Balfour Beatty began construction on the Nairn Academy school last month, having been awarded a £61m contract by the Highland Council at the end of 2025.
A new 9,767 sqm school building is going up to replace the existing Nairn Academy secondary school, 15 miles northeast of Inverness. Design capacity is to accommodate 745 students. A new 3G artificial grass sports pitch is also being put in.
The school will be Balfour Beatty’s second Passivhaus certified school building in Scotland, after the £67m Liberton High School campus in Edinburgh that is currently under construction.
To achieve Passivhaus certification, Balfour Beatty will install high-performance windows and doors as well as mechanical ventilation with heat recovery to reduce carbon emissions, improve indoor air quality and reduce energy demand.
Regional managing director Hector MacAulay promised the new school would “provide an exciting and inspirational learning environment for hundreds of students and teachers”.
The campus is expected to be complete in 2026. At construction peak, the project will employ 170 people.
Got a story? Email news@theconstructionindex.co.uk
#Balfour #Beatty #starts #Nairn #Academy