Paisley Grammar School Community Campus update |
Tuessday 17 February 2026 |
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Dear parent or carer
As we are now only six months away from the new Paisley Grammar School Community Campus opening, I am writing with a progress update on the building, the roads around it, and our preparations for the big move.
We are sending this update to all parents and carers at Paisley Grammar School and the five associated primaries (Gallowhill, Mossvale, Ralston, Todholm and Williamsburgh). |
Latest construction update |
The new school is going to be a modern state-of-the-art facility which will open up new opportunities for learning and teaching not possible in the current building. I am confident it will be a great environment for your children.
Construction is progressing really well on the building, as I am sure any of you driving along Renfrew Road will have seen. Our contractors are well advanced with fitting out the inside, with some of the rooms now complete.
They are making good progress on outdoor areas, with the sports pitches now in place and other landscaping to be finished in the coming months. Here are some recent images. You can see the pupil entrance, an aerial view of the sports pitches, the science superlab, and a standard classroom. |
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Some of you may have spotted the video we shared in December in which our project managers Alan and Aileen gave a behind-the-scenes tour of the building as it looked at that time and told us what they are most looking forward to seeing once it opens. You can see that on YouTube here. |
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Road network improvements |
The school sits within the site of a major investment – overseen by the council’s roads team, called AMIDS South – which will over the next two years transform the road network in the north of Paisley, and better connect the town to the new Advanced Manufacturing and Innovation District Scotland (AMIDS) next to the airport.
This means by the time school opens, the road network around it will look very different. The work – now being delivered – will include:
- A new east-west road (from which the school will be accessed) running from a new junction with Renfrew Road (just south of the roundabout at McDonalds). The first section will be complete by this summer;
- A new link (to be complete by spring) underneath Renfrew Road, which starts in Gallowhill Road and joins the new Paisley-to-Renfrew walking/cycle route running up the west side of the college and school. You can see how that currently looks below.
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There will eventually also be a new bridge across the White Cart River linking the new east-west road and Harbour Road with Inchinnan Road.
In addition to the major investment described above, our roads team last year carried out a thorough survey of the full length of Renfrew Road as a walking route. They identified 47 improvements, to be made ahead of the school opening, which will improve pedestrian safety.
These are now being delivered and include:
- Relocating signs and bus shelters to widen pavements;
- Widening the pavements on the east side of Renfrew Road (opposite the college) by removing on-street parking spaces;
- Resurfacing roads and pavements, installing new crossings and improving existing ones, and installing dropped kerbs and pedestrian barriers.
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I appreciate one of the big questions parents and carers will have will be around how your children will get to and from the new building.
Our policy across Renfrewshire is to provide free home-to-school transport to catchment pupils whose shortest acceptable walking route is more than two miles (for secondary) or one mile (for primary). Given how central the existing Paisley Grammar School is within the catchment, very few families currently receive free transport, but that will change with the new building.
We have hired consultants to help us map out a final list of acceptable walking routes. This work will be complete soon, after which we may make further improvements to the routes. At this point, those who qualify for free transport will be invited to apply.
Our initial analysis suggests around a quarter of the pupils at the school will be in this group. This will include some (but not all) pupils living in the Ralston and Todholm areas, and part of the new Hawkhead estate. We will confirm the exact list of streets and addresses once we have it.
For those of you living within the two-mile limit, there will be a range of other ways to get to the new school. This will include using public bus routes (which school pupils can use for free with their National Entitlement Cards). We are in discussion with local bus operators around adding extra capacity to existing routes at school opening and closing times.
There will be restrictions on cars stopping to drop-off or pick-up on Renfrew Road itself, but there will be space for parents and carers to drop children off within school grounds. However we hope those who can walk or use public transport will find the new road layout and improved walking routes around the school will make it easy to do so. |
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Exceptional closure dates |
Paisley Grammar School parents and carers were recently made aware the school will this year have some exceptional closure dates, two either side of the summer holidays, to allow staff to make the move.
The last day for Paisley Grammar School pupils will be Friday 26 June, with staff finishing on Tuesday 30 June. Staff will return to school on Friday 14 August to prepare for pupils returning on Thursday 20 August.
This means this year’s summer holidays for Paisley Grammar School pupils will be different to other Renfrewshire schools. Those of you whose child is leaving P7 to start S1 should bear this mind (ie their last day of primary school remains Tuesday 30 June). |
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Preparation for school move |
I and some of my colleagues had a very good meeting in January with the Paisley Grammar School parent council and with representatives from the associated primary school parent councils. We will continue to meet that group as the big move gets closer.
My team at council HQ and Ms Levens and her staff at the school are working closely to ensure the move goes smoothly. The school will be able to offer some current pupils the chance to see inside the new building before it opens.
The school will also hold induction days for P7 pupils to allow them to meet their teachers and find out more about secondary school before they start S1. These will most likely be in the current building. Parents, carers and P7 pupils will be made aware of the arrangements once confirmed.
There will be an opportunity for anyone who wishes to see inside the current Paisley Grammar School building before it closes to do so. Details of this are still to be confirmed.
I hope this update is useful – we will keep you posted as we get closer to the summer.
Kind regards
Gerard McLaughlin
Head of Education
Renfrewshire Council |
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