Burntisland Primary School, Ferguson Place, Burntisland

Burntisland Primary School comprises two distinct school buildings on a single site: the Old School of 1874–6 to the west and the Elementary School of 1899–1901 to the east.

OLD SCHOOL

Designed by Moffat & Aitken and built between 1874 and 1876, this is a two-storey school with mezzanine levels, executed in Tudor Gothic style on ground that slopes to the south. The building has a rectangular plan with projecting gables. It is built of rusticated ashlar with an ashlar plinth, squared and snecked rubble to the rear, and polished dressings. Ground floor cill course, string course and eaves course are present throughout. Windows feature hoodmoulds with label stops, stop-chamfered arrises, stone transoms and mullions, and relieving arches. Arrow slit windows are set into the gableheads.

The south (entrance) elevation has a recessed centre with advanced outer bays. Four steps lead up to a two-leaf panelled timber door in a moulded doorcase with 'GIRLS' carved at the centre bay, flanked by small adjacent windows. Two small bipartite windows with cill course sit at mezzanine level, with a tripartite window at first floor. The slightly advanced gable to the right has blind panels (possibly air vents) below the cill course of two tall cross windows; the first floor features a stepped tripartite window with hoodmould and label stops, and small flanking blind panels. The advanced gable to the left has a square panel at centre below ground floor cill course and a small bipartite window above at ground and mezzanine levels, with two further windows to each of these floors on the return to the right. The first floor has a tripartite window (detailed as above) and a battered wallhead stack to the left skew.

The west elevation consists of four irregular bays, with the outer gabled bay to the left recessed. A bipartite window sits to the right of centre with a further window to the outer right at ground and mezzanine; the first floor has a window to the right of centre and a transomed bipartite window in a dormerhead breaking through the eaves to the outer right. The advanced gable to the left of centre has two blocked openings at plinth level, a tall transomed tripartite window at ground floor and a transomed bipartite window above, with a battered wallhead stack to the right skew. The return face to the left contains a two-leaf panelled timber door in a moulded doorcase with 'BOYS' carved below a small window, with a further window above. The broad recessed gable to the outer left has two transomed bipartite windows at ground floor, a similar window above with adjacent flanking windows, and paired stacks in the re-entrant angle bridged to create an arrow slit effect to the right. The plinth to the right of centre is obscured at the outer right by a low flat-roofed modern brick box with timber door.

The north elevation is symmetrical. A cross window at centre on both floors has the first floor window breaking through the eaves into a gabled dormerhead; bipartite windows occupy the flanking bays at both floors.

The east elevation is recessed to the left and advanced with a gable to the right. The gable to the right has two cross windows at ground floor and a transomed tripartite window above. The recess has a window to both floors at centre, and the gable to the left of centre has a transomed bipartite window with a further bipartite window to the outer left, also at both floors.

Windows have 6 and 8 pane glazing patterns in top opening sashes. The roof is covered in grey slates. Cavetto-coped ashlar stacks with some cans, ashlar-coped skews with gabled skewputts featuring cusped carving and stone finials. Cast iron downpipes with square section gutters and decorative rainwater hoppers.

Interior: The original decorative scheme has been retained, conserving the imaginative spatial articulation of the hall and opposing staircases lined with polychrome glazed tiles (turquoise and white) and surmounted by a moulded dado rail. Separate staircases run from ground to mezzanine and to first floor, with cast iron balusters and columns with scrollwork supports and timber handrail. The Headmaster's office contains a timber fireplace, panelled door (both with stop-chamfered arrises) and boarded dado.

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Designed by Robert Little and built between 1899 and 1901, with probable additions by W R Simpson in 1911 (likely the gymnasium). This is a single and two-storey school of elongated rectangular plan. It is built of dressed, squared and snecked rubble with ashlar quoins and margins. A battered base course, ground and first floor cill courses are present. Openings are pointed arch and shouldered, with hoodmoulds with label stops, chamfered and stop-chamfered arrises, stone transoms and mullions, and some relieving arches.

The south (entrance) elevation comprises a two-storey block to the right: three recessed bays to the left, a gabled bay and three lower bays to the right. The gable at centre has cross windows flanked by single windows to each floor; the gablehead has a horizontal moulding with label stops below a glazed hoodmoulded trefoil with label stops. The return face to the left has a bipartite small window at ground floor. The slightly lower block to the right of centre has a part-glazed timber door off centre left in a pointed arch doorway flanked by small windows, and a small bipartite window in the bay to the outer right. The first floor has a transomed bipartite window breaking through the eaves into a dormerhead with trefoil at centre and a window in the bay to the left. The recessed block to the left has a centre hoodmoulded stepped triple lancet with label stops below a horizontal moulding, flanked by square air vents and decorative bosses. Battered buttresses divide the outer bays with further triple lancet windows. The first floor has bipartite windows at centre flanked by single windows and further bipartites to outer right and left (all windows transomed). A domed and finialled timber louvred roof ventilator on slate apron sits off centre right at the roof ridge.

The single storey block to the left comprises three recessed gabled bays to the left, two advanced bays and an advanced gable to the outer right. Two bipartite windows sit to the right of centre; diminutive gabled slate roof ventilators with timber trefoil openings are present, with a bipartite window on the return to the left below a trefoil opening at gablehead. The advanced gable to the outer right has two steps up to a part-glazed timber door to the left in a pointed arch and roll-moulded doorcase, a cross window at centre, and a gablehead with horizontal bar moulding and trefoil with hoodmould and label stops. The return face to the right has a bipartite window to the right and a dominant stack to the left. The recessed block to the left has a large centre gable with stepped triple lancet with hoodmould (as above), and a wallhead stack to the right piercing the skew. Flanking cross windows break through the eaves in gabled dormerheads. A link wall to the outer left adjoins a gabled gateway.

The west elevation shows a gable end with stepped triple lancet window (as above).

The north elevation has a single storey block to the right with a small modern lean-to extension at centre. A gable to the right of centre has a stepped tripartite window and gablehead stack; a two-leaf boarded door (altered from a bipartite window) sits to the outer right. The gable to the left of centre is as above but without the trefoil, and the top right of the window is obscured by a large extractor fan. The advanced gable to the outer left is also as above, and a small gabled porch adjoins in the re-entrant angle to the right with a deep-set part-glazed timber door in shouldered and roll-moulded and hoodmoulded doorcase with blind oculus in the tympanum, buttressed at outer right.

The two-storey block to the left is advanced with a piend roof and single storey pitch-roofed T-shaped projection off centre right. A single window (transom removed) and stepped window sit to the outer right at ground floor with a tripartite window above; a tripartite window (transoms removed) and the T projection sit at centre ground below a bipartite and three single windows; a cross window with flanking windows occupies both floors at left. The T projection has basket arched openings and diminutive buttresses, with a door and four window openings to the west.

The east elevation has a low two-storey slightly advanced entrance gable at centre with a squat deep-set part-glazed timber door and flanking windows below a stepped 3-light landing window, with a small window close to the eaves on the return to the right. A small window sits above the gable to the right of centre with a further window to the right at both floors. A modern extension with window below an enclosed timber walkway sits in the re-entrant angle to the left below a tripartite window at first floor. The advanced gable to the outer left is blank at ground floor with two cross windows at first floor; the return face to the right has a boarded timber door with small flanking windows.

Small pane glazing pattern in timber sash and case windows throughout. Graded grey slates. Trefoil-pierced cresting to stone stacks; moulded skewputts; cast iron downpipes and decorative rainwater hoppers and fixings.

Interior: Some interior doorways reflect the triple lancet window openings. A staircase has cast iron columns and balusters with timber handrail; open beam ceilings with exposed braces. An attic room contains a trefoil window.

JANITOR'S HOUSE

Probably designed by Robert Little in 1899, this is a single storey, three-bay, M-gabled cottage with small pitch-roofed extension to the west. It is built of dressed, squared and snecked rubble with droved quoins. Moulded, shouldered openings, chamfered arrises and stone mullions are present.

The south (entrance) elevation has a part-glazed boarded timber door at centre with a bipartite window in the bay to the right and a tripartite window in the advanced gable to the left. A bipartite window sits in the extension to the outer left. A link wall to the outer right adjoins the gabled entrance to the school grounds.

The west elevation shows the extension abutting a semicircular coped boundary wall; a blind oculus sits in the south gable.

The east elevation has a bipartite window with relieving arch and trefoil above in the north gable.

Plate glass glazing in timber sash and case windows, with modern top opening windows to the extension. Graded grey slates. Coped ashlar stacks with some moulded clay cans, ashlar-coped skews and moulded skewputts. Cast iron downpipes and decorative rainwater hoppers.

GATEWAY, GATEPIERS, BOUNDARY WALLS AND RAILINGS

A gabled rubble overthrow to the pedestrian gateway with ashlar skews and moulded finial; gablet-coped, chamfered gatepiers with moulded stone finials; coped rubble boundary walls; cast and wrought iron railings.