An Aberdeen councillor has asked for reassurance that the new Riverbank School will be built by its target date after work was paused amid a cash crisis.
Construction at the Tillydrone site was stopped in July so Aberdeen City Council could try and fight rising costs.
The price-tag for the replacement building rocketed to £36.2 million – almost £10m more than originally planned.
Project tenders due next month
The council’s finance committee has now received an update on the school’s progress.
It was confirmed that the contract for the second stage of the project has been put out to tender.
Members were told that they were initially due back before Christmas but an extension was requested.
The tenders are now due by the end of January but officers have said they are still confident that the school will be erected by summer 2024.
Councillor calls for commitment to school plans
Labour councillor Ross Grant, whose children attend Riverbank, said the update was “no surprise”.
But he believed it would cause “discomfort” for parents and residents in the area.
He asked for reassurance from officers that the summer 2024 opening date was still viable.
Mr Grant also wanted a public engagement plan to be made for the Riverbank and St Peter’s RC school communities to keep them updated on any progress.
Council engagement ‘not consistent enough’
He revealed he was “sceptical” when the 2024 completion date was first announced, but remains “enormously hopeful”.
He told the committee that Tillydrone residents are “concerned” that the proposed date may not be met.
“If we are saying we are bullish and think that we can deliver by summer 2024 then we should be reaffirming that to the local community, because we owe it to them to do that,” Mr Grant said.
“I think there is a legitimate concern by the community that engagement is not consistent enough.”
New Riverbank School was due to open this year
Concrete foundations have already been laid at the new Riverbank Primary School site.
Plans for the facility were unanimously approved back in June 2020 and the school was initially expected to open this year.
It will have capacity for 650 pupils and 100 nursery-aged youngsters.
Once the move to the new Riverbank School is complete, the existing building will be refurbished and used by St Peter’s RC Primary.
Conversation