As design work begins on East Dunbartonshire's brand new £23.5m Additional Support Needs (ASN) school, consultation with the newly appointed interim parent council and the local Community Council is also underway.
The move follows a Council decision late last year to build one state-of-the-art ASN school to replace the existing Campsie View and Merkland Schools.
After a nomination process that closed last month, parents and staff members from both schools were appointed to the interim parent council for the new school.
Their first task was to take part in a design workshop with Norr, the architects appointed to the project. During the session they gave their views on accommodation features and classroom clusters.
At a separate event in Waterside Miners' Club, there was a presentation to Waterside Community Council about the engagement strategy by Barton Wilmore on behalf of the Council.
This was an opportunity to find out more about how we can work with the community to provide meaningful engagement and agree timescales and consultation topics moving forward.
Further design workshops with both groups are scheduled with details to be posted on the Council website: https://www.eastdunbarton.gov.uk/residents/schools-and-learning/new-build-additional-support-needs-school
Joint Leader, Councillor Vaughan Moody said, “These consultations are a significant step forward, with both groups having an extremely important role to play in the development process. Members of the interim parent council know what is needed to ensure the building is fit-for-purpose for young people with additional needs. And the Community Council brings important local knowledge about the site and its surroundings to the table and represents a wide range of views."
Joint Leader Councillor Andrew Polson added, “Delivering a new school is a long process and the school communities have been heavily involved from the outset. The interim parent council will represent the parent body of both Merkland and Campsie View schools as we move forward with detailed design plans and policy making. I look forward to hearing what comes out of the planned workshops with them and the Community Council."
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