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Whatriggs Primary School

An investment of £12.400m in the merger of Bellfield and Kirkstyle Primary Schools, resulted in the development of a new state-of-the-art Primary School and Early Childhood Centre as well as flexible facilities for the community. A design concept for the building was produced by East Ayrshire architects, in consultation with the school and the local community, and was developed by the main contractor Morrison Construction in partnership with architects, Keppie Design.

Travel arrangements 

Newsletters from Morrison Construction

Consultation

Find out about the consultation exercise.

Project timeline

Start date:  June 2016

Finish date:  June 2017

Download reports

Plans

Download plans of the building:

Project updates

  • The official key handover ceremony took place on Thursday 24 August 2017.
  • Mrs MacKinnon and staff welcomed pupils to their new school on Monday 21 August 2017.
  • New furniture was delivered and installed during the summer holidays and resources were moved from Bellfield and Kirkstyle Primaries into the new school.
  • The building was handed over to East Ayrshire Council on schedule.
  • The contractor reported that the building was on schedule and would be handed over to East Ayrshire during June 2017.
  • All furniture has been ordered for the school. Deliveries and installations will take place over the summer break.
  • Progress continues with internal colour schemes, furniture layouts and external landscaping.
  • A “topping out” ceremony was held on 2 March 2017. Pupils, teaching staff, Elected Members and Council officers attended the special event. Morrison Construction had prepared one of the rooms with a teaching wall, furniture and sinks as an example of what the classrooms will be like when the school opens in August 2017. 
  • On 24 February 2017 Winners from P1 and P5 received a canvas print of their winning playground design entry and a family ticket cinema voucher from the staff at Morrison Construction.
  • The finalists of the playground design competition were presented with a 'goody' bag from the staff at Morrison Construction.
  • Staff from Bellfield and Kirkstyle Primaries worked together during the February in-service days to discuss interior finishes for the new school. Morrison Construction facilitated site visits for staff who were excited to see their new classrooms, offices and especially the flexible spaces which provides staff and pupils with opportunities for collaborative and creative learning.
  • On 24 January 2017 Mrs Diane MacKinnon was appointed Head Teacher of the new Whatriggs Primary School.
  • During January P1 enrolment week the new uniform was displayed in Bellfield and Kirkstyle Primaries.
  • On 19 December 2016 the Ranger Service planted a Victorian plum tree which Kirkstyle pupils received for coming 3rd in the annual Scarecrow Competition at Dean Castle & Country Park's Harvest Festival.
  • "Press Pack Pupils" from Bellfield and Kirkstyle Primaries visited the site on 31 October 2016 to interview the construction team and see how the site is progressing. They wrote up their findings and presented them in a newsletter. Monthly "Press Pack" visits have since taken place. 
  • Official ground breaking  ceremony took place on 15 September 2016.
  • Morrison Construction to set up a foodbank donation point on site.
  • Community play park equipment has been uplifted and put in to storage off site.
  • Morrison Construction commenced  works on site on 20 June 2016. They will produce a regular newsletter to keep the local community updated on the progress of the project.
  • As part of the community benefit programme, Morrison Construction are working with pupils from both schools in a variety of activities. A group of pupils from both schools will make monthly visits to the site to interview members of the construction team and to see the progress of the building work. The pupils will then report this back to all pupils in their schools in a newsletter. The pupils from both schools will also have the opportunity over the next few months to enter a competition to design the soft play area surface of their new playground. 
  • Uniform and badge  winners were announced on 27 June 2016. Pupils, parents and staff attended the  presentation in the council chambers. Holli Marshall from Bellfield Primary designed the winning uniform  (Entry D) and badge  (Entry B).
  • Morrison Construction have been named as the successful contractor for the project. Work is due to commence on site on 20 June 2016. They are very keen to get pupils involved in a range of activities. The first of these took place on 13 June 2016 when staff from Morrison Construction delivered  site safety talks to the pupils from both schools.
  • The new school has officially been named  Whatriggs Primary School, after extensive community consultation, undertaken across a wide range of groups, including pupils, parents, staff and representatives from the local community, business and voluntary sectors. Proposals from these groups were collated into a report and presented to Cabinet on 27th January 2016 where the final decision was made. Whatriggs Primary School will be built on ground adjacent to the Bellfield Community Centre on Whatriggs Road, from where the new school takes its name.
  • The report on the naming of the new school will be discussed at Cabinet on Wednesday 27th January 2016.
  • The consultation period for proposing the new name for the school has now closed. The report will be presented to Cabinet on 27th January 2016.
  • Plans are being developed to accommodate groups who use the existing Bellfield Community Centre.
  • A consultation into the naming of the new school is currently underway. Groups to be consulted include the school community, the local community, the small business sector and the voluntary sector.  Proposals, accompanied by a reason for the choice, should be sent to aileen.hollywood@east-ayrshire.gov.uk by Friday 27 November 2015. All proposals will be collated into a report and Cabinet will make the final decision on a new name early 2016.
  • Bellfield and Kirkstyle Pupil Councils have been holding joint meetings to get to know each other and discuss issues such as a uniform for the new school. 

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