Dumbarton Academy is a mixed

secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...

Dumbarton Dumbarton (; also sco, Dumbairton; ) is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. In 2006, it had an estimated population of 19,990. Dumbarton was the ca ...

West Dunbartonshire West Dunbartonshire ( sco, Wast Dunbairtonshire; gd, Siorrachd Dhùn Breatann an Iar, ) is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland. The area lies to the west of the City of Glasgow and contains many of Glasgow's commuter town ...

, Scotland.

Location

The school is situated near the railway off the B830 in the east of Dumbarton. St James Retail Park is on the opposite side of the

North Clyde Line The North Clyde Line (defined by Network Rail as the ''Glasgow North Electric Suburban'' line) is a suburban railway in West Central Scotland. The route is operated by ScotRail Trains. As a result of the incorporation of the Airdrie–Bathgat ...

History

Dumbarton Academy, which was originally based in the tower of Dumbarton Parish Church, dates back to the 15th century. It moved to a rented room in a building in the High Street known as "Walker's Close" in 1761 and to a new purpose-built building on the west side of Church Street, close to the corner with the High Street, in 1789. After that building was also found to be inadequate, a new combined burgh hall and academy was erected in Church Street in 1866 designed by

William Leiper William Leiper Royal Institute of British Architects, FRIBA Royal Scottish Academy, RSA (1839–1916) was a Scotland, Scottish architect known particularly for his domestic architecture in and around the town of Helensburgh.

. The academy then moved to a site formerly occupied by Braehead House in Townend Road in August 1914, before being converted into a comprehensive school and relocating to Crosslet Road in Hartfield in 1972.

Today

Today the school serves the catchment area of

and currently has an enrollment of over 600 pupils. Alison Boyles is the head teacher. The school received a positive report from the 2009 HMIE inspection. The school currently operates a policy of inclusion with recent initiatives taken to increase the inclusion rate for less able pupils and decrease the rate of bullying in the school.

Notable teachers

* Raymond Robertson, Conservative MP 1992-97 for Aberdeen South

Notable alumni

* Professor John Campbell Brown, Regius Professor of Astronomy since 1996 at the University of Glasgow, Professor of Astrophysics 1984-96, and

Astronomer Royal for Scotland Astronomer Royal for Scotland was the title of the director of the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh until 1995. It has since been an honorary title. Astronomers Royal for Scotland See also * Edinburgh Astronomical Institution * City Observatory * R ...

since 1995 * Ian Campbell, Labour MP 1983-87 for

, and 1970-83 for Dunbartonshire West *

A. J. Cronin Archibald Joseph Cronin (19 July 1896 – 6 January 1981), known as A. J. Cronin, was a Scottish physician and novelist. His best-known novel is ''The Citadel'' (1937), about a Scottish doctor who serves in a Welsh mining village before achievi ...

, novelist * Sir Archibald Denny, ship builder *

John McAusland Denny Colonel John McAusland Denny (29 November 1858 – 9 December 1922) was a Scottish businessman and Conservative Party politician. Denny was born in Helenslee, Dumbarton, one of eight sons of Dr. Peter Denny. His grandfather William Denny fou ...

, Conservative MP 1895-1906 for Kilmarnock Burghs *

Douglas Gordon Douglas Gordon (born 20 September 1966) is a Scottish artist. He won the Turner Prize in 1996, the Premio 2000 at the 47th Venice Biennale in 1997 and the Hugo Boss Prize in 1998. He lives and works in Berlin, Germany. Work Much of Gordon's w ...

, Scottish artist and

Turner Prize The Turner Prize, named after the English painter J. M. W. Turner, is an annual prize presented to a British visual artist. Between 1991 and 2016, only artists under the age of 50 were eligible (this restriction was removed for the 2017 award) ...

winner, 1978-1983 *

Patrick Harvie Patrick Harvie (born 18 March 1973) is a Scottish politician who has served as Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings, Active Travel and Tenants' Rights since 2021. He has served as one of two co-leaders of the Scottish Greens since 2008, and is on ...

, Co-Convenor of the

Scottish Green Party The Scottish Greens (also known as the Scottish Green Party; gd, Pàrtaidh Uaine na h-Alba ; sco, Scots Green Pairtie) are a green political party in Scotland. The party has seven MSPs in the Scottish Parliament as of May 2021. As of the 202 ...

John Hutcheson John Hutcheson (1853–1940) was a Member of Parliament in New Zealand, for the Liberal Party. Biography Early life A native of Dumbarton, Scotland, where he was born in 1855, he was educated at the Dumbarton Academy, where he gained a Sou ...

, New Zealand politician *

Graeme Ramage Graeme Ramage (born 28 August 1992) is a former Scottish professional footballer and coach who played as a midfielder. He has previously played in the Scottish Premier League for St Mirren, . Career Born in Alexandria, Ramage began his career ...

, professional footballer * Professor John Rorke CBE, Professor of Mechanical Engineering 1980-88 at Heriot-Watt University *

David Steel, Baron Steel of Aikwood David Martin Scott Steel, Baron Steel of Aikwood, (born 31 March 1938) is a British politician. Elected as Member of Parliament for Roxburgh, Selkirk, and Peebles, followed by Tweeddale, Ettrick, and Lauderdale, he served as the final leade ...

Sir Jackie Stewart Sir John Young Stewart (born 11 June 1939), known as Jackie Stewart, is a British former Formula One racing driver from Scotland. Nicknamed the "Flying Scot", he competed in Formula One between 1965 and 1973, winning three World Drivers' Cham ...

, racing driver who won three Formula One championships *

William Strang William Strang (13 February 1859 – 12 April 1921) was a Scottish painter and printmaker, notable for illustrating the works of Bunyan, Coleridge and Kipling. Early life Strang was born at Dumbarton, the son of Peter Strang, a builder, an ...

, painter *

References

External links

* {{authority control Dumbarton Secondary schools in West Dunbartonshire