Two top independent schools are set to merge

Morrison’s Academy in Crieff and Beaconhurst School in Bridge of Allan are to create one independent school from the beginning of the 2018/19 school year.

The process will see the management and financial ownership of the new organisation falling to Morrison’s Academy.

The decision has been taken due to a decline in senior pupil numbers at Beaconhurst.

The existing Beaconhurst nursery and junior school, which together currently serve 176 pupils, will continue to use the facilities in Bridge of Allan.

The nursery and junior school at Morrison’s Academy are unaffected, though provision to share learning opportunities and best practice with Beaconhurst will be explored.

Senior school pupils at Beaconhurst will join those at Morrison’s Academy. The new, enlarged secondary school at Morrison’s Academy has the capacity for all 122 pupils currently attending Beaconhurst’s senior school.

Affected Beaconhurst staff will have the opportunity to apply for a number of new jobs at Morrison’s Academy pending consultation and the eventual structure of the enlarged school next term.

Landel Johnston, chairman of the board of governors at Morrison’s Academy, said:“We have been working very closely with the governors of Beaconhurst and their senior staff over recent days to identify what help and offering we, at Morrison’s Academy, can make to assist Beaconhurst’s pupils and parents with some reassurance of how we can provide continuity in education in a similar or complementary environment to their current offering.

“This decision will create a substantial and wide-ranging independent school for the whole region. The values of our schools focus on ambition and integrity and both are renowned for their commitment to excellence. Once the idea became a possibility, there was a real excitement about what a larger school could mean, and a determination from both boards to see the idea through.”