This concise weekly HT Update is generally published every Friday afternoon. It’s a simple opportunity for you to also feedback/ask questions via the link at the bottom of each Update. Any feedback received will be responded to and published on Monday on the school website.
Feedback received from last HT Update: Click here.
Key messages from this week
Calendar: Significant events week beginning 02/03/26; Monday to Thursday is Scottish Apprenticeship Week, on Monday we’ll also give an opportunity for staff and S6 students to give blood; on Tuesday we have students involved in a Future Assets Trip; on Thursday we have students involved in a Making Space for Girls Trip & Workshop, in the evening it’s our School Dance Show, see below; on Friday we’ll issue our Senior Phase 3 Report via Parentsportal and also hold a International Women’s Day Assembly with S2.
Staffing: We have launched our ‘August start’ recruitment process and are looking to secure Teachers of Design & Technology, English, Home Economics and PE.
S6 Leadership Equity: Connor Anderson, Summer Reid, Hayden Stewart and Ella Neil from our Senior Leadership Equity Group have been working hard over the past few weeks to deliver equity workshops to all of our S3 cohort. Every young person took part in the workshops this week and their feedback has been really interesting so far. A big thank you to our fantastic students for taking on this leadership opportunity and demonstrating our school values so well.
Roof Work: Please be advised that essential roof work at the front of the school is scheduled to last 10-12 weeks.
Spring Formal: Unfortunately, due to low ticket sales this event, aimed at S3 and S4 students, has been cancelled.
ParentsPortal: Thank you to the 85% of parents and carers who have already signed up to ParentsPortal. This has quickly become the most popular way to report absences, view your young person’s reports, check attendance, and access their timetable. We’re delighted to see so many families making use of the platform to stay connected and informed. If you haven’t yet registered and would like support to do so, please contact the school admin team who will be happy to help lasswadehsoffice@midlothian.education.
Dress Down Day: Today was our February Dress Down Day. Details are available on the website, click here.
Dance Show: Reminder. Our Dance Show takes place on the evening of Thursday 5th March. It is now ‘live’ on ParentPay for parents/carers to purchase tickets. These can be bought for £4 a ticket and limited to 4 per student.
S6 Year Group Photos: Reminder. We are pleased to let you know that the S6 year group photographs are now live and available to view and order online. You can access the gallery by visiting UrPix.co.uk and entering your unique access ID: LASSGKF6HU. Once registered & logged in, you will be able to preview the images and place orders directly through the site. A range of print and product options are available. All orders are processed securely online & delivered to the school. If you experience any difficulty accessing the gallery, please contact us from our FAQ & Contact section and we will be happy to help. UrPix.co.uk
Request for Work Experience Placements: Reminder. As we begin our planning for S4 Work Experience in November I’m keen to hear from any parents/carers who through their workplace might be able to offer student placements. We have a year group of around 300 so need to secure a lot of placements. Please use the link at the bottom of this post, giving your contact details, and I’ll ask Mrs Sharp, our lead on Work Experience, to reach out to you.
Take Care
Campbell Hornell, Head Teacher
Apologies for the late post. Response to feedback submitted from HT Update week ending 13/02/26. Gap due to the holiday week. I’ve anonymised some aspects of the feedback to maintain confidentiality.
| My Question | Comment | Suggestion related to the school this week is: | HT’s Response |
| Would it be possible to publish details of the study support classes, including when they take place and which subjects and year groups they support? | I’m sorry, this is surprisingly difficult to organise as teachers and teams tend to begin sessions at different times of the year and can stop classes or sometimes change the offer at relatively short notice. This means I’d be concerned that any list would be out of date pretty quickly. We take the view that as the sessions are aimed at older students they ‘deal directly’ with teachers. However, if parents are concerned about the progress of their child and think extra support might be helpful then we ask they contact their child’s Student Support teacher. They should be able to advise from there. |
| Text messages. Over the last few weeks I’ve had messages to alert me that my son (S5) or his sister (S3) have missed registration for a class and asking me to explain. I then need to get in touch with them and then reply. Both my children have always been in school. You cannot possibly ban mobile phones if there are these errors. Study period seems to be the biggest issue or teachers doing the register to sharp at the start of class as pupils are still arriving. This is disruptive to my children’s day as well as mine. You need a better system in place. | We ask teachers to complete their registers in the first 10 minutes of a lesson. This is designed to ‘catch’ those who arrive a wee bit late.
Mrs Yule is working on the collation of the mobile phone consultation I’ll make sure this point is included. I’ll also discuss the specific detail you’ve raised with your children’s Student Support Teacher. Sometimes, often when it’s a cover class, teachers can make a mistake with recording class attendance. Apologies if that has been the case. |
| We’ve received my son’s coursing recommendations and we’d really like to know what ‘Other subject in faculty’ means? For both maths and computing science Recommendation 1 is ” – Other subject in faculty”. Does it mean that he is not recommended for a NAT4 or NAT5 in these subjects?
Thank you! |
If you look along the row in the letter you should see the ‘other subject’ that is being recommended. That is generally a subject that is not a Nat 4 or 5. It reflects our wide curricular offer in S4 and is usually a related Level 4 or 5 course, often with a different method of assessment. Often this is a Level 5 course without an exam. I’ve passed your comment to your son’s Student Support teacher and will ask them to talk to him in the first instance then give you a call. |
This concise weekly HT Update is generally published every Friday afternoon. It’s a simple opportunity for you to also feedback/ask questions via the link at the bottom of each Update. Given the holiday next week any feedback received will be responded to and published on Monday 23rd February on the school website.
No feedback received from last HT Update
Key messages from this week
Calendar: School is closed next week for students and they should return on Monday 23rd February; significant events week beginning 23/02/26; on Monday we have Teenage Booster Vaccinations and the S3 into S4 Course Choice process begins; on Tuesday we complete Teenage Booster Vaccinations and will hold a LEAPS Assembly for S5 students; on Wednesday our Global Infrastructure students will visit Heriot Watt University, we’ll also be represented at the Scottish Schools Cheerleading Competition and Young Musician Competition; on Thursday we’ll facilitate a Scottish Parliament Election Voter Registration initiative with S5/6 students; Friday is our February Dress Down Day
Staffing: Today was Liz Duncan’s last day. Liz has worked as as a classroom teacher in our Mathematics Team with a level of commitment and dedication to young people that has been evident from day one. She is relocating to Perthshire. We thank her and wish her well. We have a PCWO vacancy currently live on myjobscotland
S1: Please note that I spoke with S1 students this week to praise their general behaviour and let them know they will ‘officially’ be allowed off campus at lunchtime from Monday 23rd February. I’ve confirmed this with the Parent Council last night and let all staff know this morning.
Dance Show: Our Dance Show takes place on the evening of Thursday 5th March. It is now ‘live’ on ParentPay for parents/carers to purchase tickets. These can be bought for £4 a ticket and limited to 4 per family.
Free School Meals: Given the holiday next week Midlothian have asked us to share this link with families Help with school meals during school holidays | Free school meals and clothing grants | Midlothian Council
S6 Year Group Photos: We are pleased to let you know that the S6 year group photographs are now live and available to view and order online. You can access the gallery by visiting UrPix.co.uk and entering your unique access ID: LASSGKF6HU. Once registered & logged in, you will be able to preview the images and place orders directly through the site. A range of print and product options are available. All orders are processed securely online & delivered to the school. If you experience any difficulty accessing the gallery, please contact UrPix from their FAQ & Contact section and they will be happy to help. UrPix.co.uk
Parent Council 4: Thanks to those attending our online Parent Council Meeting last night. I’ll alert you when the minute of the meeting is live on the website
Request for Work Experience Placements: Reminder. As we begin our planning for S4 Work Experience in November I’m keen to hear from any parents/carers who through their workplace might be able to offer student placements. We have a year group of around 300 so need to secure a lot of placements. Please use the link at the bottom of this post, giving your contact details, and I’ll ask Mrs Sharp, our lead on Work Experience, to reach out to you.
Spring Formal S3 & S4: Reminder. A group of S3 students are organising a Spring Formal party for all S3 & S4 students. It’s the first time we’ve attempted this event and I’m hoping you’ll encourage your child, assuming they are in S3/4 to attend. The event will take place on Thursday 12th March from 6:00pm to 8:00pm. As the name suggests, this is a formal event. Students are encouraged to wear spring-coloured dresses, shirts, and ties. The evening will include a DJ, drinks, snacks, and plenty of fun. Tickets are on sale at £5.00 and available via ParentPay.
Take Care
Campbell Hornell, Head Teacher
Lasswade High School is proud to support the Anthony Nolan charity through our upcoming Dress Down Day. The Anthony Nolan trust raises awareness and funds for a cause that gives people with blood cancer and blood disorders a second chance at life. Anthony Nolan works to recruit potential stem cell donors and match them with patients in urgent need of lifesaving transplants. Donations help to process new donors, provide support to families, and fund vital research. Every contribution can make a meaningful difference and bring hope to those waiting for a match.
At the start of February, we managed to get 88 S5, S6 and staff members on the register, which is fantastic.
Please remember to dress appropriately and sensibly on Friday 27th February and donate whatever you can (in person on the morning or via ParentPay) to this fantastic charity.
No feedback received from HT Update posted on 06/02/26.
This concise weekly HT Update is generally published every Friday afternoon. It’s a simple opportunity for you to also feedback/ask questions via the link at the bottom of each Update. Any feedback received will be responded to and published on Monday afternoon on the school website.
Feedback from last HT Update: Click here.
Key messages from this week
Calendar: Significant events week beginning 09/02/26; on Tuesday we’ll hold Ramadan Assemblies with S1, S3 and S5 year groups; on Thursday we’ll share subject/course/level recommendations with S3 students as they make choices for S4, we’ll hold our Student Parliament and in the evening it’s our Parent Council 4, held via Teams, see below
Staffing: Our PT Pathways Post is live on myjobscotland and closes on Monday. Interviews this week identified a new Teacher of Chemistry
Parent Council 4: Our next Parent Council Meeting will be held, via Teams, on Thursday 12th February from 7.00pm. Further detail on the website, click here.
Former Students: Ellie Noble is a former student of LHS. She will be running the Barcelona Half Marathon next weekend in memory of Kyle McIntosh, also a former student, who sadly passed away last year. Kyle and Ellie attended Lasswade High School together and were family friends since they were toddlers. Ellie is raising money for Headway, an Edinburgh charity that supports individuals and families affected by brain injury. Click here to access the donation link if you’d like to contribute.
School Session Date Consultation: Reminder. The consultation closes on 09/02/26. It would be worthwhile stating your view as you’ll see 2 options centred on the timing of the Christmas Holiday in 2028/29. The link takes you to the consultation on Citizen Space. Click here.
Spring Formal S3 & S4: Reminder. A group of S3 students are organising a Spring Formal party for all S3 & S4 students. It’s the first time we’ve attempted this event and I’m hoping you’ll encourage your child, assuming they are in S3/4 to attend. The event will take place on Thursday 12th March from 6:00pm to 8:00pm. As the name suggests, this is a formal event. Students are encouraged to wear spring-coloured dresses, shirts, and ties. The evening will include a DJ, drinks, snacks, and plenty of fun. Tickets are on sale at £5.00 and available via ParentPay.
Take Care
Campbell Hornell, Head Teacher
Our fourth planned Parent Council Meeting of the session will be held on Thursday 12th February 2026. The meeting will be held on-line, via Teams. Parents/carers will be sent the link to the meeting, to their phones, on Thursday morning. The meeting begins at 7.00pm and should last just over an hour, and certainly finish no later than 8.30pm.
At the meeting we plan discussions on
All parents/carers are welcome to ‘attend’. As stated, we’d love to see some new folk!
Please send in any questions, via email and with ‘FAO Parent Council’ at the top of message by lunchtime on Thursday 12th February, to
Or, post a question to the Parent Council Facebook page
Response to feedback submitted from HT Update week ending 30/01/26.
| My Question | Comment | Suggestion related to the school this week is: | HT’s Response |
| I am coming to the progressive masculinity event but didn’t receive a text about it. Are the boys to come too or is it parents and carers only? Is it ticketed or do we just show up? Thanks. | Text was sent to all parental contacts. I’d advise checking we have the correct details. You can do this via Parent Portal. The session is parent/carers only. It’s not ticketed. |