New Oakbank Primary School starts on site

The official start of works to build new facilities for Oakbank Primary School in Perth commenced with a turf-cutting ceremony. The £9m project forms part of Perth & Kinross Council's ongoing capital programme of school upgrades and improvements contracts with hub East Central Scotland (hubco) to enhance the environment for learning and teaching across the area. In total, hubco’s contracts with Council will see the development of 3 primary schools and 1 secondary school in the education & lifelong learning estate in Perth & Kinross. The Council’s education department are also engaging hubco on a range of Strategic Support Partnering Services. The new combined primary school and nursery will be built on the playing field adjacent to the current school, which will then be demolished once construction is complete to create new sports pitches and landscaping. The increasing demand for Additional Support Needs (ASN) provision in Perth and Kinross has also been responded to with ASN facilities included as part of the project. Contractors BAM began work on site in April 2014 and it is anticipated that the new school will open its doors to pupils and staff in August 2015. Lifelong Learning Convener, Councillor Bob Band officially cut the first turf on site. He commented: "The replacement of Oakbank Primary School with these brand new facilities is something I am sure the school community is very much looking forward to. In partnership with hub East Central Scotland, we are working on upgrading education provision throughout the Perth and Kinross area and this project is a significant part of our ongoing school estate strategy." Neil McCormick, hubco Chief Executive said ‘We are delighted that Perth & Kinross Council have partnered with hub East Central Scotland to build the new Oakbank Primary School. This is our second school on site, after our team recently commenced operations on the site of the new Crieff Primary. We are looking to deliver a significant portion of this investment through local resources as part of our development agreement with the Council. I would like to take this opportunity to encourage local businesses to join our supply chain if they haven’t already done so to help us deliver these objectives.