Work has commenced on a major new primary school at Ness Castle in Inverness.
Being built to serve the housing developments at Ness Castle and Ness-Side in the south part of the city, the new school will be one of the largest in the Highlands.
With the capacity for more than 333 children, planning permission was granted by Highland Council last year.
Planned to open in August of next year the primary school features as part of a two-phase strategy to provide education to more than 800 pupils in the local area.
Chairman of the education committee, councillor John Finlayson said: “This is an exciting development for the area and for members of the community who I am sure are eagerly awaiting its completion.
“The new school will not only meet the needs of the school community but is also prepared to deliver against any future accommodation demands that may arise.
“Hopefully, we will see the building grow and evolve alongside the local community.”
The new school will have 12 classrooms and nursery accommodation for 128 pupils.
The building has been designed to allow it to be extended in a phased manner to provide up to 24 classrooms to meet the future demand from housebuilding in the catchment area.
Provost and chairwoman of Inverness Area Committee, councillor Helen Carmichael added: “This is fantastic news for Ness Castle and Ness-Side in Inverness. The new school building will serve the housing developments in the area and will continue to accommodate and be a great asset to the community for years to come.”
Costing around £14.8 million, the project is being funded by the Council’s capital programme and will be overseen by Kier Construction who will deliver the project in conjunction with the Council’s in-house Property Teams.
Philip McDowell, regional director at Kier Regional Building North & Scotland said: “We are delighted to have started work at Ness Castle Primary School.
“This project award continues our long-standing relationship with The Highland Council and we are looking forward to delivering this new school which will provide first-class educational facilities for families within this new housing development in Inverness.”