Council agrees to prioritise new school build over shared campus

Councillors have agreed to prioritise a new-build replacement primary in a Borders town over a shared campus - if they can get the financial support required.

Parents had called on the local authority to permanently drop plans to move Eyemouth Primary onto the same site as Eyemouth High School.

In the face of the public concerns, Scottish Borders Council agreed an amendment to a report on the issue.

It said it would prioritise the pursuit of a new standalone school but said a shared campus could still be an option if the £25m needed could not be raised.

Proposals for a new primary in the Berwickshire coastal town have been discussed for many years due to the condition of the current building.

It led to plans for a relocation which would have seen the high school "reconfigured and extended" to include the new facility.

The old primary would have been demolished and a new early learning centre built on the site.

Consultation generated hundreds of responses, the "overwhelming majority" of them against that plan.

It prompted the council to "take time to reconsider its approach and intentions".

Now it has agreed to prioritise a completely new school if it can secure the funding needed from the Scottish government.

A further report will be brought back by September at the latest.