Doors open to show Jedburgh Campus progress

The project is taking part in Open Doors Day on Thursday 21 March, when the site will be opened up to the public.

Tour places are filling up quickly, as excitement grows around the opening of the new facility in spring 2020, which will serve 2 to 18 year olds as well as providing further education opportunities and community facilities for the town.

To book a place, visit opendoors.construction/site/215.  

Separate visits are being arranged for pupils and staff of all the local schools to the campus, which is being delivered by Scottish Borders Council, development partner Hub South East Scotland and appointed main contractor BAM Construction.

In addition, community groups are invited to come along to Jedburgh Grammar School on Wednesday 27 February from 4pm to 7pm to discuss the opportunities the facilities in the new campus offers.

Members of the project team will be available to provide further information.

Meanwhile, over 80 entries were received as part of a consultation to find a new name for the campus, which will replace Jedburgh Grammar, Howdenburn and Parkside primary schools.

A longlist has been formed from the entries submitted which will be provided to Councillors and Jedburgh Community Council to help create a shortlist which the Jedburgh public will then be asked to vote upon this spring.

Amongst the suggestions just to miss out on making the longlist was Grammary McGrammar School.

Good progress continues to be made on site by BAM, who over the next few months will begin to install mechanical and electrical services throughout the building as they progress the fit out works.

Councillor Shona Haslam, Scottish Borders Council’s Leader, said: “There is real excitement building as we approach one year until the new Jedburgh campus opens.

“Engagement with the people of Jedburgh has been key to this project since its inception, and is continuing with the upcoming Open Doors Day event and the information session taking place for community groups, alongside the ongoing consultation to provide a name for the new campus.

“We are determined to continue to improve our school estate to ensure it is fit for purpose for our young people, staff and local communities.”

Councillor Carol Hamilton, SBC’s Executive Member for Children and Young People, added: “I would encourage the local community to find out more and get involved in the events being held in the coming weeks and months.

“For those who cannot make the Open Doors Day, we have provided a virtual tour of the exterior of the building on social media, and will be adding another of the inside of the building in the coming weeks.

“Excellent progress is being made with construction of the campus, which means it remains on course to open to Jedburgh’s young people and the community in spring 2020.”

Scott Brown, Hub South East’s Project Director, said: “We’re delighted with the progress being made on site. This new educational campus for Jedburgh is really taking shape and we would encourage the local community to see for themselves at next month’s Open Doors Day.

“It’s great to see such positive community engagement with this project and we hope local residents and community groups take advantage of all the upcoming opportunities to find out more.”

Bruce Dickson, regional director at BAM Construction, added: “As members of BuildUK, we fully support Open Doors Day which is designed to change the public perception of the construction industry and what we do.

“Jedburgh Campus is perfect for this, being both a landmark community building in terms of design and purpose and also an exemplar construction site run by a superb team. 

“We hope that all of our visitors will get an enjoyable and interesting insight into the world of construction and it will probably not be what they expect.”

The new campus will have provision for nursery, primary and secondary school children, and community facilities will include a multi-use games area, 2G hockey pitch, 3G sports pitch, running track, external changing pavilion and rural skills area.

The funding for the new campus was confirmed by Deputy First Minister John Swinney in August 2017, as one of four projects to share £28m from the latest phase of the Scottish Government’s £1.8 billion ‘Schools for the Future’ programme.