THE NEW additional support needs school in North Ayrshire has been officially named.

Last week, councillors confirmed that the new £20million campus will be called Lockhart Campus.

Elected members made the decision at a virtual meeting of the cabinet as they agreed to name the new facility after the founder of Stevenston – Stephen Lockhart.

It was one of six names in the frame to be chosen, following an extensive consultation with parents, teachers and other stakeholders.

The new ASN school – which will be situated near Auchenharvie Academy in the Three Towns – will bring pupils from Haysholm, Stanecastle, James Reid and James MacFarlane together.

The six names up for deliberation were; Arranview, Castlehill, Lockhart, Seaview, Firthview and Clydeview.

While Lockhart won, Castlehill received the most votes.

However, it was decided, along with some of the other options, that the name clashed with other place names which could cause confusion in the future.

Council officials say that Lockhart was the second most popular name by vote, but it also resonated with the elected members.

Councillor John Bell, cabinet member for education, said: “We are delighted that we have reached the decision.

“Having an appropriate and unique name was so important and we think we’ve got that now.

“It wasn’t an easy decision to make and it wasn’t just a straightforward process of picking a name.

“All the names were really good, all would have been great choices, but Stephen Lockhart is such an important person in the town’s history we felt it was right that he was recognised.

“This development is going to be such a big asset to Stevenston and the wider North Ayrshire community for many years to come.”

The new campus was due to be completed by winter 2020, but with COVID-19 delaying building works, the council are revising new opening dates.