PM's alma mater at sharp end of war on knives

IN HIS first speech as Prime Minister, Gordon Brown stood on the steps of Downing Street and eulogised over the excellence of the education he received at Kirkcaldy High School.

After invoking the school motto – 'I will try to my utmost' – he said proudly: "I wouldn't be standing here without the opportunities I got there."

But times appear to have changed at his Fife alma mater, and not for the better. Now Kirkcaldy High is being used as the focus of a high-profile campaign to stop youngsters bringing knives to class and the school has a dedicated police officer. Lunches sold in the canteen are now branded with the slogan: "Knives Cut Lives."

In a move that would have been unthinkable during Brown's schooldays, pupils are being issued with the mobile number of the school policeman so he can be summoned quickly in the event of trouble.

Earlier this month the school, which was previously regarded as a beacon of academic excellence, was branded one of most underachieving in Scotland, prompting education officials to draft in a troubleshooter.

The school was chosen to pioneer a campaign aimed at stamping out any nascent blade-carrying culture. Paper lunch bags are now emblazoned with a striking image of a crying eye, along with warning about the dangers of carrying knives.

PC Paul Buttercase, of Fife Constabulary, said: "The anti-knife-carrying message was chosen due to incidents which have occurred in areas of Scotland in an effort to be pro-active. However, a number of recent incidents in Fife where young people have been found carrying knives, some within secondary schools, has reinforced the relevance of this message.

"Having a knife in your possession can lead to tragic consequences. I was looking for a different way of getting the message across as posters displayed on school notice boards often get lost among all the others. Having the message spelled out on lunch bags will hopefully catch the attention of pupils."

Another policeman, PC Alex Lees, has been allocated to work closely with the school as well as others in the town. In recent weeks his mobile number and e-mail address have been published in the school newsletter with youngsters being invited to contact him.

Lindsay Roy, who received the CBE for services to Scottish education in 2004, has been brought in to turn the school around. He gave his full support to the measures aimed at preventing crime from taking place on school premises.

He said: "There is no school in Scotland that is exempt from the wider problems in society. If there is any suspicion of anything untoward going on, whether it be knife crime or drug culture, then we will have no hesitation in stopping it and involving the police."

Roy said the allocation of a community officer to the school was also paying dividends: "It is very useful to have an individual who the pupils can relate to and approach. It gives youngsters an opportunity to talk through the implications of various types of behaviour, whether it is carrying a knife or calling the fire brigade out unnecessarily."

Despite the 1,300-pupil school being ordered to address declining standards in 2006, a new follow-up report by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education (HMIE) criticised the school for poor exam results, low staff morale and disruptive behaviour among pupils. Overall truancy levels were twice the Fife average and four times the Scottish average.

Work has already started, under Roy's stewardship, to improve standards and morale.

During his time at Kirkcaldy High, Brown was part of a fast-tracking experiment that involved youngsters skipping the final years of primary school to go straight into secondary.