By COLIN ROBERTSON (NW)

 

Work has begun on a new state-of-the-art secondary school in Levenmouth, which will combine the catchment areas of Buckhaven and Kirkland High Schools.

 

The new ‘super school’ is on course to be the biggest in Scotland and will house 1,800 pupils.

 

Bryan Poole, Fife councillor and spokesperson for Education, Children, Young People and Families explained why the decision was taken to merge the schools:

 

“The two secondary schools in the area – Buckhaven and Kirkland – were both built some years ago and were physically past their best, although the teaching within both schools was and is very good.

 

“Both were either in need of significant investment to upgrade or replacement. An opportunity for partnership funding with the Scottish Government occurred and Fife Council agreed that we should build a new state-of-the-art secondary school equipped to meet the learning needs of the young people of today and in the future.

 

“The rolls in both of the existing schools is well below the capacity and it was agreed the best way forward was to bring the two schools together as one new school”.

 

The ambitious project comes at a cost of £35 million and the vast majority of the funding is being allocated from the Scottish Futures Trust - a Scottish Government initiative with the aim of improving public infrastructure in Scotland. It’s part of a wider effort by Fife Council called Building Fife’s Future (BFF) which will see £213 million invested in Fife’s schools over the next few years with the aim of building ultra-modern, 21st century schools in the Kingdom.

 

In addition to the Levenmouth project, there are new schools being built in Kirkcaldy, Dunfermline, St. Andrews and Anstruther, all of which have been designed ‘to create the best possible learning environment for Fife’s young people’.

 

The school is being built in tandem with a new campus for Fife College, which will be housed in an adjacent area. Explaining the decision to combine the two grounds, councillor Poole says:

 

“The links between Fife’s secondary schools and Fife College is absolutely crucial in providing the right opportunities for Fife’s young people.

 

“It is my view that having the new school and college facility on the one campus will lead to a better learning environment with better learning opportunities for the young people in Levenmouth.”

 

The news of the school has also been welcomed by local residents. Janet Taylor, a mother-of-three, described the project as a “fresh start for the area,” and Claire Baxter, another local mum, said “it’s bringing some optimism back to the region.”

 

The school is scheduled to be opened in summer 2016.