Leader of West Lothian Council Lawrence Fitzpatrick was the guest of honour at the event to mark the opening of the region’s newest primary school. 

A small group of special guests were invited to a reduced ceremony to comply with current Covid-19 health and safety guidance, with music from the Calderwood school choir.

Unveiling a special plaque, Councillor Lawrence Fitzpatrick said: “It’s a great honour to be invited here to officially open the stunning new Calderwood Primary School.

“You can already see this superb new building is providing the foundations for a fantastic new school community, where our children can start the journey to achieve their potential. 

“Thanks to all the children and staff at Calderwood for welcoming us to the school for this special occasion.”

Calderwood headteacher Sarah Burton added: “It was a wonderful experience for our children to take part in the official opening ceremony for our amazing new Calderwood Primary School.

“It’s created a real buzz of excitement around the school, and gives us a great opportunity to showcase both our superb school and all the inspiring learning experiences taking place with our young learners.” 

Designed by jmarchitects, Calderwood was delivered on behalf of the council by its development partner hub South East, with Morrison Construction as the primary contractor, the same team behind the successful delivery of the nearby award-winning West Calder High School.

It is required to cope with increasing demand in the growing Calderwood Core Development Area, which is expected to see up to 2,400 new homes built.

Executive councillor for education David Dodds said: “It was a huge pleasure to attend the official opening of the stunning new Calderwood Primary school.

“West Lothian already has one of the best school estates in the country, and the excellent new Calderwood school will only enhance this further.”

“The new school has been designed and built with the learning experience at its heart, and is already helping create a focal point for the growing Calderwood community.”

Meanwhile, the new Cedarbank School in Livingston is set to be handed over to West Lothian Council.

Staff and pupils are expected to start the transition to the new school after the Easter break, following delivery partner hub South East and main contractor BAM Construction confirming construction will be complete in March 2022.

Cedarbank provides quality education for secondary pupils with additional learning needs from around West Lothian, and is currently spread over three locations. The new stand-alone, modern purpose-built facility will bring Cedarbank pupils from S1 to S6 together under one roof in the same campus as The James Young High School.

Council leader Lawrence Fitzpatrick said: “I’m delighted that the outstanding new Cedarbank School will be ready for pupils from next month.

“The excellent facilities at the new Cedarbank will bring the whole school together in one place, ensuring we can deliver the best possible education for the young people who attend.

“Many thanks to Hub South East and BAM Construction for their hard work to deliver the new school on time and on budget during the challenges of the pandemic.”

The new school is part of a £26.5 million investment in schools dedicated to supporting pupils with additional support needs, which will see a new Beatlie School in Livingston built as well as improvements to Ogilvie Campus in Livingston and the Pinewood ASN School in Blackburn. 

Roddy Clark, hub South East’s operations director, said: “We’re proud to continue our positive working relationship with our partners in West Lothian Council as we deliver another inspiring learning estate development.

“I commend everyone involved in progressing the build of this new specialist facility during the challenging circumstances of the last few years. The feedback from those pupils and staff who have visited site during the construction of Cedarbank has been positive and it’s encouraging to see the excitement grow as they get ever closer to being able to enjoy their new, modern learning space.”

Kris Moir, project manager, BAM Construction, added: “We are delighted to have supported Hub South East Scotland and West Lothian Council on another first-class educational facility.

“This scheme has drawn on BAM’s expertise and extensive experience as a leading education provider in Scotland and we are proud to have played our part in the creation of this new modern learning environment that will inspire pupils for many years to come.”