Councillors were in a spin as they named Kirkcaldy’s new secondary school.
The campus in the town’s east end, which will incorporate Viewforth High School, Rosslyn School, a library, sports facilities and a Fife Council office, is to be known as the Windmill Community Campus.
It followed a tense discussion between members, with several wishing to maintain the name Viewforth, with the secondary school taking up much of the space at the Windmill Road site.
However, there was concern that maintaining the historic name would overshadow the other facets of the new community hub the first of its kind in Fife.
Stating that a new name would be fair for the two schools on the site, committee chairman Neil Crooks said: “We are not building a new school but a new idea for delivering services at one point.”
He was backed by councillor David Ross, who added: “I visited Rosslyn School and they are very sensitive about losing their identity.”
However, the prospect of dropping the Viewforth name was met with dismay by a number of other councillors.
Lawrence Brown said: “Why change something when there is no need? We want to keep the history of the place so let’s do that and incorporate the word campus to show that it is bigger than just a school.”
He was backed by Councillor Carol Lindsay, a former Viewforth pupil, who added: “Viewforth has a tradition.
“If we are going to name it Windmill then people will question what it is.”
The name Windmill Community Campus was passed by eight votes to three.
The new complex, designed to service the whole community, is to open after the summer, but confirmation of the name for the £24 million complex was required to prepare signs ahead of classes starting.
Councillors were also told that the two schools would begin to move equipment into the new building in either June or July as completion of the construction process edges nearer.