This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Edinburgh's first Smart School
31/10/2002
Edinburgh's first new secondary school in more than a
decade was officially opened by First Minister Jack
McConnell today.
The old building of St Thomas of Aquin's High School was
closed in 1998 as they were considered no longer suitable
as a learning environment.
The new school is the first completed under the
Edinburgh's £133 million 'Smart School' initiative, which
will lead to over half of its pupils learning in fully
refurbished or completely rebuilt schools within 10
years.
The capital cost of the school was £14 million and
its has a capacity of 750 pupils.
Mr McConnell said:
"Every child should learn in modern, bright schools,
using the latest technology, which make it possible for
their talents to develop and shine.
"St Thomas has a proud history of providing the highest
standards of education and it is fitting that its new home
is the first of Edinburgh's new Smart Schools.
"The creation of a smart, successful Scottish economy
needs to start in the classroom, and that is why the
Executive is making an unprecedented investment in
improving the learning environment of Scotland's
children.
"We are backing the most significant school building
programme ever, with hundreds of schools being built or
refurbished by Public Private Partnership or other means.
This will make a huge difference to our schools and
contribute to the Executive's drive to raise
achievement.
"Our aim is to provide the kind of learning
opportunities offered by St Thomas to all Scottish
schoolchildren and, in order to do this, we must enable the
best schools to thrive in the 21
st century and bring other schools up to their
high standards."
The Executive agreed financial support to rebuild and
refurbish schools in Edinburgh under PPP in 1998. The
Council is also expected to submit a bid for the next round
of PPP funding. Bids from local authorities must be in by
the end of the year. In June this year, Edinburgh was also
allocated £1,745,000 through the School Building
Improvement Fund.
The school's award-winning flexible learning centre has
an international reputation for excellence.
It is being used as a model for a project looking at
flexible learning material and video conferencing in the
City's schools and community centres, for which the
Executive has provided £250,000 over two years.