School relocation dropped after parental opposition

Proposals for a new primary in Eyemouth have been on the table for many years

Plans to move a Borders primary into the grounds of the town's high school have been dropped in the face of parental opposition.

A demonstration against the proposals in Eyemouth had been organised due to the level of community concern.

However, Scottish Borders Council said it had received hundreds of objections since announcing the plans in the summer.

As a result a report has been tabled recommending that the proposals are dropped and the local authority will "take time to reconsider its approach and intentions".

Proposals for a new primary in Eyemouth have been discussed for many years due to the condition of the current building.

The latest plan was for a £15m relocation which would have seen the high school "reconfigured and extended" to include the new facility.

The old primary would have been demolished and a new early learning centre built on the site.

Council consultation on those proposals generated hundreds of responses - the "overwhelming majority" of them against the plan.

Among the issues raised were the ability of the area to cope with increased numbers of pupils and staff and also safeguarding concerns about having such a wide age range at the same site.

Sarah Duncan from the parents' protest group cautiously welcomed the decision.

She said: "We are glad that the council is finally listening to what the people of Eyemouth are saying, but we won't be celebrating until the agreement is made at the council meeting.

"We also want assurances that the £15m is still allocated for Eyemouth and they start at looking to give us a new school in the same area as the current one."

Executive member for education, Julie Pirone, said the council had listened to community concerns.

"We have now taken time to reflect on the responses received to date and recognise the overwhelming majority of respondents are not supportive of the proposals," she said.

"I believe that because of this, the statutory consultation on the relocation should be ended.

"I also know that local members support this viewpoint."

She said SBC had an "extremely strong track record of prioritising investment in its school estate" and still wanted to see the "best possible facility" offered to children in Eyemouth.