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Edinburgh Live
Edinburgh Live
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David McLean

Edinburgh's lost schools that have been transformed, reduced to rubble or left to rot

Everyone remembers their school days and making memories that will stick with us forever.

Many of us took our last exams and walked out the school gates for one last time years ago, whereas others have revisited the schools from time to time for reunions or to pick up their own kids who are now pupils there.

But as time goes on, many of our old Edinburgh schools have closed, demolished and even amalgamated on a new site.

READ MORE: Edinburgh's lost swimming pools that are gone but not forgotten

Across the city, new houses, supermarkets or empty fields now stand in place of the buildings. Others lie empty, forlorn and abandoned, awaiting a new lease of life.

Here, we take a look back at a number of lost Edinburgh schools that have been reduced to rubble. Some have been gone for some time and others we only recently said goodbye to.

This list is not intended to be comprehensive, we've included a number of demolished schools from across the city. But if you have a school you'd like to be included, let us know in the comments section.

Ainslie Park

Serving East Pilton, Ainslie Park Secondary opened in the late 1940s, but became surplus to requirements following the completion of Craigroyston Community High School.

The striking art deco school finally closed in the 1990s and was redeveloped for housing in the 2000s. Only the main frontage of the old school remains today.

Hunter's Tryst

Built in the post-war era, the pleasantly-named Hunter's Tryst Primary School served the growing Oxgangs housing scheme. Pupils moved out of the school in 2007 to the new Pentland Primary.

Branded a death trap following a suspicious fire in July 2008, the school demolished, but the plot of land lay empty for a number of years until the construction of new housing two years ago.

Tynecastle High

The architecturally-striking Tynecastle High was built in 1912 and was the alma mater for Gorgie kids for the next 98 years.

In the 2000s, it was decided that the old school was unfit for purpose and a new Tynecastle High was constructed on a vacant plot of land on the opposite side of McLeod Street. The original school has now lain abandoned since 2010.

Following more than a decade of discussion, it was announced in January 2023 that the former Tynecastle High is to be transformed into student housing after the Scottish Government gave the green light to planners.

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Boroughmuir

Built to provide non-fee paying secondary education for the south of the city, the huge Boroughmuir High School opened at Viewforth in 1913, replacing an earlier school at Bruntsfield Links.

Able to accommodate more than 1,200 pupils, Boroughmuir was one of the largest secondary schools in Scotland, but by the 2000s the building was beginning to show its age. It was replaced in 2018 by a brand new Boroughmuir High School in Fountainbridge by the banks of the Union Canal.

The old school, which is B-listed, is thankfully still standing but has been converted into luxury apartments.

Dumbryden Primary

Dumbryden Primary School and adjoining nursery opened in 1963 as part of the new Wester Hailes housing development.

In 2004 the council voted to close the school along with nearby Hailesland Primary, with existing pupils moved to the new school at Canal View. The demolition of Dumbryden Primary commenced in 2010 and the site has since been redeveloped for housing.

Portobello High School

With over 1,500 pupils, Portobello High School was one of the largest state schools in Europe when it opened in 1963. Notable former pupils at the school down the years include Gail Porter, Andrew Crummy, Ken Buchanan and footballer John Robertson.

The giant building at Duddingston Park was flattened in June 2017 and a replacement Portobello High School built on park land less than a mile away. The original site is now housing.

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