A proposals to build a new primary school on the long-vacant Park Road site in central Douglas will be laid before Tynwald this month.
The site, formally St Ninian’s Lower School, has remained unused since its demolition in 2013, after pupils and staff moved to the modern Bemahague School in Onchan.
It has been earmarked as the preferred location for replacing the Murray’s Road and Ballaquayle sites nearby which Ministers say could then be released for residential development.
Scoill yn Jubilee operates across the ageing Murray’s Road and Ballaquayle sites which both require significant capital investment estimated at just £4m in 2023.
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The Department of Education, Sport and Culture’s proposal outlines a new two-form entry primary school on the Park Road site to meet current and future educational demand in central Douglas.
A two‑form‑entry primary school has two classes in each year group, typically accommodating around 350 pupils in total.
Daphne Caine MHK, Minister for Education, Sport and Culture, said: ’This project would deliver a modern, energy-efficient school that meets community needs, and aligns with the island’s net zero goals.’
Douglas East MHK Jonie Faragher tabled a Tynwald motion in July last year calling for the redevelopment of the Park Road site as a primary school to be prioritised, describing it as ‘an urban monument to indecision’.
She told members: ‘The rumours about what it might be abound. Will it be a car park? Will it be affordable housing, offices, community space or even maybe something educational again? But so far, nothing.’
A Council of Ministers’ response to Ms Faragher’s unanimously approved motion said that while primary numbers are in decline elsewhere, they remain stable in central Douglas.
The DESC currently proposes to progress further development work and prepare costed proposals, alongside delivering the new Castle Rushen High School, the Queen Elizabeth II High School Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) block, and the modular building at Henry Bloom Noble School.