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Hermitage Academy has received gold accreditation from Investors in People, making it the first school in Scotland to gain national recognition at bronze, silver and gold levels.

Investors in People is an international accreditation awarded to organisations that demonstrate a commitment to their employees, and to creating a great workplace experience for everyone.

Assessors from Investors in People carried out a visit to Hermitage in January this year and praised the school’s continued commitment to engage and develop its young workforce.

In particular, assessors highlighted:

• The school’s commitment to upskill younger staff, to empower them to take ownership over their career development and to enable their voice to have an impact.
• A clear commitment by the Head Teacher to ensure all staff are empowered to develop their full potential and have ownership over their career progression.
• A number of younger staff are project leads and have completed or are completing leadership qualifications.
• The school’s strong engagement with stakeholders has resulted in measurable improvements in education, learning and employment opportunities for younger people.
• Younger staff are involved in extracurricular activities, clubs and working groups, and their work in leading projects is exemplary.
• The schools has a strong focus and commitment to support younger staff and pupils with mental health and wellbeing challenges.
• Influencers were aware of the importance of their role to provide support, and guidance staff and a number of class teachers are qualified in mental health first aid to support young pupils.

Acting Head Teacher Douglas Morgan said: “We are delighted to have received gold accreditation and to be the first school in Scotland to gain the award at all three levels. The assessors were very impressed by the practices put in place here at Hermitage and recognised the passion that staff have to ensure the continued development of youth employment practices.

“A tremendous amount of hard work goes into ensuring we have the right support in place to enable our younger workforce to reach their full potential and I am extremely grateful to everyone involved for the time and commitment they continue to put into this. You are all a credit to Hermitage Academy and to our wider school community.”

Wendy Brownlie, Pվɫ��Ƭ’s Head of Education (Learning and Teaching) said: “This is an outstanding achievement. Gaining Investors in People accreditation takes an incredible amount of hard work and dedication, particularly at gold level, but Hermitage has been 100% committed and their efforts have clearly paid off. Congratulations!”