Project Outline
The Moray Council wishes to replace Elgin Academy and Keith Primary with new schools, to be built through a public private
partnership. This will be carried out using the Non-Profit Distributing model as proposed by the Scottish Government and will
be procured through European Commission procurement rules using competitive dialogue.
Elgin Academy is a six year secondary school with a current (September 2007) roll of 987 pupils. It is proposed to replace
this school with a new school with enhanced community facilities, on the current site at Morriston Drive, Elgin. The existing
school would then be demolished and playing fields constructed.
Keith Primary School is a primary school currently operating on split sites a short distance apart. The current roll is 346
pupils, and it is proposed to replace the current buildings with a single school incorporating nursery provision on the current
north site, adjacent to Keith Grammar School, and subsequently demolish the existing school buildings and former dining hall
on the site. The current south site, with its existing building, will be retained for separate disposal by the Council.
Project update 1 July 2008
This is a short update to advise the latest news with the PPP Project, before schools take a well-earned break for the summer.
The Scottish Government has now approved our Updated Business Case, and we have also now completed a Key Stage Review, which
was required before we could advertise for bidders for the Project. The Contract notice was submitted to the Official Journal
of the European Union yesterday, and the Council is now seeking expressions of interest from experienced groups of companies
who may be interested in designing, building and maintaining the schools.
All those who reply to the advert will be sent an Information Memorandum and a Pre-Qualification Questionnaire. The Information
Memorandum provides an overview of what the project is about and how the Council intends to manage the process and the Questionnaire
seeks information from potential bidders so that we can assess whether the companies are capable of doing the work required.
Questionnaires have to be returned by 7 August, and we are hoping to recommend a short list of suitable bidders to the PPP
Project Board at the end of August.
We plan to issue tender documents in September, and will begin a series of formal meetings with bidding companies to allow
them to develop their proposals for the schools. While these meetings are quite technical in nature, I am preparing a proposal
to create a reference group for each of the schools so that a small but representative group of stakeholders can meet with
bidding companies and help them with the design and layout of the buildings. I will write separately to the two schools and
their Parent Councils and local Community Councils with these ideas.
The project has now moved into the procurement phase, which is a very busy time for bidders and the project team, and there
will be many points that will have to be discussed with schools and other stakeholders. I hope that you have a good break
over the summer, and come back refreshed for the exciting times ahead.
Previous Updates