School replacement plans dropped due to costs

Proposals to replace two primary schools and a special education school in Peterhead have been scrapped but plans for a new secondary will go ahead.

Councillors voting on the scheme said the replacement facilities for Dales Park, Meethill and Anna Ritchie schools would not go ahead as it was no longer affordable.

Plans for the construction of a new Peterhead Academy at Kinmundy Road will proceed, with a proposed opening in August 2028.

The Peterhead Community Campus Project - which would have replaced all four schools - has faced delays after the preferred contractor to build it pulled out last year.

A report is set to be brought back to Aberdeenshire Council in June on costs, design and procurement.

The current facilities at Meethill, Dales Park and Anna Ritchie schools will be retained with future improvement work to be assessed at a later date.

Councillor Judy Whyte, provost of Aberdeenshire, said: "We recognise that the decision will be disappointing for the primary and special schools no longer within scope of the project.

"In the current financial climate, we are not in a position to build what we initially set out to, but this remains an ambitious project.

"We remain committed to a discussion in the community to ensure Dales Park, Meethill and Anna Ritchie schools can keep providing a positive learning environment for our pupils."