Retirement of Ellen Douglas

That the Parliament congratulates Ellen Douglas on her retirement as headteacher of St Ambrose High School; understands that Ellen has been teaching for 41 years, over 30 of which have been at St Ambrose High School; commends Ellen for the contribution that she has made to St Ambrose over these years, including as a teacher of geography and RE, a principal teacher, the assistant head and latterly as headteacher since 2007; understands that she is held in high regard by pupils, former pupils and teaching colleagues, as well as the wider community; notes that, among countless other highlights during her career, Ellen delivered the Time for Reflection at the Scottish Parliament on the day that National 5 SQA results were released for the first time in Scotland; recognises that St Ambrose High School has consistently performed well in national higher results, which has been a great source of pride for Ellen; acknowledges that Ellen demonstrated a strong leadership role through the 2019 Scottish Government’s Buchanan and St Ambrose High School Campus Independent Review, a process that brought about some welcome certainty and conclusion to longstanding concerns about the grounds of the new campus; understands that Ellen was due to retire earlier in 2020 but postponed this to lead the school through the pandemic and manage the campus as an education hub for Coatbridge, and wishes Ellen a happy retirement and all the best in her future endeavours.