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Closure of Banchory-Devenick School Statutory Consultation

Aberdeenshire Council is consulting on a proposal to permanently close Banchory-Devenick School. The consultation period will run from 28 September 2026 to 4 December 2026.

The Council proposes to permanently discontinue education at Banchory-Devenick School, which is currently non-operational, and to reassign its catchment area to either Hillside School or Lairhillock School.

If Lairhillock School is selected as the preferred option for primary education, there are two options for the secondary catchment area:

  • The area would remain within the Portlethen Cluster, with secondary education provided at Portlethen Academy; or
  • The area would be rezoned to the Stonehaven Cluster, with secondary education provided at Mackie Academy.

This consultation is being undertaken in accordance with the Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010.  The Act requires proposed changes to the school estate, including the closure of a school, to be subject to a rigorous statutory consultation process.

Following the consultation period, all comments received through the consultation process, together with any written submissions and emails relating to the proposal, will be analysed and considered before a final decision is made.

Public Meeting

A public meeting to discuss the proposal will be held at Portlethen Academy on Thursday 29 October 2026 at 6.30 pm.

Have your Say

We would like to hear your views on the proposed closure of Banchory-Devenick School and the options being considered for the future catchment arrangements.

Further information on each option can be found in the consultation document and accompanying survey.   

A copy of the consultation proposal document is available at: http://www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/schools/school-info/education-consultations/

Please follow this link to view additional policy documents on our Engage Learning Estates Hub Page: https://engage.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/hub-page/ecs-learning-estates

This survey will remain open until 4pm on Friday 4 December 2026.

1.  

Please view the Engage Aberdeenshire Privacy Notice *

* required
2.  

Do you live in (Find my catchment area opens in a new window) *

* required
3.  

Are you a *

* required

Options for Banchory-Devenick School Catchment Area 

The following options are being considered for Banchory-Devenick School.  Please note, the options have been presented in alphabetical order to maintain neutrality.  The ordering of options does not reflect any preference, recommendation or ranking by Aberdeenshire Council. 

Option 1 - Permanently Close Banchory-Devenick School and reassign to Hillside School 

The Hillside School catchment in purple would be extended to include the Banchory-Devenick School catchment area in blue and the blue external outline of both purple and blue highlighted would be the new catchment area for Hillside School.


Option 2 - Permanently close Banchory-Devenick School and reassign to Lairhillock School. 

The Lairhillock School catchment in purple would be extended to include the Banchory-Devenick School catchment area in blue and the blue external outline of both would be the new catchment area for Lairhillock School.  

Option 2a - Permanently Close Banchory-Devenick School and reassign to Lairhillock School. Those living in the current Banchory-Devenick area will remain in the catchment area for Portlethen Academy. 

Option 2a is a secondary catchment sub-option of Option 2.  Under this, the Banchory-Devenick School catchment area would be reassigned to Lairhillock School for primary education, while pupils living in the current Banchory-Devenick area would remain zoned to Portlethen Academy for secondary education. 

Portlethen Academy Catchment Area


Option 2b - Permanently close Banchory-Devenick School and reassign to Lairhillock School, progressing to Mackie Academy for secondary provision.

Option 2b is a secondary catchment sub-option of Option 2.  Under this sub-option, the Banchory-Devenick School catchment area would be reassigned to Lairhillock School for primary education, while pupils living in the current Banchory-Devenick catchment area would be zoned to Mackie Academy for secondary education.

The map shows the current Mackie Academy catchment area, shown in purple, alongside the existing Banchory-Devenick School catchment area. The dotted line indicates the boundary of the Lairhillock School catchment area.

 

4.  

Do you support the closure of Banchory-Devenick School? *

* required
5.  

If the closure goes ahead, which option do you prefer for the Banchory-Devenick School catchment area? *

* required
6.  

Do you think any of these options should be discounted? *

* required

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