THE Garnock Community Campus was this week officially opened by John Swinney, the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills.

The £40 million school, community and leisure campus serves the Garnock Valley’s three main towns - Kilbirnie, Beith and Dalry. The fantastic new facility on Beith Road accommodates pupils from the former Garnock Academy, Glengarnock Primary School and Glengarnock Early Years class.

As well as providing state-ofthe-art educational facilities for pupils, the campus includes a high-quality, six-lane swimming pool leisure facility, operated by KA Leisure, a number of sports halls, and a synthetic pitch suitable for rugby and football.

Mr Swinney said: “I am very impressed by the new Garnock Community Campus and the cutting-edge facilities available to students, staff, parents and the wider community. “Learning and teaching in such inspirational settings can make a real difference to education outcomes.

“That is why the Scottish Government is committed to improving Scotland’s school estate and is investing £1.8 billion in our Schools for the Future building programme – providing almost £19 million towards this project.”

Councillor John Bell, North Ayrshire’s Cabinet Member for Education and Youth Employment, said: “I am delighted that the young people of the Garnock Valley are benefitting from this significant investment in education by the Council.

“It has been quite a journey to reach this stage since our 2009 bid for funding for the school.

“We are hugely ambitious for our children and we want them to attain, achieve and develop the skills necessary to live positive and fulfilling lives.

“This amazing new campus can help us reach that goal.”

Head teacher Alan Dick said: “The pupils first moved into the new campus in January and it’s been a real pleasure to see them arrive at school and enjoy their modern learning environment.

“The staff are delighted with the facilities and teaching spaces – it’s a fantastic building which will really shape the future of the Garnock community over the coming years.”

Michael McBrearty, Chief Executive of development partner hub South West, added: “Garnock is a wonderfully innovative and modern community campus that encourages open, shared learning and includes some of the most modern facilities in the area.

“We have worked closely with North Ayrshire Council and contractor Kier Construction throughout the development process, and it’s fantastic to now see the positive outcome, with pupils and the local community now enjoying this first-class facility.”

Managing director of Kier Construction’s Scotland & northeast England business, Brian McQuade, said: “Educational projects form a significant part of our operations at Kier and we are pleased to have delivered this leading facility for students in the Garnock Valley so they can learn and thrive.

“Through hub South West Scotland, we are currently working on five major schools projects in Ayrshire. Garnock is the first of these to complete.

“We worked with local suppliers and SMEs to ensure this project contributed to the local economy. During the construction of Garnock Community Campus we created 15 apprenticeships and 19 work placements, giving local young people a unique insight into the diverse range of roles available in the construction industry.”