Major concerns about the design of the new school to replace Braeview Academy and Craigie High were not brought to the attention of the council, say officials.
Dundee City Council children and families executive director Audrey May and convener councillor Stewart Hunter say they were unaware of any complaints.
They were only told of the concerns regarding the internal design of East End Community Campus when teaching union EIS wrote to them to resign from the project board, they say.
The Dundee branch of the EIS left the board in protest, warning the £60 million building is “far too small” and design features are “educationally unacceptable”.
Local rep David Baxter said in the resignation letter that members say there are fewer classrooms than at present and some teaching rooms have no windows.
Other areas of concern include large open-area teaching spaces, a lack of teacher input in classroom design for practical subjects and no swimming pool.
Mr Hunter said: “We were concerned that none of the contents in his email were brought to our attention beforehand.
“We were never approached to discuss any of this either formally or informally.
“There were no representations made at either the project board, project delivery team or through meetings with trade unions.”
But Mr Baxter said despite having had meeting with the council about the development, “There wasn’t an opportunity to raise this.”
Plans not yet finalised
The new development at East End Community Campus was granted planning permission last week, however the council says plans are not yet finalised.
And it says there will be several months of consultation and engagement before building begins – and even then plans will remain flexible.
Mr Hunter said: “There is still much to be done on finalising internal spaces with the building, and that is why we have been talking to staff from various departments within the current schools and will continue to talk to more as the process continues.
“The proposed designs are informed by the latest research in building schools/campuses throughout Scotland, the wider UK and international models.
“There continues to be several months of detailed discussions to build on all prior consultations and engagement.
“Even after this time and during on site construction, which is planned to commence in spring, the internal design and layout of the building can continue to be modified and changed over the two years of construction.”
Capacity concerns
Another the concern raised by the EIS was the projected growth of pupil capacity, particularly in relation to an expected large number of pupils with additional support needs (ASN).
Mr Hunter assured: “We are looking carefully at the capacity of the new campus throughout the process and are working on detailed projections.
“As a team we have engaged the support of V&A Dundee who have led staff and pupils in the UNESCO approach to co-creation/co-design, as well as working with the renowned Professor Stephen Heppell drawing on his research in creating the very best learning environments from across the world.”
In reaction to the council’s response, Mr Baxter said: “If the council was serious about genuine consultation then they would be talking directly to our rep.
“We would like to rebuild bridges and always welcome meetings but quite often that is a difficult process.”
Conversation