Friday August 14th 2026
Fountainhall Primary
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Paul Kelly
A public consultation is set to be launched over the permanent closure of a rural Scottish Borders school with only one pupil.
Fountainhall Primary School and Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) is a non-denominational school, with capacity for 50 pupils, located in the very small village of Fountainhall in the north-west of the Borders on the Gala Water.
A report presented to Scottish Borders Council recommending that the school be mothballed for one year was approved by members in the summer of 2025.
The move came after the number of pupils attending fell from 24 in 2020/21 to just a single pupil enrolled for the new school term starting in August last year.
When members of SBC meet next week they will be asked to agree that a consultation over its permanent closure is held from August 24 until October 12.
A report to members states: “Officer view is that a proposal to close Fountainhall Primary and ELC and rezoning to Heriot Primary school offers educational benefits, however a full statutory consultation is required under legislation, to enable full robust engagement on this option.”
The report adds: “When the school was mothballed in June 2025, there was a risk that the building could deteriorate.
“To mitigate this, the corporate landlord is required to ensure that the school and grounds are reasonably maintained.
“The mothballing of the school has had and will continue to have, a negative impact on the village and the community will not wish to lose such an asset, despite it being mothballed currently.
“Officers are extremely appreciative of this. This can be mitigated through the finality of proceeding to a closure consultation for the community as soon as possible rather than continuing to mothball or temporarily closing for a longer period creating more uncertainty.”
No decision on permanent closure is to be taken until the consultation period is ended.
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