgh is a definite no. But the new school sounds interesting. I've got a lot of friends who went to PL.

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RomeoOscar · 26/03/2023 09:39

The demographics of Wallyford are changing rapidly as a lot of new and expensive housing is built.

Rosehill high is going to be part of a learning campus. Lots of resources being flung that way.

When it opens the school role of Musselburgh will change quite significantly (and I think for the better).

I know lots of people who went to MGS - all of them senior in impressive careers. (Scientists, healthcare, technology, music, film and fashion are just some examples)

Its not just the school that matters. It's what happens at home. If you are interested and supportive of your child then they will do well.

Original poster

Enidcat5 · 26/03/2023 23:09

RomeoOscar · 26/03/2023 09:39

The demographics of Wallyford are changing rapidly as a lot of new and expensive housing is built.

Rosehill high is going to be part of a learning campus. Lots of resources being flung that way.

When it opens the school role of Musselburgh will change quite significantly (and I think for the better).

I know lots of people who went to MGS - all of them senior in impressive careers. (Scientists, healthcare, technology, music, film and fashion are just some examples)

Its not just the school that matters. It's what happens at home. If you are interested and supportive of your child then they will do well.

I'm not intending to live in Musselburgh - we had a bad experience living there previously.

But I'm interested in Longniddry area, which I believe would be in catchment for the new school. Thank you for the info, I'll go and have a look.

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Original poster

Enidcat5 · 26/03/2023 23:12

And yes, I believe in kids being supported at home as well as school. He's very much supported to the best of our ability. We're not experts though so I do want to make sure we've done our research and tried to find the best environment and decision for him.

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janjan23 · 26/03/2023 23:34

Catchment for longniddry is Preston lodge. I think you will hear good and bad points about any school. I really think it comes down to the kids that attend at the time. All schools will have good and bad kids. Personally I wouldnt be sending my child to school where they are going to have a good group of friends. So I wouldn't be leaving it too late to move.

Blaize230 · 27/03/2023 05:16

Have you considered St David's High School? I think it's still quite small compared with others in Midlothian. Or Beeslack used to have a good reputation when I was at school.

StatisticallyChallenged · 27/03/2023 12:15

We're in Haddington too, not experienced high schools here but I have heard similar re new head and school improving - there are a lot of new builds with lots of people moving out from central Edinburgh so I think the demographics are probably shifting too. We're not really hearing anything negative.

It's obviously not cheap, but given the house price premium for NB/Dunbar then the other thing to consider is that several of the Edinburgh private schools run school buses to East Lothian.

TeenTraumaTrials · 27/03/2023 15:58

I have experience of both Knox and Dunbar and I'd say from the DC that went to both there are issues at both, but for that particular DC Dunbar was a better experience. For my other DC there have been no issues with Knox and they are very happy there. As a parent I can see the Knox SLT are really trying to get a handle on the bullying and my younger DC has not had any experiences of that nature. But the HT is definitely an acquired taste - the Dunbar HT is much more personable.

dryshampooer · 27/03/2023 16:28

I have DC at Ross High and agree with Bob's comments. Demographic is changing due to 100s of new houses in Tranent.

cannaethink · 27/03/2023 21:18

My DS is at Dalkeith, and I’ll admit I had the same thoughts as you, but he is getting on really well and I’ve been impressed with the school so far.
He was at Kings park before and only one of his friends went private so he had a good bunch to move up with.
If you’re determined to move though, I think North Berwick would be the only one with a noticeable difference to Dalkeith.

Original poster

Enidcat5 · 27/03/2023 21:35

Wow, some brilliant updates thank you. This has all made me feel much happier. I feel like there are far more options that could work as a result of this thread, I really appreciate your messages.

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weebarra · 27/03/2023 22:18

I work in education and have 2 DSs at Dalkeith High. Like you, several of their friends went independent for high school. In truth, the only ones which I think would be different from DHS would be Dunbar and NB.

Original poster

Enidcat5 · 27/03/2023 23:36

weebarra · 27/03/2023 22:18

Did you find enough of the year went on to Dalkeith for your DS' to be happy with the transition?

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BitFedUpTheNoo · 27/03/2023 23:48

I have a DS at Knox (out of catchment) and he's happy enough. (He actively chose it for academic reasons). The alternative was Ross High and whilst his peers are also doing fine it's definitely a bit 'rougher'. If I could choose any High School in East Lothian I would go for North Berwick tho bear in mind NB is definitely more moneyed, which can present other issues depending on your lifestyle.

East Linton is lovely with Dunbar as it's catchment. Certainly a consideration and you could apply to NB as out of catchment too

Honeysuckle16 · 28/03/2023 01:41

When thinking about travelling into Edinburgh, bear in mind there is a good train service from NB to Waverley, with some trains going on to Haymarket. Dunbar is served by London - Edinburgh trains with several trains stopping at Dunbar but the overall frequency of trains is less.

weebarra · 28/03/2023 07:10

@Enidcat5 - yes for the boys, but it looks as though there will be a lot going independent from my youngest year, so it might be becoming more popular.

Hobbitlover · 03/04/2023 18:13

Lasswade/DHS are very similar tbh, St David share the campus with DHS. MG was horrendous about 7 yrs ago, no idea about now. They have moved the catchment boundary for this summers intake as well.

NeighbourhoodNewbie · 14/11/2023 21:26

@Enidcat5 what did you decide to do about moving?

Original poster

Enidcat5 · 14/11/2023 21:41

Hiya, we've not bought yet because our mortgage advisor said hold off a few more months. But I think we're going to move into DHS catchment. Several children who have gone there recently are really happy with it. We're considering options though still so that's not set in stone. Definitely not moving to the other side of east Lothian as my DS is really happy at primary school.

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Stuart1435 · 19/12/2023 18:34

My kids all went to North Berwick high school. Although the school is good, it’s not any better that the Ross High where I went as a kid.

What you will find is that if your kids naturally do well, they will get all the help they need and will likely do well. If they struggle at all and need help through school, they will be encouraged to leave early, go to college or look for a job. They will also be told not to do their exam prelims and just do the final exam.

I have 2 kids who have done very well and one kid who need some extra support do to having learning difficulties and they we he has been treated is absolutely disgusting. The more people I speak to, the more I realise that this is not an isolated occurrence.

The school will look after your kids, providing they prove to be the perfect example students they need to keep their school ranking high on the score board!

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