Update on new Gaelic primary school to open in Glasgow
Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a' Challtainn (Calton Gaelic Primary School) is being developed in the East End with funding from a £2.4 million Scottish Government investment to support Gaelic schools and culture across Scotland.
The school is being established in a refurbished and extended former St James' Primary School, with £2 million of the funding dedicated to the project.
Kate Forbes, Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic, said: "This school will build on the encouraging surge we have seen in the number of Gaelic speakers and learners in Glasgow and support the language's growth into the future.
"Gaelic medium education enriches communities and offers good value for money by providing better grade averages across all qualification levels despite costs being no greater than average."
The new school will be Glasgow's fourth Gaelic primary and will accommodate up to 416 pupils.
Glasgow City Council has contributed £17.6 million to the project, with a total budget of £23.8 million.
Alison Richardson, headteacher of Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a' Challtainn, said: "With Gaelic medium education continuing to flourish in Glasgow, our pupils and parents are excited and proud to be moving Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a' Challtainn into its very own repurposed school located in the East End.
"We look forward to supporting Gaelic's growth in the Calton area, where many spoke it in the past, and for the school to become a real focal point and asset to the local community."
The funding package will also support Gaelic classroom expansion at West Primary School in Paisley, the growth of two Gaelic cultural centres in the Highlands, and events delivered by An Comunn Gàidhealach, which will host this year's Royal National Mòd in Lochaber.
Glasgow had 740 primary pupils in Gaelic medium education in 2023.
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