Renfrewshire Council

Thistle Primary School was chosen from a three-name shortlist during a public vote earlier this year - and councillors will now be asked to give formal approval to name the new school. 

Pupils at the existing Dargavel and Bishopton primary schools were asked earlier this year to suggest names for the school - with three names then chosen for the public vote which ran for two weeks in March. 

Local residents were invited to vote online, with pupils at the two schools casting their votes in person. Nearly 2,000 votes were cast in total. 

The winning option - chosen to reflect the nature which surrounds the new school - received 735 votes (38%). 

Thistle Primary School was narrowly preferred to Craigton Primary School - chosen to reflect the nearby Craigton Drive and Burn - which had 723 votes (37.4%). 

The third option - Rossland Primary School, which relates to a historic area name, received 476 votes (24.6%). 

The new school is due to open in August 2027 and will have capacity for 800 pupils, as well as facilities for the wider community, including a full-size sports pitch. 

Members of the council's Education and Children's Services Policy Board will be asked to formally approve Thistle Primary School as the name for the new school when they meet on Thursday 15 May. 

The board's convener, Councillor Emma Rodden, said: "We were delighted to see the level of engagement and the number of votes cast - to have nearly 2,000 is a fantastic total and I thank everyone who contributed. 

"The pupils who came up with the initial longlist of names had some great ideas and we had a tough time narrowing it down to three to go to the vote. 

"Being able to give the new school a proper name is an important milestone in the project and a key step towards developing a proper identity before we start to welcome pupils and parents in two years time." 

You can read more information on the new school on our website.

The new school in Dargavel is one of several new school projects currently being taken forward by Renfrewshire Council - with a new Paisley Grammar School Community Campus to open in summer 2026 and an expansion of Park Mains High School to complete in summer 2027. 

Councillors earlier this year committed to a further £170m investment in the area's schools, with 14 schools identified as priorities and for which options and business cases for investment will now be developed. 

Read more on our Learning Estate Strategy next steps. 

News release issued: Thursday 8 May 2025