Pupils on the Isle of Mull are a step closer to getting a new school.
The ageing Tobermory campus needs millions of pounds worth of improvements, and plans for an all-new, modern campus have been in the pipeline for some time.
Now Argyll and Bute Council has submitted a business case for the £35 million project to the Scottish Government.
However, there is no clarity yet as to where the new campus would be built. Currently, pupils go to both Tobermory and Oban – with the latter requiring boarding during the week.
The new campus would end that arrangement – but has sparked repeated questions about where it would be best located.
The school population is calculated as 31 early learning, 90 primary and 177 secondary school pupils from Mull and Iona.
Decision on project funding announced in December
At the moment the Tobermory campus meets the needs of pupils to the north of the island. Children from the south of the island, and from the Isle of Iona, attend high school in Oban – and spend every week boarding at the town’s school hostel for island children.
Parents have argued that if the school was built in Craignure then pupils from the south of the island, and Iona would be able to return home every evening.
However, parents in and around Tobermory, the island’s biggest population, argue that pupils will need to travel by the bus-load to Craignure adding to the traffic on Mull’s single-track roads.
Argyll and Bute Council has now submitted a business case and funding application to the Scottish Government’s Learning Estate Investment Programme (LEIP) for the new campus.
The submission will compete for funding against a number of other local authorities. Scottish ministers will announce the successful bids in December.
Campus on Mull the highest priority
Policy lead for education, Councillor Yvonne McNeilly said: “We have considered the needs of our education estate through the learning estate strategy and, having reviewed a small number of potential projects, we determined that a campus on Mull is the highest priority need both in terms of educational benefit and building condition.
“Children and young people attending Tobermory Campus deserve a state-of-the-art community learning facility, and residents have expressed support for this.
“A new campus on the island will further enhance attainment and achievement for our learners, with purposely designed immersion spaces, both indoors and outdoors.
“This is a hugely positive step but, even if we are successful in our bid, the LEIP does not fully fund projects so the council will also have to make a significant financial commitment.”
Conversation