The £3.2 million refurbishment and extension of an Orkney school will provide much-needed construction work on the islands for the next two years.
Orkney Islands Council is inviting tenders for the contract to extend and refurbish St Andrews Primary School.
Councillors have agreed to include the £3.2 million project within the current capital programme.
The 24-month project includes the construction of a new-build nursery and extension to the PE hall, along with improvements to the existing school, including drainage.
The extension will enable the school to accommodate up to eight classes and it’s anticipated the project will allow for an increasing pupil roll, future-proofing the school, which currently educates just over 200.
The deadline for tenders is the end of this month, with works then due to begin swiftly, towards the end of October.
St Andrews Primary School, which opened in 1996 as a result of the amalgamation of the schools in Holm and St Andrews, serves the East Mainland, with a catchment area covering Holm, Deerness, Toab and Tankerness.
East Mainland, South Ronaldsay and Burray Councillor, Andrew Drever, said: “St Andrews Primary School is very highly regarded.
“It has a growing school roll and that is predicted to continue.
“I very much welcome the tendering process for an extension and refurbishment to see the works begin to accommodate the increasing number of school pupils and nursery bairns.
“This will ensure the community has a fantastic educational facility for many years to come.”
The school has strong links with Kirkwall Grammar School, the secondary school to which all of the children transfer following their Primary 7 year.
The two schools work closely on a range of transition projects to support pupils moving to the secondary sector.
Up until the time of the Covid-19 pandemic, the school ran a number of activities for children outside of its core opening hours.
Activities include football, netball, badminton and a chess club.
In addition, further activities are run through the community facility, including football and rugby training.