The Mary Erskine School, popularly known as "Mary Erskine's" or "MES", is an all-girls

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

secondary school in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, Scotland. It was founded in 1694 and has a roll of around 750 pupils. It is the sister school of the all-boys

Stewart's Melville College Stewart's Melville College (SMC) is an independent day and boarding school in Edinburgh, Scotland. Classes are all boys in the 1st to 5th years and co-educational in Sixth (final) year. It has a roll of about 750 pupils. The school is twinned w ...

(SMC) with which MES shares a coeducational nursery and junior school for pupils aged 3–11. The majority of its pupils live in the surrounding area (Edinburgh,

Lothian Lothian (; sco, Lowden, Loudan, -en, -o(u)n; gd, Lodainn ) is a region of the Scottish Lowlands, lying between the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and the Lammermuir Hills and the Moorfoot Hills. The principal settlement is the Sco ...

and

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

) but boarding facilities are available. About 3% of the pupils are boarders. The school is non-denominational but claims to have a broadly

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

outlook. Both MES and SMC are managed by the

Merchant Company of Edinburgh The Royal Company of Merchants of the City of Edinburgh, previously known as the Merchant Company of Edinburgh is a mercantile company and Guild officially recognised in 1681, but dating back to at least 1260. The Company, or Confraternity, was ...

which is also responsible for the city's

George Watson's College George Watson's College is a co-educational Independent school (United Kingdom), independent day school in Scotland, situated on Colinton Road, in the Merchiston area of Edinburgh. It was first established as a Scottish education in the eight ...

. In 2014 the combined Erskine Stewarts Melville school claimed to be the largest independent school in Europe. Although the school is single sex, some activities, although not teaching, are carried out jointly with the boys from SMC. The sixth (final) year of the school is co-educational. The Mary Erskine School - geograph

History

The school was founded as a hospital school for the daughters of Edinburgh burgessesErskine, Mary, 1629–1707
Scotland's People, National Records of Scotland, Retrieved 13 June 2014 in 1694 as the Merchant Maiden Hospital by

Mary Erskine Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

(a prominent Edinburgh banking businesswoman) and the Company of Merchants of the City of Edinburgh in the first Merchants' Hall in

Cowgate The Cowgate (Scots language, Scots: The Cougait) is a street in Edinburgh, Scotland, located about southeast of Edinburgh Castle, within the city's World Heritage Site. The street is part of the lower level of Edinburgh's Old Town, Edinburgh, ...

, Edinburgh. In 1870, it was refounded by act of Parliament as a

day school A day school — as opposed to a boarding school — is an educational institution where children and adolescents are given instructions during the day, after which the students return to their homes. A day school has full-day programs when compar ...

, renamed as the Edinburgh Educational Institution For Girls and had grown to 1,200 girl students. In 1871 it moved its premises to Queen Street, Edinburgh and became familiarly known as Queen Street School. The school was renamed again as Edinburgh Ladies' College in 1889, and to its present name, "The Mary Erskine School", in 1944. In 1966 the school moved to

Ravelston Ravelston is an affluent area of Edinburgh, Scotland, to the west of the city centre, the east of Corstorphine and Clermiston, the north of Murrayfield, West End and Roseburn and to the south of Queensferry Road (the A90). Ravelston is ofte ...

, Edinburgh and in 1977 the Mary Erskine School merged with an all-boys independent secondary school Stewart's Melville College which is located approximately one mile (2 km) from the MES campus and The Erskine Stewart's Melville Schools (ESMS) was formed. Together MES and SMC have a co-educational Junior School which caters for pupils from three to 11 years old. Nursery to Primary 3 are housed on the Mary Erskine campus, with Primary 4 to 7 on the Stewart's Melville campus. The combined sixth (final) form of both schools is coeducational. Mary Erskine School was voted the Scottish Independent School of the year in 2012.Leonard, Sue (2012
In Tune with the Times
The Sunday Times, Retrieved 8 March 2014

Sport

The school is involved in a wide variety of sports, most of which are coached by mixture of staff from general departments as well as the Physical Education (PE) department staff. Sports include Aerobics, Athletics, Badminton, Basketball, Cricket, Cross-country, Curling, Dance, Equestrian, Fencing, Football, Golf, ice skating, Highland Dancing, Hockey, Sailing, Skiing, Squash, Swimming, Tennis and Volleyball.

Hockey

MES excels particularly in hockey, with over 6 teams competing at senior level and many pupils playing at National level. Pupils have the opportunity to play for the Erksine Stewart's Melville Former Pupil Hockey Club once leaving sixth form. MES also has P.E teachers and former pupils playing hockey for Scotland and Great Britain.

Ravelston Sports Club

"Ravelston Sports Club" is a large on-site sports centre and gym opened in 2000 and is split across both campuses. The sports centre is mainly used by pupils for PE lessons and sports training, but is also open to members of the public with a monthly membership fee. Extensive rugby and cricket pitches and athletics facilities are located at the school's sports grounds in Inverleith.

Music and Drama

Almost 800 children sing regularly in choirs performing in all kinds of venues from the Usher Hall to St Peter's in the Vatican, from Songs of Praise to sharing the stage with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. In addition to this 300 children from Primary 4 to senior sixth Form play in school orchestras and bands (including Pipe Band and Jazz Band). Boys and girls from the Junior School have had favourable reviews while performing over 680 times in professional West End touring musicals including over 220 appearances in

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' (often colloquially known as ''Joseph'') is a sung-through musical with lyrics by Tim Rice and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the character of Joseph from the Bible's Book of Genesis. Thi ...

. Senior pupils have won prestigious scholarships to American Drama Schools and starred on TV. Pupils have access to and frequently perform in SMC's "Tom Fleming Centre for Performing Arts" (formerly "Performing Arts Centre").

Carbisdale

Since 1965, the school has organised an outdoor education programme for the boys of SMC and the girls from MES in the third senior year. It is located in the north of Scotland at

Carbisdale Castle Carbisdale Castle was built in 1907 for the Duchess of Sutherland on a hill across the Kyle of Sutherland from Invershin in the Scottish Highlands. Until 2011 it was used as a youth hostel, operated by the Scottish Youth Hostels Association. T ...

, a historic castle which has been converted into a

Youth Hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory, with shared use of a lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex and have private or shared ba ...

. The trip consists of a number of outdoor activities that vary from year to year including hillwalking, orienteering, golf, kayaking, team-building activities, visits to nearby historic sites and environmental studies of the surrounding woodland. Carbisdale Castle has a plaque of the Stewart's Melville College badge in its foyer above the main door.

Pastoral

Between First Senior Year and Fifth Year pupils are split into house groups. There are six different houses (named after areas of Scotland): *

Appin Appin ( gd, An Apainn) is a coastal district of the Scottish West Highlands bounded to the west by Loch Linnhe, to the south by Loch Creran, to the east by the districts of Benderloch and Lorne, and to the north by Loch Leven. It lies north ...

* Ettrick *

Galloway Galloway ( ; sco, Gallowa; la, Gallovidia) is a region in southwestern Scotland comprising the historic counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbrightshire. It is administered as part of the council area of Dumfries and Galloway. A native or i ...

Kintyre Kintyre ( gd, Cinn Tìre, ) is a peninsula in western Scotland, in the southwest of Argyll and Bute. The peninsula stretches about , from the Mull of Kintyre in the south to East and West Loch Tarbert in the north. The region immediately north ...

Lochaber Lochaber ( ; gd, Loch Abar) is a name applied to a part of the Scottish Highlands. Historically, it was a provincial lordship consisting of the parishes of Kilmallie and Kilmonivaig, as they were before being reduced in extent by the creation ...

Torridon Torridon (Scottish Gaelic: ''Toirbheartan'') is a small village in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. However the name is also applied to the area surrounding the village, particularly the Torridon Hills, mountains to the north of Glen Torrido ...

Each house has a Head of House tutor as well as a form tutor for each year group who is responsible for pupils' well-being. These houses correspond with the houses of the same names at

, and are the basis for the 'ESM Challenge'. This is a series of annual events involving both the boys and girls in each house. It covers a wide variety of school societies, ranging from the House Music Competition to the Inter-house Hockey. The competition comes to a climax on Sports Day with a 4 × 100 m relay between each house. The winning house is then awarded a cup at the school's prizegiving ceremony.

Senior Sixth form

When pupils enter the sixth (final) form they are merged with the boys from Stewart's Melville College. Classes take place at both school sites, with buses operating regularly to transfer students between the two. There are approximately 240 students in a normal year group. In sixth form students are largely independent. Students have a tutor (twinned with another at the other site) with whom they register in the morning, and who also helps them with their British university

UCAS The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS ) is a UK-based organisation whose main role is to operate the application process for British universities. It operates as an independent charity, funded by fees charged to applicants an ...

applications. All members of the sixth form are prefects and are expected to help out with duties around the school sites. The maintenance of the prefect body is the responsibility of a Head Boy and a Head Girl, along with five deputy head boys and five deputy head girls.

School Uniform and Colours

In 1994 the school adopted the present uniform which includes a navy blue and red

kilt A kilt ( gd, fèileadh ; Irish: ''féileadh'') is a garment resembling a wrap-around knee-length skirt, made of twill woven worsted wool with heavy pleats at the sides and back and traditionally a tartan pattern. Originating in the Scottish Hi ...

designed by the company Kinloch Anderson, a blue blazer, white blouse and red tie. Colours and Half-Colours can be awarded in Sixth Form to pupils who excel in non-academic areas (such as music, drama and individual sports).

Examinations

Pupils at Mary Erskine's mainly sit Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) examinations, including (as of 2013) National 4, National 5,

Higher Grade In the Scottish secondary education system, the Higher () is one of the national school-leaving certificate exams and university entrance qualifications of the Scottish Qualifications Certificate (SQC) offered by the Scottish Qualification ...

and Advanced Higher Grade levels. The English

GCE Advanced Level The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational aut ...

examinations can also be sat in art and music. As is the case with many independent schools MES has examination results well above the national average. For example, in 2013, 86% of pupils passed Higher grade exams at the A or B level and passed an average of five Higher Grade exams each.Miller, Nikki (Editor) (2014) "School Guide Edinburgh & The Lothians, 2015 Annual Issue", Select Publishing Ltd. Almost all leavers were planning to go on to higher education. In 2015, popular destinations included

St Andrews St Andrews ( la, S. Andrea(s); sco, Saunt Aundraes; gd, Cill Rìmhinn) is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fou ...

(11),

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

(18), Edinburgh Napier (3),

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

(12),

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

(2) and Northumbria (5). In 2014 and 2016, Mary Erskine's was top of the Sunday Times list of independent secondary schools in Scotland using the Scottish Examinations system and in 2015 was judged the best Scottish School by Advanced Highers by Best-Schools.

Former Pupils Guild

Upon leaving MES, students have the opportunity to join the Mary Erskine Former Pupils Guild which was founded in 1884.

Notable former staff

Elisabeth West Elisabeth West (fl. 1690s – 1709) was a Scottish servant and memoirist in Edinburgh. She was inspired to create her record by Rev George Meldrum of the Tron Kirk, who would later become the Professor of Divinity at the University of Edinburgh. ...

in 1708, diarist

Notable alumni

Media and Arts * Lynda Cochrane - pianist *

Margaret Stirling Dobson Margaret Stirling Dobson ARE (1882-1965) was a Scottish painter, printmaker and author. Early life and education Dobson was born in Galashiels and attended Queen Street School, Edinburgh (also known as the Mary Erskine School). Dobson bega ...

- painter, printmaker and author. * Joanna Drew (1929–2003) - art gallery director and arts administrator * Jenny Foulds - actress, e.g.

Two Thousand Acres of Sky ''Two Thousand Acres of Sky '' is a TV drama which aired on BBC Television from 2001 to 2003. It was created and written by Timothy Prager. The Executive Producer was Adrian Bate. The show takes place on the fictional island of Ronansay off the ...

) * Alison Geissler (1907-2011) - glass engraver * Frances Grey - actress * Dorothy Mackie Low (1916–2002) - writer of romance novels who used the pseudonyms Dorothy Mackie Low, Lois Paxton, and Zoë Cass. *

Samara MacLaren Samara ( rus, Сама́ра, p=sɐˈmarə), known from 1935 to 1991 as Kuybyshev (; ), is the largest city and administrative centre of Samara Oblast. The city is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Samara rivers, with a population ...

- actress *

Freya Mavor Freya Mavor (born 13 August 1993) is a Scottish actress and model. She is best known for her roles as Mini McGuinness in the E4 teen drama '' Skins'' and Daria Greenock in the HBO finance drama series ''Industry''. Early life Mavor was born i ...

- actress *

Chloe Pirrie Chloe Pirrie (born 25 August 1987) is a Scottish actress. She has played main roles in the 2014 miniseries '' The Game'', the 2012 film ''Shell'', and the 2015 television film ''An Inspector Calls''. She has also appeared in the 2016 miniseries ...

- actress *

Margaret Stoddart Margaret Olrog Stoddart (3 October 1865 – 10 December 1934) was a New Zealand artist. Early life and education Stoddart was born in Diamond Harbour, Canterbury, New Zealand in 1865, one of six children born to Mark Pringle Stoddart (181 ...

(1865–1934) - notable New Zealand artist *

Madeleine Worrall Madeleine Worrall (born 1977)Madeleine Worrall Biography
1MDb, Retrieved 3 April 2014 i ...

- actress Academia and Science * Dame

Maria Gordon Dame Maria Matilda Gordon (née Ogilvie; 30 April 1864 – 24 June 1939), sometimes known as May Ogilvie Gordon or May Gordon, was an eminent Scottish geologist, palaeontologist, and politician. She was the first woman to be awarded a Doctor ...

DBE, (1864–1939) -

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...

and

palaeontologist Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...

, first woman to get a DSc from London University and a PhD from the University of Munich. *

Ellen Charlotte Higgins Ellen Charlotte Higgins (14 August 1871, Brixton, London - 13 December 1951, Edinburgh) was the third Principal of Royal Holloway College, London, Royal Holloway College, University of London (RHC) from 1907 to 1935. Her father was a publisher an ...

(1871–1951) - principal of the

Royal Holloway College, University of London Royal Holloway, University of London (RHUL), formally incorporated as Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, is a public university, public research university and a constituent college of the federal University of London. It has six schools, ...

* Professor Sheila Scott Macintyre (1910–1960) - mathematician best known for her work on the Whittaker constant. * Professor Anna MacGillivray Macleod (1917–2004) - first female professor of Brewing and Biochemistry in the world. *

Elizabeth Malloch Elizabeth Gilmour Malloch (6 September 1910 – 29 September 2000) was a teacher, college principal and campaigner for equality within the Anglicanism, Episcopal Church. She was one of the first women to become a priest within the Episcopal Churc ...

(1910–2000) - educator and priest * Dr

Annie Hutton Numbers Annie Hutton Numbers (6 March 1897 – 10 April 1988) was a Scottish chemist and academic. Early life Numbers was born on 6 March 1897 in Edinburgh to Maggie and Alexander Numbers. Her father was a joiner and cabinetmaker. She had one sister, Is ...

(1897-1988), British mathematician and chemist * Dr

Winifred Rushforth Margaret Winifred Rushforth (née Bartholomew; 21 August 1885 – 29 August 1983) was a Scottish medical practitioner and Christian missionary in India who, influenced by Hugh Crichton-Miller and his friend, Carl Jung, became the founder of a fa ...

OBE, (1885–1983) -

Jungian Analytical psychology ( de , Analytische Psychologie, sometimes translated as analytic psychology and referred to as Jungian analysis) is a term coined by Carl Jung, a Swiss psychiatrist, to describe research into his new "empirical science" ...

psychoanalyst PsychoanalysisFrom Greek language, Greek: + . is a set of Theory, theories and Therapy, therapeutic techniques"What is psychoanalysis? Of course, one is supposed to answer that it is many things — a theory, a research method, a therapy, a bo ...

* Dr Isabel Emslie Hutton CBE (1887–1960) - physician Sports * Shauna Mullin - athlete, 2012 Olympic Games, Beach Volleyball) *

Janice Rankin Janice Rankin MBE (born 8 February 1972 as Janice Watt) is a Scottish curler and Olympic champion. She received a gold medal at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City,Lynsey Sharp Lynsey Sharp (born 11 July 1990) is a Scottish track and field athlete who competes in the 800 metres. She is the 2012 European Athletics Championships – Women's 800 metres, 2012 European champion and represented Great Britain at the 2012 Summ ...

- athlete – 2012 European Champion 800m, 2012 Olympic semi-finalist 800m, 2014 Commonwealth silver medallist Politics * Louise Mary Eates (married name) - suffragette *

Elaine Murray Elaine Kildare Murray (born 22 December 1954) is a retired Scottish Labour politician. She was leader of Dumfries and Galloway Council for the 2017–2022 term. She was also the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Dumfries from 1999 to ...

- MSP

Business

* Judy Wagner,

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...

- British business leader, educator and executive search recruitment manager

References

Sources

External links

*
Mary Erskine School's page on Scottish Schools Online

Profile
on the

ISC #REDIRECT ISC {{redirect category shell, {{R from other capitalisation{{R from ambiguous page ...

website
Profile
at

MyDaughter MyDaughter was a British website set up by the Girls' Schools Association (GSA) offering advice to parents of daughters on all aspects of raising and educating girls. Advice was provided by headteachers from the member schools of the Girls' Scho ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mary Erskine School, The Independent schools in Edinburgh Educational institutions established in the 1690s Boarding schools in Edinburgh Girls' schools in Edinburgh Member schools of the Girls' Schools Association Category A listed buildings in Edinburgh 1694 establishments in Scotland Diamond schools