Princess Anne opens 'green' school building in Moray
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Princess Anne officially opened what could be the ‘greenest’ classroom building in the UK during her visit to Moray yesterday.
The Queen Elizabeth II Rooms at Gordonstoun have solar PV panels which generate enough free energy for four months of the year.
Added to that, the underfloor heating is provided by a ground source system which involved creating bore holes up to 120ft deep.
The building also has 'interactive teaching walls', plus the technology to remove and add walls to change the size of the existing rooms.
The Princess, who is the school's warden, unveiled a plaque and was given a guided tour of the state-of-the-art building.
Lisa Kerr, the school's principal, said: "The Princess Royal spent time seeing how AI is used in the classroom and our robotic club gave an impressive demonstration, which hopefully bodes well when they compete in the national championships later in the year.”
"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 leading up to our 100th anniversary.
"The Queen Elizabeth II Rooms are the first step in our biggest building project since the Second World War."
Gordonstoun was founded in 1934 by Kurt Hahn, a German educator who came to the UK after being arrested in his homeland for speaking out against the Nazis.
Amongst its former pupils are King Charles III, plus his brothers and father, as well as both of Princess Anne's children.
Built over a 14-month period by construction firm Taylor and Fraser, the Queen Elizabeth II Rooms were opened to students and staff last April.
The school's future plans include a new boarding house and a sixth form centre.
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