New Black Isle Schools Open Their Doors
Two brand new community schools on the Black Isle have opened their doors to pupils, representing a £6.8 million investment by The Highland Council.
Resolis Primary School threw open its doors to welcome 88 pupils on Wednesday (18 April) morning. The school replaces the primary schools of Cullicudden and Newhall. A total of £3.3 million has been spent on four primary classrooms; a resource/library area; a pupil support room; a nursery room with a protected play area; a multi purpose hall; a general purpose/dining room; cloakrooms, toilets with showers; a hard play area and full sized football grass pitch; a cycle compound and car parking area with a drop off zone.
On Wednesday morning pupils walked from the local church to meet up outside Resolis Primary School and on the following morning (Thursday 19 April) 125 pupils from Culbokie were accompanied by ex-pupils playing pipes and drums on the short walk from their old to their new school. Here £3.5 million has been spent on providing six primary classrooms; a Resource/library area; pupil support room; nursery room, including quiet room; protected nursery play area; a community multi purpose hall; a general purpose/dining room; cloakrooms toilets and showers; hard play area and grass pitch; cycle compound and car parking area. A dedicated community room has also been provided and the hall will be available for community use in evenings and weekends and on non school days.
The Highland Council’s Chairman of Education, Culture and Sport, Councillor Andy Anderson was at both schools to greet the excited pupils as they arrived.
He said: “The schools at Cullicudden, Newhall and Culbokie have served many people well over the years but we felt strongly that staff, pupils and the wider community deserved schools fit for the 21st century with excellent modern facilities to reflect the high standard of teaching and develop involment of the wider community. Resolis School is in one of the most densley populated rural settings in the Highlands and Culbokie is a fast growing village. Both are very much at the heart of their local communities and will, I am sure, play an active and central role in the lives of not just the young people who will come through their doors for years to come but also for everyone living in the surrounding area.”
The two new Black Isle schools were built by Tulloch Construction under a sub contract arrangement to the project’s main contractor Morrison Construction.
Neil Duncan, Associate Director with Tulloch Rok, the principle contractors for both schools, said: "From a contract management perspective, we're delighted that the schools have been handed over on time and to budget, with a very high standard of workmanship, especially given the fact that we had to complete both in the shortest timescales of all the 10 schools being built in this programme with forty six weeks for Culbokie and forty seven for Resolis.
"There were many design development challenges which we had to meet head-on in delivering these projects, and we believe our solutions will act as a template for other schools being built within this programme."
Commenting on the successful completion of the schools, Derek Chambers, Morrison Construction’s Project Director for the Highland Schools project, said: “These important education and community facilities have been completed on time and on budget. They are modern, airy and spacious buildings and should provide a learning environment that is second to none.”
Under the PPP process, Morrison Facilities Services now provides the two schools with a range of facilities management services which runs for 30 years and includes building maintenance and security, cleaning and grounds maintenance and helpdesk support.
Mr Chambers continued: “Around our Highland Schools project, it is exciting to see the enormous progress that we continue to make. Eight projects are now on site, following the successful completion on the Black Isle, with the final school starting this month. Inspection processes now underway at a further two of those – Inshes Primary School and Gaelic Medium Primary School both in Inverness and both scheduled for handover on 30 April.”