Construction is officially underway at Mother Teresa School in Walkerton.

The school is receiving a $1.3-million expansion in order to relocate Brockton’s municipal daycare program to the school by retrofitting two unused classrooms and building a small addition.

Mayor David Inglis says council had to make a decision on the daycare, as their current location in Walkerton’s armoury building had run its course and is no longer viable.

He says the opportunity to relocate to Mother Teresa School is a natural fit with the new Walkerton District Community School located just across the street, putting nearly all of Walkerton’s educational facilities on the same block.

Bruce-Grey Catholic District School Board Chair Bev Eckensweiler believes the project is one that others in the province will look to as a template, pointing out the Ministry of Education is putting pressure on school boards to deal with declining enrollment by finding community uses for their surplus space.

Eckensweiler adds they hope to be able to offer a specialist high skills major program in early childhood education at the daycare by partnering with Georgian College, but cautions nothing has been formalized on that front.

Construction is expected to be completed early this fall.