School move - When the dream becomes a reality…

About 5 or 6 years ago I remember Gerard Ainsley talking about a master plan to relocate our school onto the beautiful open green space across the road on the church grounds.  This seemed a dream but sounded MAGIC.  I remember seeing the plans at the back of the church with a glass atrium at the centre and the classes linking off this… I remember wondering if it would happen in my time at St Mary’s.

For months it was rumoured to be a possibility, then nothing more was heard for years. 

Last year the rumours resurfaced and the local gossip had the school on the market to a supermarket conglomerate with a move in the foreseeable future.  

Plans were floating again and it looked to be all back on.  The rumoured plans were amazing with a modern learning environment design placing classrooms opening onto a collaborative learning corridor…

What are the benefits of relocating our school?

·         Future proofing – we are moving to a significantly bigger site which will allow for future growth;

·         Green space – we are moving from an inner city, concrete jungle to a green field;

·         Location – we are moving off the main road of Mosgiel to a quieter location;

·         Proximity to parish – we are moving to become a part of the church grounds;

·         Modernisation – we are creating a new school with flexible learning spaces;

What might some of the challenges be?

·         The physical moving of the majority of the buildings could be problematic;

·         The timeline; 

I regularly visited the green space and photographed it regularly showing developments.  This blog is our attempt to record the journey of St Mary’s school!

Open, green, inviting space with a gorgeous tree lined drive… I hope all the trees can remain. 

Regular visits to the site are essential for the learners to take ownership of the site…