On the road to a bright new future for Lairdsland Primary School

The Kirkintilloch school will open its doors following the school Easter holidays in April.

It was originally meant to be completed last year but was hit by delays, while the cost has spiralled from £5million to £7.7million.

Extending from the current Strathkelvin Place and running parallel to Donaldson Street, the new part of the road is expected to be finished in the next two or three weeks, depending on the weather.

Developers have promised there will be very minimal impact on the on-street parking spaces on the existing part of the road that are reserved for East Dunbartonshire employees and visitors.

To allow the work to be completed, some of the pictorial hoardings that were on display around the site have been removed. Designed by Lairdsland pupils from P1 to P7 as part of a history project, the artwork will be stored and some pieces will eventually be located within the new school.

Lairdsland Primary will be the first of five new schools to be completed as part of East Dunbartonshire Council’s controversial £48million Primary School Improvement Programme (PSIP) which aims to “provide an enhanced learning environment for pupils”.

The design for Lairdsland has also been established as a reference design for Scotland, and will form the starting point for other projects in the programme.

Council chiefs have pledged to work closely with staff, parents and pupils to develop the design appropriately for each school community involved.

Council leader Rhondda Geekie said work on the road signals how close the new school is to completion.

She added: “This is another exciting step along the way to the opening of our first new primary school.

“Construction on the building itself is also on track and we’re all very excited to see the finished result and to see our young pupils enjoying the additional benefits it will bring to their education.”

A selection of councillors, school staff, pupils and invited guests will have their first chance to look around the new schoolnext Monday (March 16).

Meanwhile, teachers and pupils are celebrating their current school building’s 140 year old history with a series of events, exhibitions and visits.

The existing Victorian building has occupied the Kerr Street site ever since it was built in 1875, but in recent decades the facilites have become outdated, leading to calls for the new school to be delivered.