The Princess Royal has visited Gordonstoun to officially open one of the “greenest” classroom buildings in the UK.
The princess unveiled a plaque naming the classroom hub, “The Queen Elizabeth II Rooms”, in honour of the late Queen with approval from the King, a former Gordonstoun student.
Her Royal Highness – who holds the role of “Warden” at Gordonstoun – met students and was given a guided tour of the new classrooms. She watched demonstrations of how students at the school are using AI in the classroom and from the school’s robotics club who will be competing on a national level later in the year.
The royal visitor was also given an insight into how the school supports neurodivergent students and spoke to staff involved in delivering Gordonstoun’s award-winning mental health and wellbeing services.
Much of the design of the building was inspired by Dumfries House in Ayrshire, and Gordonstoun representatives visited the estate as part of the planning process.
The Queen Elizabeth II Rooms, clad with Siberian larch timber, boast advanced environmental credentials such as solar PV panels, ground source heating and hi-tech CO2 monitoring. The solar panels generate enough free energy for four months of the year, while the overall bill for the building has been substantially cut.
The building has also been installed with the latest technology, including control systems for removing and adding walls to change the size of the existing rooms, and interactive teaching walls.
The project, set in 200 acres of woodland by the Moray Firth, is the first phase of the school’s masterplan to create a new “classroom village” to upgrade its facilities for students and the local community, while reducing energy and the school’s carbon footprint.
It is the most ambitious construction programme at Gordonstoun since World War II.
Gordonstoun principal Lisa Kerr said: “We are committed to providing our students with the best possible learning environment while being mindful of reducing our carbon footprint.
“The low carbon design is a signpost to how we want to develop the rest of the school estate as part of our bold masterplan leading up to the school’s 100th anniversary.”
The Queen Elizabeth II Rooms were designed by renowned architects Rivington Street Studio, who specialise in creating innovative education buildings across the UK.
The Gordonstoun masterplan also includes a new boarding house, sixth form centre, new outdoor spaces and increased access to Gordonstoun’s heritage buildings.