Moray Council has confirmed that £17million improvement plans to four primary schools will get under way this summer.
The Scottish Government revealed in October last year that funding was to be allocated to Moray for the work to be carried out on four schools – St Gerardine’s in Lossiemouth, Millbank in Buckie, Applegrove in Forres and Elgin’s Seafield Primary.
Announcing the funding from the Scottish Futures Trust learning minister Alasdair Allan said that £7million was required from Moray Council to allow the refurbishments to go ahead.
Now the local authority has confirmed funding is in place and that a contract for the work had been granted to Galliford Try, the parent company of Morrison Construction. Teaching at all four schools will continue as the refurbishments are carried out with work on all four schools expected to be completed by the spring of 2017.
The funding will be used to upgrade existing buildings at the schools including new roofing, toilets and better insulation, heating and wiring systems.
Millbank primary in Buckie will see four new classrooms created which head teacher Rosemary Garrity said would make a huge difference to the school and mean that they will be able to spend less of their own budget on energy costs.
She added that the new classrooms would be a “great boon” to the school and accommodate increasing pupil numbers.
Applegrove’s Lesley Meechan also welcomed the announcement, admitting that it would mean a lot of work going on in the school “but the result will be worth it”.
The Scottish Government funding is part of a £100million package for schools throughout Scotland first announced in June 2014.