Derelict abandoned former Kirkcaldy campus buildings to be torn down

Fife Council is taking the action in a bid to halt the sad decline of B-listed The Priory, The Roundhouse and a former children’s nursery which once formed part of Fife College’s Priory Campus.

It sits between Victoria Road and the harbour, hidden from view, and has been repeatedly trashed by vandals and squatters.

The council secured the site last year and has given its owners until Tuesday, October 25, to comply with the notice and begin demolition work.

If they do not respond, the local authority will bring them down - and send them the bill.

The campus has sat empty since the college quit the site and sold it to a London developer in 2017.

The abandoned buildings - which were easily accessible to all - quickly became a magnet for anti-social behaviour and squatters. Fire crews were called out regularly to tackle blazes.

There were also reports of lorries jettisoning entire skip loads of rubbish there before the access road at the harbour was chained up in a bid to keep them out.

The buildings were also vandalised and left wide open, despite several attempts to make them secure.

In 2020, the Fife Free Press revealed the shocking extent of the decay to the former campus. Security fencing was torn down repeatedly, allowing anyone to walk unchallenged through the trashed classrooms, refectory and corridors.

The former nursery behind the Roundhouse was also badly damaged, with weeds growing several feet tall around the entire site.

The Press also investigated who owned the site which, together with the Nairn building at the harbour spanned some 7.5 acres of prime land.

The company which bought the campus was Nairn Holdings which dealt in real estate

The plot was immediately split into two and sold to Seychelles-based Panada Limited, which took over the bottom half consisting of the Nairn Building - now the subject of development into waterfront apartments - and the business units opposite the harbour, and Priory Park Estate Limited which took the top half.

In 2020, Priory Park Estates told the Press it was submitting a planning application to turn the campus buildings into housing to bring it back into use.

Now it faces a order from the council to sort out the site which has been fenced off to keep people out.

Garry Nicoll , Fife Council's service manager for building standards, said the area has been a target for anti-social behaviour - and the immediate action would make a difference.

"This is good news for the local community as there have been ongoing incidents with youths gathering, setting fires and putting lives at risk on this site.”

He added: "It's no longer safe to attempt to secure these buildings - the only option now is for the owners to step up and take responsibility or we will take the buildings down."