INVERCLYDE’S ambitious £270million school estate programme is on track to be completed five years early.

The final major project in the council’s plan to deliver brand new or fully refurbished schools is about to get underway.

St Mary’s Primary school in Greenock is to undergo a £6 million refurbishment and extension.

Councillor Jim Clocherty, education and communities convener, said the estate was something to be proud of.

He added: “To sustain this level of investment through such a sustained period of economic uncertainty and budgetary pressure is something we can rightly be very proud of in Inverclyde.

“From the outset we promised that every child in Inverclyde would be taught in a new or fully refurbished classroom by 2025, so to be able to deliver that pledge five years early is nothing short of extraordinary.

“Our school estate programme is without a doubt one of the most ambitious in the whole of the UK and is one that has already delivered learning environments that are second-to-none for the vast majority of our children and young people.”

Gourock Primary is also due to undergo a £1.7million extension.

The new £9.2million St Ninian’s Primary in Gourock and £3.4million Glenpark Early Learning Centre are due to be completed in the coming months, along with the refurbishments of Moorfoot Primary in Gourock at a cost of £5million and Lady Alice Primary in Greenock, a project with a £3.8 million spend.