A new multimillion-pound school has taken another major step forward.
The £54million Inverurie Community Campus would replace the existing academy on its current site.
Aberdeenshire Council has now submitted a formal application to build the new school.
If approved, the new facility will consist of 73 classrooms or labs, a large dining hall and kitchen and a conference room.
The modern design would also include various areas for pupils to study outside of the classroom and spaces for staff to work.
The campus, which has space for 1,600 pupils, will also include a replacement St Andrew’s School which serves youngsters with additional support needs.
Similar to the authority’s newer schools at Alford and Ellon the site would also accommodate community groups.
This would feature four different swimming pools, a six-lane, training, hydrotherapy and warm water pools.
A cafe, all-weather pitch, seven-a-side pitch and games area would also be included in the plans.
In a report prepared by planning chiefs, the authority’s education director Maria Walker said: “The campus represents a new era for education, community and leisure facilities in Inverurie.
“It is a hugely significant project for the town which will bring together school pupils and their families, staff and sport enthusiasts and community who will use the new facilities.”
Construction is planned in three phases, the first of which is hoped to begin in 2018.
The first stage of the project would involve a new car park being built on Victoria Park, the playing field on Westfield Road, to serve the current school.
The school’s existing playing fields would be cleared and building structure works would then begin.
The campus building would then be built with the old facility subsequently demolished to allow parking and landscaping to be finished.
A final decision on the development will be taken by full council in the future.
