I write this week’s update with sunshine streaming through my office window, a view stretching out over the snow-dusted Pentlands and a heavy frost resting quietly on the grounds within our walls. Our site is beautiful in all conditions, but the past few early mornings have been particularly so; orange sunrises against an azure sky, briefly interrupted by the soft trail of a passing aircraft. In this light, the campus takes on an almost ethereal quality. For me, it has been a timely reminder of how fortunate I am to call Merchiston home, and how important it is to pause, to notice, and simply to be present.

I hope Weekend Leave provided an opportunity for some rest and recuperation during what is an especially busy stage of the academic year. We have been going long enough for pupils to feel fatigued, yet there is still some distance to travel before the Christmas break. Awareness of this – and a focus on quality sleep and restorative rest – is essential at this point in term.

On the Saturday of Weekend Leave, a large crowd gathered at Merchiston for the second annual Finlay MacDonald Memorial Match between the Merchistonians and the St Andrews University XV. Finlay, as many of you will know, was our Captain of School in 2022–23 and tragically took his own life in June 2024. He was, and remains, much loved; cherished by his family and fondly remembered by friends from both Merchiston and St Andrews. Their determination to honour his memory, while raising funds and awareness for charities supporting positive mental health, is deeply moving. Over the past twelve months, young Merchistonians have raised over £100,000 for mental health charities – an extraordinary achievement. At the post-match gathering at Boroughmuir, Rev Blair spoke with characteristic clarity and compassion, returning to his familiar “rules of life” and adding one more: Light always beats darkness. Hope always beats despair. Love always beats separation. And talking ALWAYS beats silence. A message that feels profoundly important for all of us.

Tuesday brought a shift back into the rhythm of school life, beginning with Whole School Assembly. After revisiting our tendency to underestimate the kindness and trustworthiness of others and the perils of allowing algorithmically driven social media feeds to be our windows to the world, we focused on how environmental factors can influence our levels of trust – we explored how the environments we inhabit shape not just our actions, but our values and ways of relating to others. I shared with pupils a remarkable study led by economist Andreas Leibbrandt, which focused on two fishing villages in south-eastern Brazil, separated by just 60 kilometres. Culturally and economically similar, the villages differ in one essential respect: the nature of their work. In the ocean village, fishing is a collaborative effort. Success depends on large crews, shared boats, coordinated action, and mutual support. By contrast, the lake village is home to solitary fishermen who compete for limited resources. What the researchers found was striking. Over time, these different economic ecologies produced different psychological ones. The ocean fishermen became more trusting, more cooperative, and more willing to take social risks. The lake fishermen, by necessity, became more competitive, more cautious, and less trusting of others.

This study offers a profound insight: the structure of our social environment slowly, but powerfully, shapes our mindset. And equally important, we shape those environments through the choices we make each day. I asked the boys to reflect on the nature of our own school ‘village’. When we choose collaboration over competition, kindness over suspicion, we don’t just help one another; we help set the tone for the culture we all share. We each hold a subtle but significant power to influence the emotional climate of the communities we belong to.

This message is especially timely in an age where media and digital interactions can (and in some cases try to) nudge us toward cynicism and guardedness. At Merchiston, we want to create a counterbalance: a space where trust can grow, where social risks are rewarded, and where pupils learn that their environment is not fixed – it’s something they co-create. As educators and parents, helping them understand this is one of the most powerful life lessons we can offer.

Later we returned to an important theme: the value of high-quality careers and pathways education. Nothing replaces the insight that comes from hearing directly from people who have lived, worked, and led in the real world. This week’s Careers Café featured Merchistonian Guy Kewish, who spoke engagingly about his unconventional route into Private Equity and Accounting, including several productive gap years before entering the profession in his late twenties. He offered thoughtful reflections on taking opportunities as they arise, on assessment centres and internships, and on navigating the differences between large and small firms. Alongside this, Mr Greenwood has begun one-to-one meetings with pupils to explore ambitions, interests, and the pathways that might best support them going forward.

We also welcomed a team of five professionals from the Care Inspectorate for the start of a routine inspection. I have been encouraged by their eagerness to understand our community and by the warmth, confidence, and humility with which our pupils have engaged in the process. The team will return on Monday and Tuesday to complete the inspection, and we look forward to hearing their reflections in due course.

I thought it was important to share some of the key insights and messages from this week’s Wednesday Wisdom from Tooled Up. The article highlights a rapidly changing digital landscape in which AI companions are becoming a significant presence in young people’s lives. Recent research from Common Sense Media shows that one in three teenagers now turn to AI companions to discuss serious and personal issues – conversations we might hope they would have with parents, trusted adults, or close friends. These systems, designed to maximise engagement rather than develop character, offer constant validation and never disagree or challenge in the way real relationships do. Yet younger teens, who are still developing the critical skills needed to evaluate advice, are particularly trusting of the responses they receive. As Laura Knight, the digital education specialist behind this week’s piece, notes, AI companionship risks replacing the discomfort, negotiation, and repair that help young people grow into resilient, empathetic human beings.

The challenge for us as parents and educators is therefore not simply about restricting, filtering or monitoring online activity – important though those tools are. The deeper task is helping young people develop the wisdom to navigate a world where AI has become not just a tool, but a companion. That work begins with curiosity rather than control: open, reflective conversations that invite young people to think critically about their digital experiences. It means helping them understand how AI systems work, why they offer endless validation, and what is lost when relationships are replaced by algorithms. Most importantly, it involves nurturing the human connections; friendships, family relationships, and trusted adults – that provide the challenge, care, and accountability AI can never replicate. As the digital world continues to evolve, our responsibility is to guide our children not only to use technology safely, but to engage with it thoughtfully, discerningly, and in ways that help them flourish.

On Wednesday our V Form Classical Civilisation pupils travelled to London to visit the British Museum. Many of the sources they study at GCSE are housed there, and while reading about them is valuable, seeing them in person is incomparable. Highlights included the metopes, pediments, and frieze of the Parthenon – central to four separate areas of their course – and the full frieze of the Temple of Apollo at Bassae, visible in its entirety just as it would have been in the naos of the original temple. It was a long but enriching day, and excellent preparation for exam season.

In STEM and the creative disciplines, we were delighted to receive news that our 2024/25 #DigiInventor Challenge winners, EvoGrip, have been further shortlisted for the Institute of Civil Engineers’ Collaborate to Innovate Young Innovator Award. EvoGrip – a smart hockey-stick grip capturing and analysing performance data – is a testament to the imagination, technical skill, and sustained commitment of its UVI creators. Their journey through MerchiSTEM has been outstanding, and an appearance at the awards ceremony in London in February will be a fitting finale to their time with us. There is much more to look forward to in the coming weeks: two festive MerchiSTEAM events for the Forest and Junior years, an approaching internal deadline for Arkwright Engineering Scholarships, and the continued progress of our nationally shortlisted Shell #DigiInventor team as they prepare for the Finals in December.

On campus yesterday morning, I passed our Lower Sixth Geographers as they set off for Leith to conduct fieldwork for their A Level coursework on urban regeneration. Their guided tour traced Leith’s industrial heritage, its decline from the 1950s, and the regeneration reshaping it today. Using a range of primary data-collection techniques, pupils compared regenerated and non-regenerated neighbourhoods, gaining valuable insight into the complexities of an evolving urban landscape.

Later that morning, I joined the Middle Years Assembly, where Mr Glover drew on Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle and challenged pupils to consider four questions: Why? Why not? Why not you? Why not now? Rev Blair closed with a reminder that throughout the Bible, almost nobody chosen for a task felt qualified: Moses was elderly and unsure, David was overlooked, Mary was young and inexperienced. The message? Sometimes it is availability, not ability, that matters most.

On the academic front, we entered the feedback phase of the recent LVI in-class assessments. These assessments are strongly formative, and the key now is to use the feedback to shape the coming months of learning. Students will receive individual guidance, and tailored planning will follow wherever support or structure is needed. The Lower Sixth year is crucial: establishing positive working habits and securing foundational knowledge underpin success in Sixth Form courses.

This morning 5 LVI pupils travelled to Loretto for a French Immersion day and as I write we welcome prospective pupils and their families to our Junior Discovery Day. The event began in the Spawforth Library, where families met staff and gained a sense of the nurturing environment at the heart of Merchiston. From there, pupils move into immersive taster sessions in Science, Spanish, and PE. This evening they will spend time in Pringle House and have dinner together in the Dining Hall. It is always a pleasure to see confidence grow as visitors explore the campus, make new friends, and get a feel for what it means to be part of this community.

A short while ago, I caught up with Mr Dennis ahead of tonight’s concert. He spoke with pride about the energy and commitment of the performers. All week, my office has been bathed in the tones drifting up from the Memorial Hall. The standard of musicianship at Merchiston is excellent, and it has been inspiring to witness the preparation leading up to this evening’s performances. I very much look forward to the concert.

Looking ahead, we are hoping for slightly milder weather for tomorrow’s rugby fixtures against Robert Gordon’s College and for the home Cup Semi-Final against George Watson’s College. We wish all our players the very best.

I would like to finish by returning to a message from my video introduction in August: as families, staff, and a wider community, we all have a role to play in supporting our young people – and in celebrating them. We can take pride in the character they show, the friendships they forge, and the contributions they make to those around them. When we stand alongside them in this way, we help to create a school filled with purpose, joy, and opportunity – one in which every young person can thrive. That sentiment feels especially pertinent at what is both a busy and exciting time for our pupils.

Wishing you all a relaxing and enjoyable weekend,