LIMEKILNS Primary School won't be moved into the catchment of a replacement for Inverkeithing High – despite its close proximity to the proposed site for the new school.

Shelagh McLean, head of education and children's services, confirmed there were no plans to change the current catchment area of the high school, which stretches from Aberdour to Rosyth.

She was responding to a question raised by Councillor David Barratt at last week's Fife Council Cabinet Committee meeting, where members agreed to go ahead with a public consultation on the proposal to site the new £85 million school at the Fleet Grounds in Rosyth.

Mr Barratt asked whether Limekilns Primary could be brought into the catchment due to being close by the proposed site.

Limekilns Primary is just over two miles from the Fleet Grounds site, while its just under four miles away from Dunfermline High School, its current catchment school.

Ms Mclean told councillors: "We are not proposing to change the catchment area. We are not proposing to include Limekilns, but obviously, as would always be the case, should we start to see that this would be a better option, should that be something that parental or stakeholder engagement suggests would be useful, then we would need to enter into another statutory consultation around the change to the catchment area.

"There are no plans to do that at this point in time.

"There have been quite solid links between Limekilns and the current high school, which was demonstrated in our previous consultations around catchment changes, which is why it remains where it is currently."

The consultation process on the location of the replacement for Inverkeithing High School is due to run from Tuesday, April 18, to Friday, June 2.

There will be two public meetings, at Inverkeithing High on Thursday, April 20, and, due to exams, in King’s Road Primary in Rosyth on Monday, May 15, both from 6pm to 7pm. Ms McLean, is response to a question from Dalgety Bay councillor Dave Dempsey, said a third public meeting could be added at a venue to the east of the existing high school is that was so required.

There will also be drop-in sessions at the feeder primary schools: Donibristle PS on May 22, Dalgety Bay PS and Aberdour PS on May 2, Camdean PS on May 4, Inverkeithing PS and North Queensferry PS on May 9, and at Park Road PS and Kings Road PS on May 15.

Inverkeithing will be the last high school in West Fife to be replaced, with new buildings for Queen Anne in 2003, Dunfermline High in 2012, while the new St Columba's and Woodmill schools will open in August 2024 at the Dunfermline Learning Campus.

Councillor Cara Hilton, education spokesperson, said: "We can all agree that the school is long overdue and it is great to see that we are finally making progress.

"I'm really keen to hear people's views, the views of local members, the views of parents and, I would say the most important, the views of our young people during the consultation exercise."