Prestwick Academy is a
state
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* '' Our ...
secondary school serving the area of
Prestwick
Prestwick ( gd, Preastabhaig) is a town in South Ayrshire on the west coast of Ayrshire in Scotland about southwest of Glasgow. It adjoins the larger town of Ayr to the south on the Firth of Clyde coast, the centre of which is about south, an ...
,
South Ayrshire
South Ayrshire ( sco, Sooth Ayrshire; gd, Siorrachd Àir a Deas, ) is one of thirty-two council areas of Scotland, covering the southern part of Ayrshire. It borders onto Dumfries and Galloway, East Ayrshire and North Ayrshire. On 30 June ...
in Scotland. The school is non-denominational and has a capacity of 1400. Its motto is ''Per Vias Rectas'', Latin for ''By Straight Paths''.
History
Prestwick Academy was opened in 1902 as a primary school, with one building, known as 'Block 1' after the school expanded. The building was extended in 1910 and 1913 to provide more classrooms as the town of Prestwick developed. At the time, all secondary school children in the area had to attend
Ayr Academy
Ayr Academy (Scottish Gaelic: ''Acadamaidh Inbhir Àir'') is a non-denominational secondary school situated within the Craigie Estate area at University Avenue in Ayr, South Ayrshire. It is a comprehensive school for children of ages 11–18 fro ...
for further education.
The school went through major expansion to accommodate secondary pupils in the 1960s and more buildings were constructed with primary children being moved into block 7. For students in the 1950s, those wishing to take exams had to go to Ayr Academy. The school leaving age was raised to 15. To cope with this expansion, block 7 was taken over by the secondary school and primary students were moved to other schools.
In 1972, Kingcase Primary was opened and Prestwick Academy's primary department was closed down. The school leaving age was raised to 16 which again caused overcrowding. Various huts in the school were replaced by the building of 5 new blocks between 1972 and 1974. The new buildings comprised; a new, single storey Science building (Block 6); an Art/Technical/Business Studies Building (Block 5); a new Maths/Home Economics/Modern Languages and Music building (Block 3) and Offices, Staffroom, Assembly Hall (Block 4) and two Gymnasia, a Games hall and Community Suite (Block 2).
New Prestwick Academy
As part of the
Scottish Executive's Public-Private Partnership policy, it was announced that Prestwick Academy would be re-built. Prestwick and
Belmont Academy
Belmont Academy ( gd, Àrd-sgoil Bhelmont) is the largest secondary school in Ayr. The Academy is non-denominational and state-run by South Ayrshire Council. In 2008 the school transferred from the 48-year-old campus into a new building, which ...
are the only secondary schools in South Ayrshire being fully rebuilt, while
Kyle Academy has also undergone renovation.
Construction started in 2006 with Block 7 (Geography, Religious Studies, Behaviour Support and the Dining Hall) being demolished to make room for the new building. All of the new school, apart from the
PE facilities, opened for pupils in October 2008. The new Prestwick Academy is a modern, open-spaced building built on three floors.

All buildings of the old school have now been demolished and the construction of the new PE facilities is complete. The full school building – with the exception of the music recording studio – is now open. The construction of the new all-weather pitches took place between August and December 2009.
The construction of the new school, complete with full landscaping and the all-weather pitches, was officially completed at 10:00 pm on 18 December 2009.
The new building is designed as follows.
# Home Economics, Design & Technology, Physical Education, Mathematics, Music, Pupil Support, School Admin.
# English, Modern Languages, Business Education, History & Modern Studies, Geography, Religious Studies.
# Art & Design, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Computing.
Notable former pupils
*
Peter Howson
Peter Howson OBE (born 27 March 1958) is a Scottish painter. He was a British official war artist in 1993 during the Bosnian War.
Early life
Peter Howson was born in London of Scottish parents and moved with his family to Prestwick, Ayrs ...
– Internationally acclaimed artist.
*
Laura Macdonald – Saxophonist, recording artist & former co-director
National Youth Jazz Orchestra
The National Youth Jazz Orchestra (NYJO) is a British jazz orchestra founded in 1965 by Bill Ashton. In 2010. Mark Armstrong took over as Music Director of the flagship performing band, and Artistic Director of the organisation; Bill Ashton becam ...
.
*
Ian Welsh – Chair of Borderline Theatre Company and the Scottish Advisory Committee of the Voluntary Sector National Training Organisation, a board member of Scottish Enterprise Ayrshire, Kilmarnock College, the LIFE project in Drumchapel, the Space Place in Prestwick, and a Director of the Glaisnock House Trust.
*
Drew Galloway
Andrew McLean Galloway IV (born 6 June 1985) is a Scottish professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Drew McIntyre.
McIntyre is a two-time WWE Champion, one-time WWE Int ...
– Professional wrestler who performs under the alias of 'Drew McIntyre'.
*
The MacDonald Brothers
The MacDonald Brothers, now performing as The Macs, are a Scottish pop folk duo from Ayr, South Ayrshire, Scotland, consisting of brothers Brian and Craig MacDonald. They first rose to prominence in the third UK series of television talent ...
– Recording artists & appeared on The X Factor
*
James Forrest – First Team
Celtic Football Club
The Celtic Football Club, commonly known as Celtic (), is a Scottish professional association football, football club based in Glasgow, which plays in the Scottish Premiership. The club was founded in 1887 with the purpose of alleviating po ...
Player
*
Simon Neil
Simon Alexander Neil (born 31 August 1979) is a Scottish vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter.
He is known for his work in the bands Biffy Clyro and Marmaduke Dukeand also new band with Mike Vennart, Empire state bastard.
Career
Biffy Clyr ...
– Guitarist and lead vocalist of Biffy Clyro
*
Ian Young – Guinness World Record Holder London Marathon
* Alan Forrest – Footballer for
Ayr United F.C.
External links
Prestwick AcademyPrestwick Academy's page on Scottish Schools Online
{{authority control
Secondary schools in South Ayrshire
Prestwick