Fife furniture firm wins £3m contract for new Perth High School

The Dunfermline-based business will begin work at the new £80m school in the new year.

By Gavin Harper

November 9 2023, 10:36am

How the new Perth High School will look. Image: Deanestor.

A Fife furniture and fit-out firm has won a £3 million contract for work at the new Perth High School.

Deanestor has been awarded the seven-figure contract to fit-out more than 270 rooms at the new school for Robertson Construction.

This will be Dunfermline-based firm’s 14th contract for Robertson.

It follows its successful completion of several award-winning school projects, including work at Bertha Park High School.

Designed by NORR and delivered by hub East Central Scotland, the new Perth High School is being built adjacent to the existing 1960s school, which will then be demolished.

Work on the new school began earlier this year.

The Current Perth High School. Image: Steve MacDougall/DC Thomson

It represents an investment of £80m for Perth & Kinross Council and the Scottish Government learning estates investment programme..

Deanestor will manufacture or procure more than 2,700 items of furniture, including storage solutions, changing benches, teaching kitchen, learning walls, tables and chairs, equipment for sports and arts, workbenches and tools for technology and engineering.

Due to open in summer 2025, the new school has a triangular design and will be built over three levels. Facilities will include a double-height theatre and breakout spaces.

It will be built to Passivhaus standards with a high level of thermal efficiency to meet its low carbon targets.

New Perth High School will be ‘fantastic learning environment’ says Deanestor boss

Ramsay McDonald, managing director of Deanestor in Scotland, said: “This project will provide a fantastic learning and teaching environment for young people.

“We are delighted to be playing our part and working with the Robertson team once again.

Deanestor managing director for Scotland, Ramsay McDonald. Image: Deanestor.

“We have successfully delivered a number of projects for Perth and Kinross Council and have a strong track record in fitting out Passivhaus schools.”

In September, Deanestor reported record turnover of £19m for the year to December 2022, a 35% increase on the previous year.

Its Scottish sales now stand at more than £7m a year.

How the new Perth High School could look. Image: Perth High School

Gary Bushnell, chief executive of hub East Central Scotland, added: “We have worked closely with Perth and Kinross Council and partners from the inception of this project. It is great to see work now progressing well on site.

“It will provide another high-quality, highly sustainable facility that will serve the community for many years to come.”