LEVENMOUTH CAMPUS OFFICIALLY OPENED

Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills John Swinney MSP paid a visit to Levenmouth to join Fife Council Leader David Ross in officially opening the new learning campus. The opening ceremony was also attended by special guests Mayor of Bruges and Vice-President of Bordeaux Metropole Madame Brigitte Terrazza and Fife Provost Jim Leishman. The £50million learning campus campus is home to the new Levenmouth Academy and Fife College Levenmouth Campus and opened its doors to pupils and learners at the start of the academic year but was officially opened today. Council Leader David Ross said: “The new Levenmouth Academy is part of Fife Council’s +£200m Building Fife’s Future programme. This is part of our commitment to delivering school buildings which equal the learning and teaching experience of our children. We are providing facilities which enable our children to take full advantage of everything that a modern education can provide. This building is a flagship facility for the area and will benefit the whole community and help our children to reach their full potential.” Deputy First Minister John Swinney said: “It is fantastic to see students and staff in Levenmouth Learning Campus. Such state of the art accommodation can inspire students, staff and parents, making a positive difference to learning outcomes as well as the wider community. That is why the Scottish Government is committed to improving Scotland’s school estate and is investing £1.8 billion in our Schools for the Future building programme – providing almost £26 million towards the new Levenmouth Academy.” The building uses a combination of natural lighting and ventilation, this helps with reducing the use of mechanical systems and the school’s carbon footprint. Using high frequency and LED lighting along with a biomass boiler as the primary heat source are cost effective, lowering the overall running costs of the school. The new Fife College Campus is located on the same site as the new Levenmouth Academy, and opened its doors to students in August 2016. The campus has been built with the capacity for 350 full-time and 200 part-time learners and its approach to development has been based on the economic priorities of Fife. Gary Bushnell, Chief Executive, hub East Central Scotland, said: "It is great to see Council's vision to partner with Fife College and create a unique learning opportunity for the community. The construction project delivered significant additional local benefits for the community with almost half of the workforce locally employed, as well as the creation of 25 work placements and 22 apprenticeships.”