Ferryhill pupils will be spared a morning walk to Torry – if the council reopens mothballed Walker Road School to accommodate them.
Councillors have approved outline plans for a £17.1 million refurbishment of Ferryhill School.
And the boarded up Torry primary, which closed in October as local children left for the new Greyhope School, is their likely stop gap.
It would cost Aberdeen City Council £713,000 to reopen the mothballed Walker Road School, and to bus pupils to it from Ferryhill.
During their 12-to-15-month relocation, a new extension and standalone nursery will be built at their Victorian school.
Work is promised to boost their crumbling primary’s grades from a “not fit for purpose” D to an A.
Revamp hailed as ‘worthwhile and important’
Council finance convener Alex McLellan said: “The relocation seems to be a point of contention.
“But the school community is involved in the dialogue on that plan. It’s no secret.
“And there will be no expectation that kids will be walking to the relocated school.
“I think we need to be clear: while there is a preferred option at this point, things can change, options are considered, and it’s up to [councillors] to make a final decision.”
But he said the suggested move to the “very close” Walker Road was “very sensible” – but it won’t be finalised until the final plans are drawn up.
How would Ferryhill pupils get to Walker Road School?
However Labour members M. Tauqeer Malik and Simon Watson argued against signing off on the outline plans – arguing the “experts” on the education committee should have the final vote.
He also questioned how children would be expected to get to the replacement Torry school, which is a 16-minute walk away.
While it is not currently known how much bus travel would cost, it will be included in a more detailed business case that will go before councillors at a later date.
Giving pupils hard hats ‘not a good plan’
SNP councillor John Cooke added: “It’s not a done deal, nothing is going to be set in tablets of stone.
“Officers might come up with a plan B, plan C or plan D… but I suspect that won’t happen because there are only a couple of options open here.
“One is to keep the kids at Ferryhill School and issue them all with a hard hat during their lessons which doesn’t seem like a good plan.
“The only other option is to find an alternative building while the work is going on.”
Should everything go to plan, Ferryhill students could move across to Walker Road School after next year’s summer holiday.
But the relocation won’t be sealed until the final business case for the school is approved by councillors.
After the £17.1m improvements, Ferryhill School will cost an extra £200,000 a year to run.
Schools bosses estimate the refurbishment will take between 12 to 15 months to complete.
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