Plans to deliver a modern, inclusive 2–18 campus at Tobermory on Mull will resume, following agreement by Argyll and Bute Councillors today.
The campus design will support state of the art teaching approaches, accessibility, and inclusion, while providing long‑term educational benefits for current and future generations on the island. With 84% of secondary aged children on Mull living within the existing Tobermory High School catchment area and the preferred location, the new campus will also provide excellent facilities for use out of school hours that could be used to help meet the learning, leisure and social needs of children, young people and the community.
Economic assessment also forecasts that a campus within Mull’s principal settlement, Tobermory, would deliver £3.1m greater economic benefit to Mull as opposed to a central location.
In 2025, work paused due to a judicial review brought against Argyll and Bute Council. In February 2026, the Court of Session found in favour of the Council
Work will now resume to establish a revised timeline to implement the Council decision, taken in March 2025 to progress the outline business case. Subject to future approvals from the Council and Scottish Government , the new campus is now projected to open in late 2030.
Works will also progress to complete an outline business case, to be presented at a special council meeting in December.
The pause in works necessitated by the Court action has resulted in significant financial and timing risks affecting project costs with an estimated inflationary increase of over £946,000. The agreed budget for the project in April 2024 was £42.9 million. At the council budget setting meeting in February 2026, an additional £7 million was allocated as a provision for future costs of school provision on Mull. The current forecast cost of the project is now £46.8 million. These projected costs will change as the project develops and physical design of campus evolves.
The budget will also be impacted by a number of external factors including the current situation in Iran. A more detailed cost plan will form part of the outline business case in December 2026.
Councillor Kieron Green, Policy Lead for Education:
“Our clear and continued commitment is to deliver a modern, fully accessible 2–18 campus that provides the best possible learning environment for children and young people on Mull, now and for generations to come. This project is about far more than a new building – it is about better educational outcomes, inclusive spaces and enhanced opportunities that reflect how young people learn today. The proposed 2-18 campus opens up new learning experiences and opportunities for our two hundred young learners, the majority who live near the preferred location.”
Councillor Ross Moreland, Policy Lead for Finance:
“There is no escaping the fact that the judicial review and resulting pause have had a real financial impact on this project, at a time when the council is facing intense and competing pressures across all services. In 2024, the Council’s Section 95 Officer reported that additional delays and rising costs are recognised as some of the most significant risks to delivering a new campus. Nothing has changed in that respect, and both have a huge impact on affordability. Every delay brings continued financial risk, with construction and inflationary costs rising by the sum of between £100 – 120,000 month by month.
“The delay and additional costs may also risk Scottish Government funding conditions which are based on opening the campus in December 2027. There is no confirmation of any additional LEIP funding.
“The facts remain, councillors will still need to consider whether this level of cost pressure is affordable or not. To pay for a new school, there will be difficult decisions ahead. This could involve a minimum additional 2% increase to Council Tax or removing or reducing services such as libraries, toilets or roads maintenance. That’s the reality of the future budget outlook with the additional cost that a new school brings.
“Despite these challenges, our focus is on completing the next stage of the process so that councillors can consider a robust, well‑evidenced business case and make informed decisions about the future, fully aware of both the opportunities and the financial implications involved.”
Next steps
- August to October: Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010 consultation seeking views on the relocation of the existing school
- December 2026: Outline business case and report presented to councillors
- 2027 (subject to approval): Detailed design, costings, planning, and final business case
- 2028 (subject to approval): Construction phase begins
- 2030: Building handover and campus fully operational
Read the full report (item 16)
