Pupils, teachers, parents, Councillors and invited guests joined East Dunbartonshire’s Provost Gillian Renwick last night to celebrate the official opening of the new Woodland View School in Kirkintilloch.
The £34.9m building, delivered by contractors McLaughlin & Harvey, is situated in Waterside, Kirkintilloch and replaces Campsie View and Merkland Schools. The children and young people, aged 2 to 18 years, are now being taught together in the state-of-the-art facility which is designed to be both practical and stimulating for pupils with a broad range of additional support needs.
Provost Renwick, with the help of pupils Barzy and Lisa, unveiled the plaque to officially open the fabulous building, during a ceremony filled with music and celebration.
Provost Renwick said, “It is hard to believe Woodland View only opened its doors to pupils in August, already there is a wonderful feeling of warmth and community within this new school. In just a couple of short months, the pupils, teachers and staff have been getting familiar with their new surroundings and enjoying all it has to offer whilst building a new school community. New friendships have been forged and there is a tangible sense of identity and pride in Woodland View already. 
“The official opening ceremony was an opportunity for the children and young people to welcome invited guests into their fantastic new building which is both practical and stimulating for pupils. It features lots of open spaces and a magnificent sensory trail leading from the ground to first floor. Guests were also treated to excellent hospitality and outstanding musical performances from the school vocal group and youth group throughout the evening.
“It was an honour to officially open Woodland View School and I wish pupils, teachers and staff every success in their new accommodation.”
Head Teacher Kay Hunter added, “It’s only 8 weeks since we welcomed over 200 children and young people and 120 members of staff to this new school and since that first day, we have all worked together to find our way round this beautiful building, discovering new and innovative ways to use our spaces to best suit learning and teaching. Our learners have settled and are building new and extended friendships and our staff continue to develop in all the strengths, knowledge and skills they have always displayed.
“As we begin our journey as a new school community, it was wonderful to welcome the Provost, local elected members, colleagues an
d partners to share in our official opening ceremony. We are so excited to be on this journey and our community of staff, learners, families and friends are very much looking forward to writing the pages of the Woodland View story together.”
Woodland View School was delivered by the Council in partnership with Scape and main contractor, McLaughlin & Harvey. Here is a list of the partners involved:
- Our main contractor, McLaughlin & Harvey Construction Limited
- Project architects, Norr and landscape architects, LDA
- Design consultants, Baker Hicks
- Client consultants, Pick Everard and Stantec.