The finishing line has come for a popular north-east head teacher.
With a career spanning 36 years Tim McKay has seen a lot of changes since he qualified in 1981.
Mr McKay recently made the decision to stand down at Ellon Academy due to ill health and a commemorative assembly was held in his honour.
He held positions all over the north-east including at St Machar Academy, Fraserburgh and Kemnay Academies before his first headship at Alford Academy.
He then gained the head post at Ellon and stood in at Peterhead Academy for a year.
Mr McKay said that some of the stand-out moments of his working life were seeing how young people grew and become successful.
He added: “I am equally proud of all the pupils who have been part of my teaching life and it is lovely when you meet them in later life and they recall happy stories of their time at school.”
Most notably, he remembers one young singer who never gave up on her goals – Emeli Sande, now an MBE, was attending Alford when Mr McKay was head there.
Mr McKay described the last 36 years as “immensely rewarding” and highlighted the changes that take place from the young S1 pupils who start secondary and then “ultimately leave as young adults ready for life ahead”.
Estimating that thousands of teenagers have gone through this process whilst he has been a head teacher, Mr McKay said he was grateful for the opportunities he had to “support and influence” young people.
Mr McKay, 55, said the job had changed dramatically during his time in charge, but he never lost sight of the most important aspect of teaching.
Mr McKay’s childhood was spent travelling round the world because his father was in the RAF, but his schooling was predominantly at Aberdeen Grammar where he was head boy (and his future wife was head girl).
Mr McKay has chosen to take early retirement after undergoing three hip replacements.
He said: “I hope the rest will facilitate my long-term recovery.”