Issues at Loreburn Primary School are to be subject to a council paper at March’s education committee.
As part of Dumfries Learning Town phase two the primary, which has been at the centre of safety concerns in recent weeks, will be relocated into the Minerva building on the Dumfries Academy site.
Loreburn’s parent council complained to the local authority recently about rats in the school causing the kitchen to be closed, parts of the ceiling falling down and staff receiving electrical shocks from faulty wiring.
And at Tuesday’s education committee Julie Irving, EIS representative on the education committee, asked: “Loreburn Primary School has been quite contentious and there’s been some newspaper articles about it.
“I’m just wondering if there’s a timescale that can be shared to reassure staff, parents and pupils of the school?”
Council education officer Larann Foss replied: “So the Academy progress and the Loreburn programme are what our attention is turning to now.
“We’re anticipating bringing a paper back to the March committee with detail in it.
“We’re following a process controlled by the availability of funding in the capital investment strategy.
“Funding is released in the next financial year to allow us to start that process.
“So hopefully in the March committee we will have an indicative timeline that shows the development of those two sites within it.
“You’re absolutely right though to highlight the issues and the challenges we’ve seen at Loreburn Primary School and none of that is underestimated.
“We do have a clerk of works on a regular basis reviewing the school and looking at the site and the welfare and safety of pupils and staff.
“That’s something that we have to ensure that we continue to do right through to the occupation of the new facility within the Minerva.”
