Councillors have agreed to invest £22.5m in a new secondary school in West Dunbartonshire.

The building will replace Our Lady and St Patrick's High School.

Site investigations will be held before a final decision is made on the location of the new facility.

Feasibility studies to assess the suitability of seven locations for the new campus have ruled out sites at Havoc Park, Carville and Notre Dame, but identified Posties Park in Dumbarton as the preferred location after receiving the highest score following the study.

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Further investigations to determine the suitability of the land for construction will now be carried out on Postie's Park Dumbarton, Argyll Park in Alexandria, a section of land behind Levenbank Terrace in Jamestown and the current school site.

Knowtop Farm in Castlehill has also been identified as a possible location for the campus.

If the school is determined to be built on the current site, land at Cunninghame Graham Memorial Park and Dumbarton Joint Hospital will be considered as extensions to the existing school campus.

Councillor Michelle Stewart, Convener of Educational Services, said: "Before we make any decision on the location of the school, it is important we continue with site inspections to ensure we agree to the best location for the school.

"Regardless of the location, I am delighted that future pupils will be educated in a new £22.5m school."

Site investigations will be carried out over the summer, with the results presented at the next Educational Services Committee meeting.

(JP/CD)