The facility, which is being delivered on behalf of Aberdeenshire Council, will first open its doors to the public on September 30 when its swimming pool will become available for online bookings. It will become home to Inverurie Academy pupils following the October break on October 27.

St Andrew’s School pupils will be able to enjoy an enhanced transition programme with several visits planned before they officially move into the building in November. A date for welcoming other community groups into the campus will be set once that can be done so safely under current COVID-19 guidelines.

Construction began in April 2018 with Robertson Group as the main contractors. The architects and principal designers are Halliday Fraser Munro. Phase 1 has seen the completion of the main campus building, which can house 1,600-pupils and extensive community facilities.

Preparations are now underway for the transition of staff, pupils and services from the existing Inverurie Academy, St Andrews School, swimming pool and community centre.

Once that is completed, phase 2 will begin, which will see the demolition of the existing buildings. The final phase will involve external works, including landscaping and creating all-weather sports pitches.

Kirsty O’Brien, the director heading the project for hub North Scotland, said: “We are delighted to have reached this point after a lot of hard work by all concerned. The campus has already delivered significant community benefits for Inverurie during construction and will continue to do so for years to come.”

Elliott Robertson, CEO of Robertson Group, added: “As one of the largest school construction projects in Scotland, this £55m project will provide modern education, sports and community facilities for the area and is another milestone for Robertson in our delivery of contemporary, fit-for-purpose school projects.”

Cllr Gillian Owen, chair of Aberdeenshire’s education and children’s services committee, welcomed the news: “We are very excited opening dates have been set and that the local community will soon be able to make use of this modern, dynamic new facility. It will be a huge asset for our school pupils, for our staff and of course the wider public. Many thanks to all the teams who have worked so hard to get the project to this stage.”

Cllr Anne Stirling, chair of Aberdeenshire Council’s communities committee, added: “Inverurie Community Campus is testament to Aberdeenshire Council’s commitment to investing in our communities. Projects like these help to make our wonderful local area a great place in which to live and work and help us to promote active lifestyles through Live Life Aberdeenshire. I would encourage everyone to find out more about accessing these excellent facilities.”