12-05-2025
New £30 million learning campus in Neilston officially opens
The Neilston Learning Campus brings together St Thomas' and Neilston primaries and Madras Family Centre onto a single campus.
It opened its doors to pupils in March 2024 and the official opening ceremony was held on Friday, May 9.
The campus was built to replace the outdated former buildings and was designed to ensure both schools and the family centre retain their unique identities and teaching spaces.
(Image: Jeff Holmes)It features shared facilities including a large sports hall, Digi-Zone, a dedicated space for science, technology, engineering and maths (STEAM), an art room, a green screen video editing area, and drama and music space.
The ceremony was attended by Jenny Gilruth MSP, cabinet secretary for education and skills, and councillor Andrew Anderson, convener for education, equalities, culture and leisure.
They unveiled a commemorative plaque to mark the occasion.
Councillor Anderson said: "Today's official opening ceremony was a wonderful way to mark this new chapter for learning in Neilston.
(Image: Jeff Holmes) "This fantastic campus, combined with the staff, pupils, parents and wider community, will become the beating heart of the village and contribute to an environment where our children and young people will flourish."
Ms Gilruth said: "I welcome the opening of this state-of-the-art campus – we now have a record number of pupils in Scotland being taught in schools that are in 'good' or 'satisfactory' condition.
"The Scottish Government is providing £10.6 million for the Neilston Learning Campus through the £2 billion Learning Estate Investment Programme which by the end of 2027-28, will have delivered 47 modern, state of the art schools."
Gerard Curley, headteacher of Neilston Primary and Madras Family Centre, said: "It's an absolute privilege to lead our school and family centre every day.
"This outstanding facility will give us a springboard to strive for even greater achievements in future years."
Marie Kane, headteacher of St Thomas' Primary, said: "Since moving to our new home, the whole community has embraced the change and we are very appreciative of this remarkable facility and the high-quality learning experiences we are able to deliver."
