256 January 2016 - Gryffe Advertizer

www.advertizer.co.uk january 2016
New Look for Kilmacolm
School at Heart of Village Life
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Back row left to right: Debbie McNamara, Councillor Stephen McCabe, Councillor
David Wilson, Councillor Terry Loughran, Kenny Anderson, CBC, Councillor Martin
Brennan and Depute Head Teacher Grace Reid.
Front row: Ailish Osbourne (7 years), Peter Ingram (10 years) and Georgia McEwing
(5 years)
Work has begun on the £4.29 million refurbishment of Kilmacolm Primary
School and Nursery.
It is the latest project in Inverclyde Council’s unprecedented £270 million
Schools Estate programme delivering new and refurbished schools across
the area.
Education & Communities Convener Councillor Terry Loughran said: “The
school was built over 40 years ago so this is a project that has been warmly
welcomed in the village and will serve the children well for many years
to come. The building will be completely stripped back and effectively rebuilt
incorporating a new gym, new classroom arrangements and learning
spaces. It will be a state-of-the-art school and something the whole village
community will be rightly proud of.”
The primary school has moved to the former St Stephen’s High School
in Port Glasgow for the duration of the work. The nursery school is in
temporary accommodation within the school grounds at Kilmacolm.
As well as a complete upgrade internally, new rooflights are being introduced
to increase natural daylight in classrooms and sections of the building will
be re-clad.
The existing blaes pitch will be replaced with a new, fully enclosed and
floodlit multi use games area, (MUGA) and the playground will be re-lined.
Improvements to school grounds security will see the introduction of new
CCTV cameras and new railing. A new main entrance canopy will also be
installed.
The project is being delivered in partnership with hubWest Scotland. Chief
Executive Debbie McNamara said: “We are proud to work with our partners
Inverclyde Council on another essential school project. It was a delight to
have the children represented at today’s milestone event.”
The design has been led by Elder and Cannon Architects and the main
contractor is CBC Ltd.
CBC Managing Director James McAlpine commented “We are delighted to
be continuing our relationship with both Inverclyde Council and hubWest on
the Kilmacolm project and look forward to delivering improved facilities for
the teachers, pupils and wider community.”
The work is due to be completed by October 2016.
Gryffe High School
Social Dancing Gryffe Style!
It has long been a Christmas tradition in Gryffe that Social Dancing is
incorporated into PE lessons. This year the S1 pupils showed off their
dancing skills at their S1 Dance held in the school. This was organised by
the Guidance Team and S6 House Captains. Our photograph (taken by Mr
Gerard O’Hare who is Faculty Head of Health and Wellbeing) shows the S5
pupils enjoying a full Orcadian Strip the Willow.
New Name for Playgroup!
Kilmacolm Playgroup and Toddlers
We have a new name - Kilmacolm Playgroup and Toddlers. We are now the
only playgroup and toddler group in Kilmacolm, and we take pride in offering
a happy, friendly and safe environment for your little ones to grow and play,
make new friends and learn new skills. We are based in the Lesser Hall at
St Columba Church, Kilmacolm, and everyone is welcome.
As a self-funded charity, we rely on the support and goodwill of the parents
and local community and we would like to thank all those who have helped
make the group what it is today. We look forward to enjoying the next
chapter with you!
Our Toddler group is held on Wednesday mornings from 10am to 11.30am
(no booking required, just come along), for children aged 0-3 years. We
have a wide range of toys and baby equipment available, and this session
is also a great chance for mums, dads, grandparents and carers to get to
know one another over a cuppa and a bit of cake. For more information
please contact our Toddlers
secretary Beth at thebbles@
hotmail.com.
Our Playgroup offers a more
structured session where parents
can leave their children with our
experienced and qualified play
leaders, who encourage the little
ones to take their first steps to
independence with craft-time,
painting, water and sand play,
dressing up, gym, songs and
stories, and much much more.
Playgroup is registered with
the Care Inspectorate and has
consistently received Good and
Very Good gradings. It runs on
Monday, Tuesday and Thursday
mornings. Places are allocated
according to our admissions policy,
so please contact our playgroup
secretary Emma for more information at
emma@kehoes.com.
We have lots of children scheduled to start
Playgroup between January and May and
we are taking names for spaces from August
onwards, so please contact our Playgroup
secretary Emma for more information at
emma@kehoes.com. We have lots to offer
children aged from 2 years 4 months, with
creative, messy and imaginative play plus
quieter times with puzzles, a story or a
1-1 craft or food activity. We find that the
children enjoy these first steps towards
independence and love having fun and
socialising with their peers. We are based
in the Lesser Hall of St Columba Church on
Monday, Tuesday and Thursday mornings
and visitors are welcome any time!