Parents hoping to see work start on a new Madras College have suffered another blow with confirmation that construction has been delayed until next year at the earliest.
A Court of Session appeal by St Andrews Environmental Protection Association Limited (Stepal) against the plan to build at Pipeland won’t be heard until January 12 and 13.
Fife Council’s purchase of the land cannot complete until the legal action is concluded, putting the £40 million project on hold.
The appeal is against the dismissal of a petition earlier this year questioning the legality of planning consent issued by the council for the school.
Head of service Robin Presswood confirmed January’s date was set at a procedural hearing at the Court of Session in Edinburgh on Friday.
He said: “Today’s proceedings were to make sure that all procedural aspects had been complied with and that both parties were ready to proceed to a hearing.
“No decision was taken on the merits or otherwise of the appeal.”
Stepal, whose directors are former Madras rector Lindsay Matheson and former colleagues Mary Jack and Sandra Thomson, has serious concerns about the environmental impact of building the school on green belt land at Pipeland Farm.
Its opposition has put it at loggerheads with Parent Voice, the group set up in support of the new school at Pipeland.
Following a lengthy consultation process, planning permission in principle was issued in April 2014 for the school to replace the campuses at South Street and Kilrymont.
The petition was raised in August last year, a hearing took place in December and its refusal announced in March.
Last week, the council confirmed its commitment to delivering the school and said work will begin immediately if the appeal is dismissed.