Peebles High School 'closed until Christmas' after fire

The school will be shut until at least Christmas as a result of the fire

A high school in the Borders will remain closed until at least Christmas following a severe fire.

Investigations are continuing into the cause of the blaze at Peebles High School, which caters for about 1,200 pupils.

Scottish Borders Council said art classrooms, a gymnasium and surrounding areas suffered "significant damage".

It said it was working closely with the school's management team to organise learning plans for each year group.

The council said that would include using other locations for classes as well as some online learning and that parents would be directly informed.

The focus of the operation was an old gym building in the grounds

About 70 firefighters tackled the blaze at the Borders secondary after it broke out at about 13:00 on Thursday.

'Wouldn't be safe'

Everyone was evacuated safely and no-one was injured in the incident, which saw nine fire engines and two height appliances working to bring the blaze under control.

Council chief executive Tracey Logan said: "This fire has resulted in some serious damage to the school and it just wouldn't be safe or practical to open it without taking time to properly assess the damage and plan the recovery.

"To minimise disruption we've taken a swift decision to close it right through to the Christmas break."

Ms Logan said there would be a particular focus on helping pupils who were preparing to sit prelim exams.

Investigation are continuing into the cause of the blaze

Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Area Commander Steve Gourlay said it was a "large, complex" fire that had required resources from across the east of Scotland and further afield.

He said a fire investigation team would look into the cause and Police Scotland also said inquiries into the incident were ongoing.

Ms Logan said it was "not appropriate" to speculate on the cause of the fire.

The council has also set up a dedicated webpage for updates.

The old gym, which was among the areas most affected by the fire, was due to be used as a polling station on 12 December.

However, voters will now go to Priorsford Primary, which will now be closed to pupils on the day.

The fire caused significant damage to the school building