Scotland’s newest primary school for neuro-divergent children has opened near Dunkeld.
The school is on the Moore House Academy campus at Butterstone.
The educational charity took over the Perthshire site following the controversial closure of the New School at Butterstone in 2018.
Moore House re-opened the academy to offer specialised secondary school teaching and additional services to neuro-divergent children in May 2019.
However, bosses soon realised that families were crying out for support at a much earlier stage.
The new primary school means they can now provide learning for pupils from five through to 18.
In keeping with the charity’s ethos, the primary school boasts smaller class sizes and a more accommodating environment for children who would struggle in a mainstream setting.
There are spaces for six pupils at present.
Three youngsters are already enrolled there and applications are open for the remaining places.
Moore House Dunkeld aims to bridge gap
Tracey Ford-McNicol, head of education at Moore House Dunkeld, said the aim was to steer pupils on the right path at a much earlier stage in their education.
“All of our pupils in the academy are here because they struggled in mainstream schools,” she said.
“It’s not an easy process to have a child placed here by their local authority. And often by the time they do come here, they will have been struggling, or not attending, for some time. Some may have been out of school for two years.”
She said children were often extremely anxious by the time they arrived at the academy. Parents might have had to move jobs, or give up work entirely, in order to manage the situation. And it takes time for staff to regain everyone’s trust so they can start bringing out the best in pupils.
Often, problems become more acute with the transition from primary school to secondary when students are thrown into larger classes, with unfamiliar routines and rigid rules.
Tracey said the idea of opening a primary school at Butterstone developed out of a chat between colleagues about how to overcome these issues.
The idea made so much sense, they were amazed they hadn’t done it sooner.
And now, after completing the lengthy registration process, the new primary school is here to bridge that gap.
“It’s what we do here,” said Tracey.
“Sometimes you have to think outside the box.”
Moore House Dunkeld Primary is start of new chapter
The primary school joins the academy – which has capacity for 30 pupils – and two residential homes for young people on the Moore House Dunkeld campus.
It has an ADHD friendly award from the ADHD Foundation and is working towards Autism Accreditation with the National Autistic Society too.
Situated in the countryside at Butterstone, five miles from Dunkeld, it is surrounded
by nature.
This calm and relaxed environment is a boon for neuro-divergent young people, says Tracey.
The primary school has small classrooms with soft areas where children can take time out and plenty of space for outdoor learning.
Primary teacher Pam Bicocchi says it’s a wonderful space for pupils who need that little bit of extra support.
“I used to see them when I was teaching in mainstream education,” she said.
“They weren’t necessarily the disruptive pupils, often they were the quiet ones who didn’t cause you any bother.
“You’d know they were there,” she went on.
“You’d know you weren’t meeting their needs, but you knew you just didn’t have the ability to help them properly in a big class full of children.
“It used to break my heart. So it’s lovely to have this space where you can really work with children to help them do their best.”
Dr Stephen Drysdale, Moore House Group’s director of children’s services, said: “I am excited to celebrate a new chapter in our charity’s journey with the opening of Moore House Primary in Dunkeld.
“We are delighted to begin the new term welcoming our first primary pupils.”
Former Butterstone children flourished, despite disruptions
The new primary school was officially opened by John Swinney, MSP for North Perthshire.
He told guests it was a welcome addition to the sector.
“It will provide the opportunity for young people at a much earlier stage in
their educational journey to have their needs better met,” he said.
Mr Swinney was education secretary when the New School at Butterstone closed suddenly in 2018, throwing families into turmoil.
He oversaw a lengthy independent review, which found flaws in the way the school was run, and the way the closure was handled.
The Moore House Group is a completely separate organisation with no links to the previous school, other than the building.
However, many of the pupils who had attended the New School at Butterstone until its closure switched over and continued their education under the group.
All have now completed their secondary education, and all have gone on to either college or university, despite the added disruption that the Covid pandemic wreaked on their schooling.
The Moore House Group is based in West Lothian, where it runs another academy in Bathgate. It also runs Moore House Primary School in Dunfermline, as well as offering virtual learning.
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