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Merchiston Castle School, Edinburgh

By Sue Leonard

Rows of carved pumpkins light up the junior school, inside the senior school buildings boys are rehearsing for drama shows, while others are doing music practice and more still are playing rugby or football on the nine beautifully manicured pitches within the 100-acre grounds of Scotland's only independent boys' boarding school.

It's Tuesday afternoon at Merchiston Castle School, a half day for the pupils classes-wise, but parents can be assured that the 450 boys are purposefully engaged in all sorts of other activities.

Merchiston, which also admits day pupils, is school and residence to two-thirds of its students who are aged between eight and 18. With its cosy six-bedroom dorms, single en-suite rooms for sixth-formers, "house mothers" making hot chocolate, and a secret garden for pupils to enjoy, it brings to mind the homely feel of JK Rowling's Hogwarts, a world apart from Charles Dickens' austere and authoritarian Dotheboys Hall. There is even a giant chess set. It may not be not wizard's chess, but there is nonetheless a little bit of magic about Merchiston, which is plain to see from its truly impressive exam results which now rank it first among the Scottish private schools which follow the A-level/GCSE exam system.

Our Scottish Independent School of the Year, Merchiston has knocked better-known Fettes off the top spot for the first time and by quite some way - no mean feat, particularly for an all-boys' school. This summer 79.8% of A-level papers taken by Merchiston pupils were graded A or B while 67.7% of GCSEs were awarded A* or A grades, which compares with 71.6% and 60.4% at Fettes, alma mater of Tony Blair, the former prime minister.

"We're delighted with this accolade," says headmaster Andrew Hunter, who has seen the school roll increase by more than 100 in the 12 years he has been in charge. "We're passionate about teaching boys. We have been working away doing what we think education is all about."

For Hunter and his staff that is about giving pupils an academic hunger and inspiring them to do their best at everything in and out of the classroom, all the while helping to transform them from boys to bright and decent young men. "Our job is to make the most of every opportunity with every single boy, to make a difference, and we do that," says Hunter. "That is our standard."

The school was praised by inspectors in March for the excellence of its leadership, quality of staff and the care and support given to the boys, who predominantly come from Scotland. About 17% of pupils come from abroad.

Four miles from the centre of Edinburgh overlooked by the Pentland Hills, Merchiston has been educating boys for more than 180 years and it has no intention of following the modern trend of public schools to go coeducational. Merchiston believes its results are proof that boys learn better in a single-sex environment. The evidence is that its curriculum and teaching methods are paying dividends for both pupils, who on average bag nine GCSEs and three good A-levels, and their parents who are forking out a minimum of £3,720 and up to £8,040 a term for their sons' education.

"We will never go coed," says Hunter. "We think girls and boys learn differently." The key is interactive, hands-on learning, practical application of knowledge and lots of praise and encouragement. It's what boys like and how they learn best, according to the staff.

Design technology, which is falling out of fashion in some schools, is thriving here. The department is a boys' wonderland of tools and equipment. Originally set up to deliver science, Merchiston has no problem interesting boys in the subject, particularly with its emphasis on experimental work. An impressive 63% of sixth-formers have chosen to study it at A-level, while 75 out of 90 boys have opted to do maths. These are figures most schools can only dream of. Economics is also popular and was added as an option in the sixth form at the request of pupils.

The usual range of subjects is also taught throughout the school, from history and English (another popular choice in sixth form) to geography and French, all delivered in a way that engages boys - from the use of humour and set tasks to frequent direct questioning from teachers passionate about their subject.

The success of the school is all the more impressive because the entrance exam is not as stiff as that of many other private schools, and Merchiston even accepts boys who have marginally failed its entrance test if they show some spark. Marion Muetzelfeldt, overseer of academic achievement, puts the school's striking academic success down to the work ethic encouraged in the boys and its commitment to making sure pupils do better than they think they can. The director of studies, who also teaches maths, has an obsession with charts and reviews the performance not just of pupils but teachers too. Classes are observed and the results of pupils tracked, to ensure every child pushes themselves to achieve the best marks they possibly can.

Pupils are also assessed to ascertain what they are likely to achieve at GCSE. "We have a particularly good idea in form four of the calibre we have got and use this as a benchmark to make sure the boys are achieving more than that, because their parents are paying a lot of money to send them here," adds Muetzelfeldt, who says that boys are normally capable of achieving one-and-a-half grades better than the benchmark.

The school prizes academic achievement highly but its ethos is concerned with people and relationships, and particular importance is attached to the development of personal character and moral values in pupils.

Merchiston wants to turn out gentle men and Hunter makes the distinction of separating the two words. "Boys' schools used to be savage," says the headmaster. "I went to a boys' school. They used to be full of bullies. The message was you must be a macho man, you must not be sensitive. We are saying, forget all that." Merchiston wants to teach emotional as well as academic intelligence, not necessarily the easiest option.

With many staff living on site, the boys are not short of positive role models, male and female. The unique house system, which requires boys to change house as they move up through the school, also helps develop good relationships with a wider group of people and avoids any bitter interhouse rivalry.

Chaucerian values of manners, courage, dignity, honour, perseverance and courtesy are the order of the day. "We try to teach young people to be good men," adds Hunter. "We are not thinking of our boys when they leave at 18. We try to imagine them at 25."

Boys learn to open doors for those coming in, to stand when visitors enter a room and, as they get older, to undertake altruistic deeds and help others. Sixth-formers act as mentors to local primary school pupils and get involved in community projects. "It is being very ambitious for them, but rooting them in values," says Hunter.

It should not surprise visitors, then, that while it is a busy place the school is extraordinarily calm. Unusually there is no school bell or corridors.

Away from academia, music and art are a vital part of Merchiston, with boys' artwork prominently displayed and half the pupils learning a musical instrument. There are 160 boys in the choral society.

"It is cool to be in the choir," smiles Hunter, pointing out once again the benefits of an all-boys' school where pupils do not feel inhibited or distracted by girls. That doesn't mean girls are not welcome. The boys collaborate with St George's School for Girls in Edinburgh on music and drama productions (a highlight of the school calendar), as well as on a number of other activities and social events. Close links have been forged also with St Margaret's School in the city and Kilgraston School in Perthshire.

Sport, of course, plays a huge part in life at Merchiston, occupying anything up to four afternoons a week across the different age groups, not to mention weekend fixtures and away games. While Merchiston has produced more than 60 international rugby players, including current Scotland player Phil Godman, it doesn't only produce rugby stars. The school offers 18 other sports including clay pigeon shooting, sailing and fives. Last year there were seven internationals in sports from cricket to skiing, athletics and tennis. There is even a Tennis Scotland-endorsed academy.

As a "sports-for-all school", you don't have to be a top sportsman at Merchiston but you are expected to have a go and that goes for other co-curricular activities, from the Combined Cadet Force, debating or outdoor education which includes kayaking, mountain biking, rock climbing and winter mountaineering. Every boy in the senior school has to attempt the Duke of Edinburgh's bronze award.

The opportunities are as impressive as the site, which includes a new sixth-form building complete with 126 en-suite bedrooms, a cafe area with plasma televisions, as well as multigym seminar and study rooms. Nicholas Nickleby would have approved.

"A boy has the chance every day to feel a sense of self-worth," says Hunter, although Merchiston does not shout from the rooftops about its success.

"We believe in humility," the headmaster says. "I am pleased we have this award. I think the school deserves it. We certainly won't be complacent, neither will we think we are the best thing since sliced bread."