See inside the £122m schools at Dunfermline Learning Campus

Joe turned out to be a good lad but we were in awe of him, and a little intimidated, although nowhere near as unnerving as going up to high school for the first time.

Luckily there were older siblings, friends and teachers who were familiar with their surroundings, knew their way around and, mostly, helped us settle in.

So what’s it like when the building is new to everyone, around 2,500 kids and 250 staff?

It’s a month since two thirds of the Dunfermline Learning Campus opened.

St Columba's and Woodmill used to be near neighbours, waving across the road to each other in Abbeyview, but now they’ve moved in together in Halbeath in a new £122 million building.

The new St Columba's and Woodmill high schools. (Image: David Wardle) How are they getting on? We popped by and were given a tour by headteachers Mick McGee and Sandy McIntosh.

On the way in there is attractive greenery and wild flowers, in the reception it's bright and cool.

What strikes you is it doesn’t have that school smell which you never get anywhere else. Maybe it comes in a can?

It’s a smell that endures.

Come back decades later and it will instantly transport you back in time to when a bell ruled your day, infuriated teachers would send chalk whizzing across classrooms at chatty pupils, there was a constant fear of having to do PE in vest and pants if you forgot your kit and you could buy a Mr Freeze from 'the van' in the bus park.

Shiny and new, the schools are a little impersonal for now. There are a lot of blank walls, which you can understand as it’s early days and they’ve still to make it their own.

It’s like a show home, it doesn’t look ‘lived in’ just yet, but the fixtures and fittings are super impressive.

The sports facilities are particularly impressive. (Image: David Wardle) There's lots of light and lovely high ceilings throughout - I’d hate to be changing a light bulb mind you.

And they've got two disco balls!

When you think about the falling to bits schools they left behind - especially Woodmill which suffered that devastating fire in 2019 and looks like it wouldn’t take much to demolish - it must feel like they’ve gone from a hovel to a mansion.

As well as being energy efficient and planet-friendly, the largest Passivhaus building in Europe also has one of the poorest phone signals, an ingenious way to get pupils to put their mobiles away.

The 'social stairs' and the internal courtyard, with big screen for 'World Cup matches'. (Image: David Wardle) It's also well insulated from the noise of construction next door at the new Fife College, which is now set to cost £155m and open in August 2025.

There's a locker for every pupil and screens in each department, giving information and updates, you can even see the news and sports stories of the day scrolling along the bottom.

The latest technology is evident everywhere - and they're all set to get their own digital devices now too - with a recording studio, media suite and a 'learning lab' with performance analysis tools.

Unpopular teachers needn't worry about chewing gum being stuffed in the key hole of their classroom door anymore, an old delaying tactic from pupils back in the day, as they’re all opened and closed now by key fob.

The only issue now is if the battery in the fob dies ... as has happened already this term.

The triple glazing, part of the Passivhaus design, keeps the classrooms cool. But the phone signal is rubbish! (Image: David Wardle)

The swanky new home has learning plazas and shared spaces, such as the assembly hall, dining room - there’s just 10 minutes between the end of one school’s lunch break and the start of the other’s - while the 'social stairs' and internal courtyard are already a popular place for pupils to gather.

A huge screen faces the stairs, one of the rectors reckoned it'll be "ideal for watching the World Cup", and on that subject the sports facilities are particularly impressive with an expanse of green outside.

Pitch perfect. There are three astroturf surfaces, a multi-use games area and grass pitches too. (Image: David Wardle)

The lack of a swimming pool has been controversial, as well as the delay until next month in opening up to community use, but they seem to have everything else.

You’d love to play here. The grass pitches are pristine, they’ve been growing for two years, and there are three artificial surfaces, one which can be used for hockey, and multi-use games areas.

Inside there’s a well equipped gym, numerous games halls and a proper basketball setting suitable for Dunfermline Reign, just as there was in the old St Columba's, and a very professional looking dance studio.

Having a fancy new building doesn't automatically lead to academic success but with the best learning devices at their fingertips, and led by two class acts in Mr McGee and Mr McIntosh, you'd imagine the kids must do better.