Hopes are high that a new Elgin secondary school could be the catalyst needed to tackle teacher shortages.
Earlier this year, the true extent of the region’s teaching crisis emerged when Moray Council education bosses revealed pupils faced being sent home due to a lack of staff to take lessons.
Little interest in vacancies and a shortage of supply teachers has also compounded problems.
However, following the Scottish Government’s announcement this week that construction on a new multi-million-pound secondary school can go ahead, local leaders believe the situation could now change.
Plans to replace Elgin High School were left in limbo for months due to a complex EU funding wrangle which left the scheme in limbo.
Corporate director of education and social care Laurence Findlay said: “I would certainly hope that this will help encourage more teachers to Moray.
“In our experience, when you have a nice, new school with a pleasant environment for learning that does tend to attract teachers.
“We also find it easier to bring teachers to larger settlements like Elgin than to outlying areas, and the new school will only help that.
“There are real benefits in teaching in a new school – when I go into Elgin Academy I can feel a positive, vibrant ethos.
“The building and the environment has such an impact on the quality of learning and teaching.”
A spokesman for the local authority agreed.
“Our recent recruitment issues are more likely to be eased if we can offer state-of-the-art schools and facilities for teachers to enjoy their careers in,” he said.
“It’s clear that as the population of Elgin increases as forecast we will need even more teaching staff to join the school, which will have a capacity of 1,000.”
In addition to the new Elgin secondary, the council is currently awaiting government approval to replace Lossiemouth High School.
Deputy chairman of the council’s children and young people’s services committee George Alexander, a former Forres Academy teacher, said: “With all these new facilities, Moray will become an increasingly attractive area in which to be a teacher.
“People like to be working in agreeable conditions, and we have already have a super new school in Elgin.”