St Peter’s RC School will be staying put at its historic Old Aberdeen home – despite worries it doesn’t have enough playground space for pupils.
It was argued that a project to upgrade a nearby building would allow Aberdeen City Council to learn “valuable lessons” on how to bring its Victorian schools up to modern energy standards.
The local authority had initially planned to move pupils to the existing Riverbank School in Tillydrone once it’s built.
However, more space became available when the neighbouring Old Aberdeen House on Dunbar Street was vacated by the Aberdeen Scientific Services Laboratory last year.
Council officers then created an alternative plan to keep St Peter’s School in place, but revamp the historic granite building to create a state-of-the-art facility offering extra teaching space instead.
St Peter’s pupils benefit from trips to Seaton Park and botanic garden
The proposal was considered at the city’s education and finance committees.
Labour members wanted the council to continue with the move to Tillydrone as they believed pupils would benefit from more outdoor space at Riverbank.
Councillor Ross Grant said staying at Old Aberdeen would “sadly deny future generations the opportunity for significantly greater secure bespoke space”.
However council bosses fired back, saying youngsters at St Peter’s enjoy visits to nearby Seaton Park and the Cruickshank Botanic Garden.
This, they argued, would make up for having a smaller playground.
The proximity to Aberdeen University was also hailed as a benefit, helping pupils to aspire towards higher education.
But Mr Grant didn’t think it was “normal” for schools to “rely” on public spaces like Seaton Park for pupils to enjoy an outdoor learning environment.
“It’s a bonus and adds value to their experience but I can’t think of any other where the school has to rely on that,” he added.
Bright future ahead for Aberdeen’s Victorian schools?
Meanwhile SNP councillor Michael Hutchison claimed the project could be “pioneering” for the city’s other Victorian schools.
He praised the “new possibility” of bringing older buildings back into more long-term use.
Property chief Stephen Booth explained the Old Aberdeen House proposal would give the council a “practical demonstration” on how granite buildings can be modernised.
He said: “Retrofitting older buildings is a challenge and we hope to get a full set of lessons learned that we can then apply elsewhere.”
‘It’s their home and that’s where they want to be’
Fellow SNP Councillor Neil Copland told the committee he knew the building very well as he attended classes there when it was previously the Old Aberdeen secondary school.
However he noted the “overwhelming message” from a public consultation held in 2019 regarding the future of St Peter’s was that the school body wanted to stay where it was.
“We are going to get a wonderful opportunity here to make a first-class school in an old Victorian building,” he commented.
“St Peter’s has been there for 40 years, it’s their home and that’s where they want to be.
“We have listened to them and we are now going to build them a state-of-the-art school.”
Should everything go to plan, the refurbished building is on track to be ready by summer 2026.
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