Dunbeg Primary School near Oban is flying the flag for Argyll and Bute in a national schools project on parliament.

Twenty-two Primary 6 and 7 pupils at the school were involved in designing a flag to represent Argyll and Bute as part of the 2015 Flag Project, run by the Houses of Parliament. The project aims to connect young people with the democratic process and the UK’s parliamentary heritage. Over 450 primary schools across the country took part in the project, developed to celebrate the 750th anniversary of the Simon de Montfort parliament of 1265.

Along with a flag from Luss Primary School, the Dunbeg design is among the 80 chosen to fly in Parliament Square, Westminster this week (18th to 22nd May).

Following discussion about what they considered to be important about their constituency, the pupils decided that the background to their flag should be green and blue.  Green was chosen to reflect Argyll and Bute’s lush green land.  The green sections are triangular, creating a simplified form of the many hills and mountains to be found in the area.  Blue was an obvious choice, representing the sea, an important feature providing employment in the tourism and fishing industries, large contributors to the local economy of our constituency.  Finally, pupils chose to include a simplified collage of McCaig’s Tower as the focal point as they discovered that it is one of the top tourist attractions in Argyll and Bute and is instantly recognisable as belonging to the area.

Argyll and Bute Council’s Policy Lead for Education, Councillor Rory Colville, said: “The pupils have done incredibly well to have their work recognised and displayed at a national level. Their flag design is absolutely beautiful and certainly shows off some of the things that we are so proud of here in Argyll and Bute – stunning scenery, lochs and mountains and, of course, one of our most iconic landmarks. The school has encouraged them to show real creativity and imagination – congratulations to all involved.”