Education / All options to be included in Brae school business case
VARIOUS options for the future of the Brae High School, from a new build and refurbishment, will be costed and included in an upcoming business case.
Elected members agreed in January 2024 to press ahead with the business case process on a new build, which was the preferred option.
The estimated cost back then sat at £42.5 million, but there has not yet been an updated estimate released publicly.
Within the £42.5 million estimate was an indicative cost of completing a full business case, which was £4.5 million.
That process is well underway, but the full business case is only now expected to come before councillors in the spring next year.
At a meeting of the full council on Wednesday, Shetland Central member Moraig Lyall questioned if refurbishment of the school would be included in the full business case, and not just a new build.
She also asked if this would include both the immediate and long-term costs.
Chief executive Maggie Sandison said all options would be factored in, from a new build to lesser options, as well as the status quo.
Lerwick South member Dennis Leask also asked if there will be details of the impact on reserves from a new build.
The Scottish Government previously pledged to fund half of the cost towards the project, but this would be through revenue funding over 25 years rather than capital, while there would be conditions attached.
Sandison gave reassurance that financial impacts would be set out clearly in the full business case.
But Shetland North member Andrew Hall encouraged councillors to read the earlier business case from 2024 which he said was very detailed and also included an estimate for refurbishment, which was £38 million.
Hall also said in his view the “big decision” was made two years ago.
North Isles member Robert Thomson said he understood what Hall was saying, but added: “I think we have been surprised by the quotes that we’ve got for other capital projects, and I think we always have to bear this in mind.”
He added that the decision should be based on the facts in the full business case, and “to prejudge that is being unprofessional”.
Education and families committee chairman Davie Sandison said all the questions and answers raised in the meeting were “fine at this stage” but added that any speculation is “premature” prior to the full business case.
He also said alternatives to a new build are being “fully considered” and will have cost estimates.
The Shetland Central member also said there would be an elected members’ briefing last Thursday on the topic.
The key site in contention for a new school is where the grass pitch is at the moment, behind the high school.
Councillors were previously told that current school, which covers three to 18 year olds across nursery, primary and secondary, no longer meets the needs of the community – with concern raised too over additional support needs (ASN).
The primary school building at Brae was built in the 70s and the secondary building followed in the early 1980s.
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