Musselburgh Grammar School is a large-state secondary school that serves as the main secondary school for Musselburgh and the surrounding areas of Wallyford and Whitecraig. It dates back to the sixteenth century, although the present building was erected in 1835. Until the 1950s, the school was a fee-paying school. As of 2018, the school's roll was approx 1,100. Ronald Summers, who had served as Head Teacher from 2003-2014, retired from the role to take up a new position with the SQA where he will oversee the introduction of the new Higher and Advanced Higher courses. Stewart McKinnon served as Acting Head Teacher from August 2014 until February 2015, when Colin Gerrie, the former Head Teacher of Dalkeith High School took over.
In June 1999 the school was criticised following a Care and Welfare Inspection by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education. The report referred to having witnessed a battle between rival gangs in the school entrance area and that a third of pupils surveyed feared for their own safety. It also mentioned general weaknesses in safety, security, care and welfare, although the staff were praised for their efforts in the face of serious challenges. This led to a media furore with some newspapers describing the school as the worst in Scotland. A follow up inspection in 2000 reported that the school and East Lothian Council had "responded promptly" and made "very good progress" in tackling the problems identified. Since then there have been many positive changes in the school, including the appointment of Ronald Summers as Headteacher, giving rise to improved standards across the board. The school also underwent a major refurbishment under the PPP Scheme during this time to improve the quality of the accommodation. In addition, 4 pupils in 2003 applied to study Physics at Cambridge University. Such high numbers from a state school are relatively rare. A remarkable achievement. Despite the most recent HMIE report from 2014 expressing concern at the level of attainment of pupils, the school has since recorded its best ever exam results in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
House system
The school has a well established house system, which divides all pupils in the school into three different Houses when they start. The three houses are called: Caird, Grange, and Moray. There was a fourth house in the school called Seton which disbanded in 2011. House assemblies are held weekly and pupils enter a wide range of activities between Houses during the school year.
