Moray Council agrees new approach for future of school estate
Moray Council has agreed a new long-term approach to planning and investing in its school estate, with a focus on making sure buildings continue to meet the needs of children, young people and individual communities across Moray.
At its Education, Children’s and Leisure Services Committee on Tuesday 1 September, the majority of councillors approved the findings of the initial phase of the Moray Learning Estate Review and agreed to adopt Estate Optimisation, a flexible, evidence-based approach to managing the learning estate over the next decade.
The newly agreed framework will allow the Council to consider what works best for individual areas and communities, rather than taking the same approach for every school.
There are currently no proposals for individual schools or Associated School Groups (ASGs) and no decisions have been made about the future of any schools in Moray, therefore no schools are currently "at risk".
The work to date has been informed by engagement across all eight of Moray’s ASGs between 2023 and 2025. This included meetings with stakeholders, community drop-in sessions, surveys and workshops, alongside work to assess the condition and suitability of the school estate.
More than 2,000 responses were received from pupils, staff, parents, carers and local communities, helping to build a clearer picture of what matters most to people and the challenges facing the learning estate.
The review to date has also looked at a wide range of factors, including the condition of school buildings, pupil numbers, future demand, additional support needs, running costs, environmental performance and the role schools play within their communities.
Councillors took part in a workshop in early 2026 to consider the initial findings from the review and explore the challenges facing the school estate.
Themes explored during these sessions included refurbishing existing schools, extending buildings where more space is needed, modernising or remodelling buildings, reducing carbon emissions, sharing buildings or services, reviewing catchment areas, or looking at mergers or closures where the evidence shows it’s appropriate.
The continuation of the review puts educational benefit at its centre, with future decisions starting by considering what pupils, staff and communities need to support the best possible learning experience before determining what buildings, spaces or facilities are required.
Any proposals for changes to individual schools will come back to councillors separately and involve further engagement and statutory consultation with communities.
Cllr Kathleen Robertson, Chair of Moray Council’s Education, Children’s and Leisure Services Committee, said: “It’s important to be clear that today’s agreement does not make decisions about individual schools or ASGs but gives officers a framework to work within when considering any future proposals. Any future proposals will be based on detailed evidence and will involve engagement with the communities affected before decisions are made.
“Our schools are at the heart of communities across Moray, but we know our learning estate faces a number of challenges, including ageing buildings, changing pupil numbers, increasing demand for additional support needs provision and pressure on council budgets. This agreed approach gives us a clearer and more consistent way of looking at those challenges and deciding where investment is needed most.”