Schools for the Future milestone

Work is underway on the 100th new school in the £1.8 billion Schools for the Future Programme.

Deputy First Minister John Swinney cut the turf at the site for the new Bertha Park High School in Perth, which will receive £19.6 million of funding from the Scottish Government.

The programme, launched in 2009, will see the construction or refurbishment of 116 schools by March 2020, benefitting over 60,000 pupils. A total of 75 schools have been completed and opened to date.

The new Bertha Park High School, scheduled to open in summer 2019, will contain community sports facilities and create around 200 jobs over the construction period, including 17 apprenticeships.

Mr Swinney said:

“We are committed to ensuring our young people and teachers can thrive in modern, state of the art school buildings and our record on improving the education estate speaks for itself.

“We have made fantastic progress and have wonderful, award-winning schools across all parts of Scotland which stand as testament to that - Bertha Park will be an exciting addition to those existing schools.

“I have seen the real difference these buildings can make to the lives of pupils, teachers and parents, as well as the wider communities they serve, and we will continue our efforts to improve the condition of our entire learning estate, from early years through to schools and colleges.”

Gemma Boggs, Education Delivery Director at Scottish Futures Trust (SFT), said: 

“Our expert management of the Schools for the Future programme is helping all of Scotland’s 32 councils succeed in delivering the very best teaching and learning environments within ever-tightening budgets. 

“As well as supporting many thousands of construction jobs, the programme is creating and delivering world-class, award-winning learning environments that not only meet future educational needs but are vibrant community assets as well.

“I am delighted to see the 100th school going into construction. Bertha Park is a shining example of what can be achieved with real cross programme collaboration.”

Background

The Scottish Government is providing £1.13 billion towards the Schools for the Future programme, with local authorities contributing the remaining funding.

The number of new schools to be built as part of the programme has more than doubled since it was launched in 2009.

The Schools for the Future programme is co-ordinated, managed and facilitated by the Scottish Futures Trust.