20 January 2026: Education Scotland have published the results of the inspection carried out at James Gillespie’s High School in October 2025.

The report and the summarised findings are available at the links below:

JGHS inspection report, City of Edinburgh Council, 20 January 2026

JGHS inspection report, City of Edinburgh Council, 20 January 2026 (Gaelic version)

JGHS summarised inspection findings, City of Edinburgh Council, 20 January 2026

JGHS additional inspection evidence, City of Edinburgh Council, 20 January 2026

In summary the inspectors found:

Strengths

• The headteacher provides calm and aspirational leadership to the school community.
• Staff and young people have developed inclusive, positive and respectful learning environments in which young people thrive.
• Young people sustain very high levels of attainment across the senior phase.
• Staff have worked well with a range of effective partners to increase young people’s learning pathways and opportunities for achievement.
• Across the senior phase, young people achieve highly in Gàidhlig, with nearly all securing National Qualifications at appropriate levels.

Areas for improvement

• Senior leaders should continue to develop the capacity of staff at all levels to embed recent improvements.
• Staff need to ensure that young people experience a greater consistency of high-quality learning, teaching and assessment across the school.
• Senior leaders should develop a more coherent and strategic approach to immersion education, with a focus on broadening the curriculum leading to qualifications and awards through the medium of Gàidhlig.