����ֱ��

Update 5 - October 2024

Community Engagement Sessions – Thank you!

Following our Call for Sites, where we asked you to let us know of any potential sites that may be suitable for the new 2-18 Mull Campus, the project team hosted a series of community engagement sessions, across Mull and Iona, to give all members of the community an opportunity to let us know what is important to them when selecting a site.

There were ten face to face sessions, held in Tobermory, Craignure, Salen, Dervaig, Lochdonhead, Ulva, Bunessan and Iona, in addition to an online survey and dedicated pupil workshops, to ensure we captured as broad a range of feedback as possible. 

Over 200 people attended the workshops, and provided us with lots of insightful, helpful and sometimes personal, feedback. We greatly appreciate this feedback, which has given us valuable insight into what matters most to you when considering potential locations for the new campus, and we would like to extend our thanks to each and every one of you who has taken time to contact us.

The Call for Sites and associated engagement period related to that has now closed, and we are working closely with our engagement specialists to collate and analyse the information from the sessions, online questionnaire and e-mails received. As you can appreciate, there is a lot of detail to digest, and we are aiming to share the outcomes of the report with you in our next project update, which is due in November. 

Split Site/Campus

A common query raised throughout this engagement period is the possibility of having a “split site”, with Early Learning/Primary facilities in Tobermory and a High School located more centrally. We would advise that LEIP funding is based on a “like for like” replacement basis, which means that funding is based on the existing pupil capacity numbers, and community facilities within the existing Tobermory Campus only (inclusive of the Nursery, Primary School, High School, College, Community spaces, Library and sports facilities).

Any facilities beyond or above the ‘like for like’ criteria are not funded by LEIP.  The Council would therefore require to fund 100% of those additional spaces.  

Campus facilities have greater efficiency and affordability than separate or split site projects which would need at least two buildings with two sets of accommodation to meet LEIP requirements, such as dining / games hall, commercial kitchens, pitches, staff rooms, plant / server rooms and external spaces. 2x building projects would also require additional preliminary construction costs including roads, car parking, site compounds and utilities connections.  This doubling up of facilities and project costs would add significant additional cost to the proposals and, as the funding position would remain “like for like” with the existing facility, meaning additional spaces or costs would not be funded by LEIP. 

In addition to this ‘doubling up’ of spaces, from a construction point of view, a split site would have higher than single site operational and revenue costs compared to a campus as there would be at least 2 x utilities costs, non-domestic rates, cleaning, maintenance costs and enhanced staffing / supervision costs.  

LEIP funding is also contingent upon that the project being open to pupils by December 2027.  With a current estimate of construction completion in early 2029 the Council have already informed the Scottish Government we are likely to exceed this timescale which puts the project at a degree of risk.  There is regular engagement with Scottish Government LEIP team on progress (every 2 months) and the team have confirmed they will take account of 1 year delay in funding decision, and indicated some flexibility over timeframes, but the view is splitting the site would likely increase the project planning and construction timescale even further therefore increasing this risk.  

The council approval to commence the Business Case, undertake engagement exercises and commence site selection process in April 2024 was on the basis of a single construction project of a 2-18 campus. This is what the team will continue to progress.

As outlined above it would not be financially affordable to have two separate construction projects and operational school sites. This would present a much greater financial challenge to the council’s capital and revenue (operational and staffing) budgets with an increased risk of the project not receiving outline or full business case approval due to affordability. 

As well as the Council perspective, the Scottish Futures Trust (SFT) have indicated there is no other identified sources of funding to support a split site beyond the package already offered as part of the LEIP funding which has been reported to Council.  

We acknowledge that the engagement process has yet to be concluded and confirms all representations will be considered but given the circumstances outlined above the Council’s position is that the option of splitting the Mull Campus is not one which could be afforded.  

We have updated our Frequently Asked Questions on the project website to include this information, along with other frequently raised queries during the drop-in sessions.

Good News 

Our project partners, hub North Scotland, as part of their Community Benefits Programme, have made a generous £100 contribution to the local community foodbank Mull and Iona Pantry this month. This is much appreciated support, and we will continue to work with the team and look forward to supporting other community groups as the project progresses.

Next steps

• The feedback received during the engagement period will inform the site selection criteria and weightings that we will use to assess potential sites.
• A report on the outcome of the community engagement sessions is being finalised by the hub North engagement specialist. 
• We will meet with the Community Sounding Board in November, to review the report, and the report will be published following that meeting
• Specialists are carrying out a transport review of the existing 2-18 Tobermory school, and any potentially suitable sites. The outcome of this review will feed into the Site Appraisal exercise.
• The hub North architect has visited the sites put forward during the call for sites process. The hub North technical team will review these to determine a shortlist of potentially viable options for further assessment. 
• We will work in conjunction with hub North to carry out an appraisal of these shortlisted sites against set criteria which takes account of your feedback during the engagement period and the outcome of this (along with the community engagement report and transport assessment) will be presented to our Strategic Board to identify a preferred site by the end of the year. The final decision on site selection will be made by full council.

Summary Project Progress

If you have any queries or questions in relation to the project, or the information contained in this update, please feel free to contact us at our dedicated project e-mail mull.campus@argyll-bute.gov.uk – we would love to hear from you.

Update 4 - September 2024

Good afternoon from sunny Mull!

The Mull Campus Team are in Craignure Village Hall to hold their first community engagement drop-in session. Lots of people have popped in by and we have had some great feedback already, and are looking forward to hearing from you all over the course of the next couple of weeks. 

The purpose of these sessions is to get your input on what factors are important to you when considering potential sites for the new 2-18 Campus on Mull so that this can be reflected in the criteria and weightings for the site appraisal process.

A wee reminder of the dates, times and venues is provided below – please come along if you can. 

Date	Times	Location
Tuesday 17 September	2pm - 9pm	Craignure Hall
Wednesday 18 September	10am - 2pm	Tobermory Scout Hall
	4pm - 9pm	Tobermory High School
Thursday 19 September	10am - 2pm	Salen Church Hall
	3.30pm - 6pm	Salen Primary School
Monday 23 September	1pm - 3pm	Ulva Primary School
Tuesday 24 September	2pm - 3.30pm	Dervaig Village Hall
	5pm - 9pm	Lochdonhead Primary School
Wednesday 25 September	12.15pm - 2.15pm	Iona Village Hall
	4pm - 6pm	Bunessan Community Hall

If you weren't able to come along to one of the sessions, feedback could also be provided online until Monday 7th October, so we could capture as many of your views as possible.

If you have any queries or questions in relation to the project, or the information contained in this update, please feel free to contact us at our dedicated project e-mail mull.campus@argyll-bute.gov.uk – we would love to hear from you.

Update 3 - August 2024

Download a copy of this newsletter (PDF)

Community Sounding Board

We had our first meeting of the Community Sounding Board in Craignure on Wednesday 21st August, where community representatives gave the project team valuable feedback on their planned communication and engagement with the community. The group agreed terms of reference and membership, which will include representatives from parent councils, community councils, local development trusts, school staff, pupil voices and other constituted community groups (e.g. Home Start).  Key points of discussion were:

• The site selection and call for sites process.
• Dates, times, and venues for community engagement drop-in sessions due to take place at a range of locations on Mull and Iona between the 17th and 25th September 2024. The sessions will ask communities what issues they think are important to consider when assessing potential sites for the new campus. More information about these sessions will be issued soon.
• Being clearer as to what a new 2-18 campus on Mull means in terms of education provision and for the existing 2-18 school at Tobermory. It was agreed to develop a short update to be shared with the communities. This is provided below, and a single-page version is attached. We would be grateful if this could be shared widely.

New Mull Campus – what that means

The Community Sounding Board asked us to be clearer about what the new 2-18 campus on Mull means for education provision in the area. 

• The funding is for a like for like replacement 2-18 campus; which is a combined early learning centre, primary and secondary school. The funding was awarded because the existing Tobermory campus continues to deteriorate and requires investment.
• Regardless of the location selected, when the new 2-18 campus opens, the existing 
  Tobermory school buildings will no longer be used to provide education.
• If the location chosen is out with Tobermory this is likely to trigger a review of school catchment areas across the islands.
• There is no intention or plan to close any of the other primary schools across the islands.
• None of the above will impact on a parent’s entitlement to make a placing request to a school of their choice.

Call for Sites

We are asking people to come forward with possible sites for the new campus, with the following media release being issued this week:-

����ֱ�� are seeking suggestions from the community on sites that may be suitable for the new, replacement Mull 2-18 Education Campus.

Members of the community are invited to come forward with suggestions of possible sites, which should be at least 2.3 hectares (roughly the size of the existing Tobermory High School site). As much detail as possible, including the site location, size and ownership (where known) should be e-mailed to mull.campus@argyll-bute.gov.uk no later than Friday 13th September 2024.

Project Process

The project set up is complete and we are about to start community engagement and site selection, which will run for the remainder of 2024. 

The next project decision point is consideration of our Outline Business Case (OBC) at the end of 2025. If it is approved, it gives us permission to develop a detailed design and Full Business Case (FBC). 

The purpose of these business cases is to demonstrate to the council that the project remains affordable and deliverable. Both Outline and Full Business Cases need to be approved by the council before we can start building.

If you have any queries or questions in relation to the project, or the information contained in this update, please feel free to contact us at our dedicated project e-mail mull.campus@argyll-bute.gov.uk– we would love to hear from you.

Update 2

Community Sounding Board

Invites have recently been issued to parent councils, community councils and local development trusts inviting a representative of each group to be a member of the project’s Community Sounding Board.  The purpose of the group is to support the project team on how best to engage with the community, feedback their organisation’s views and help to keep the community informed about the project.  We are aiming to hold the first meeting on Wednesday 21st August. This is the start of a potential 5-year partnership to deliver this exciting new educational campus.

Project Structure

We are continuing to set up the project governance structure and several meetings have been held as part of the formation of the project team, which consists of representatives from the Council’s Education, Commercial, Development & Infrastructure, Legal, Financial, Economic Development, IT and Health & Safety Services. The first Project Team and Strategic Board meetings have been scheduled during the first half of August, after which, these groups will continue to meet on a monthly basis, with diary dates confirmed for the remainder of the year.

The team are being supported by hub North Scotland ltd as part of their wider LEIP North Schools Programme. Mull Campus is one of 8 schools being delivered as part of the programme, co-ordinated by hub North. This is a collaborative partnership-based approach involving five local Councils in the North of Scotland, including two island Councils (Shetland and Orkney). It aims to reduce duplication, strengthen and share knowledge, leading to better quality buildings and more efficient and cost-effective project delivery. 

Timescales

We are now mid-way in the project set up phase, and over the next month our newly formed project groups will start planning the community engagement and site appraisal & selection activities which are scheduled to run from September to December 2024. Project briefing, concept design and outline business case (OBC) development will take place during 2025 with the OBC being considered by the Council at the end of 2025. Approval of the OBC by the Council allows us to move to full business case in 2026.

Tobermory Campus works

We will continue to maintain the existing Tobermory Campus until a new campus is ready. The fencing at the Early Learning Centre is currently being replaced and this is due to be completed before the new term starts. Remedial works to the external fabric of the building are also underway and these will extend into the new term.

We hope our school staff, young people and their families are enjoying their summer break and will be in touch again around the commencement of the new term.

In the meantime, please feel free to email the Mull Campus inbox at mull.campus@argyll-bute.gov.uk if you have any queries or questions about the project or content of this update.

Update 1

At a full council meeting in April 2024, councillors agreed to develop an outline business case for the project. Work on this is progressing with the appointment of a project delivery team and an experienced project manager to oversee each stage. 

Over the summer 2024, the Mull Campus Team will appoint specialist consultants to support the next stage and establish a project governance structure, including a dedicated Community Sounding Board to seek the views of key community representatives as the project moves forward.

In the Autumn the team plan to hold engagement sessions in a variety of locations across the area to seek the views of the local community on the new campus. They will also start the site selection process to find the most suitable location for the new facility. Local knowledge is key to this and members of the community are invited to highlight any sites that they feel may be suitable.