Saint Columba's High School has recently been awarded the highest level of Health Accreditation by West Dunbartonshire Inspectors.
The school was judged on a number of points, including our commitment to the promotion of Fair Trade, healthy eating inititiatives such as 'Hungry for Success', our relationships with Olaleni High School in Tanzania, and the outstanding work being done within sports and holistic health.
During October, the school was visited by Inspectors, who were left in no doubt about some of the excellent work being done within various departments.
The School's commitment to providing healthy packed lunches for our pupils is continuing to grow in popularity and success.
Canteen Supervisor Sadie Burke believes initiatives such as this help to encourage pupils to stay active over their lunch hour, while being sure to eat healthily at the same time.
'Hungry For Success' was first reported on in InfoPlus in April 2005, when the initiative was launched in schools across West Dunbartonshire. Due to its great success, many schools are still adapting to follow the good example set by
Saint Columba's and have now incoporated as many of the guidelines as possible into their own school dinners.
The Fair Trade Agreement which was signed between Saint Columba's and SCIAF in November of 2005 has proved to be a huge success.
Saint Columba's is now recognised officially as one of the top ten Fair Trade supporters in
Scotland, and continues to promote the issues behind Fair Trade through educational projects with pupils of all age groups.
Sometimes a new idea comes along, which gets everybody talking...
Buteyko Breathing classes have now become a regular part of the school day for some of our pupils.
As featured in the last edition of InfoPlus, Buteyko Breathing is a technique which is being used to conquer the effects of asthma. Already, several staff members and many more pupils have attended classes with Jill McGowan, Buteyko Practitioner.
After a series of classes, pupils are invited for an interview and assessment of their progress.
The photo below shows pupil Marc Boyd using a 'Niox' unit, which measures for the presence of Nitric Oxide in our bodies. This measurement is used to diagnose whether there is any inflammation, as found in sufferers of asthma.
A simple test at the beginning and end of the set of breathing classes shows clearly where there has been improvement.
Marc only started to attend Buteyko classes this year, when they were made more widely available for anyone who might benefit from them. In Marc's case, he attended not because he suffers from asthama, but because he competes in lots of sports, including judo and fencing.
Marc says that Buteyko breathing has helped to keep him calm before competing and has also found a major benefit in a faster recovery period after taking part in sporting activities.
Marc enjoyed going to the classes, finding them very relaxing, and would recommend these classes to everyone!
Karen Smith
