Pupils at Kelburn Primary will no longer continue to make way for voters after the council changed plans for election days. Largs councillor Tom Marshall said that he intervened after initial recommendations sought to leave the polling station at Kelburn.

A full review into polling places was carried out by the council, using the unusually high number of elections to get feedback from the public.

Only two polling stations were highlighted as a concern, one of which was Kelburn PS - which is one of the largest polling catchments in North Ayrshire and caters to around 3,600 voters in the immediate area.

In a report to the council this week, Chief Executive Elma Murray said: “These representations were primarily due to the frequency of use of Kelburn Primary School as a polling place during 2014. On average there is only one electoral event per annum.

“However, in the case of Kelburn Primary School there were three electoral events during 2014 (European and local by-elections and the independence referendum).

Councillors heard that the council has a duty to take into account a number of aspects when considering polling places, including location and accessibility of polling places to voters, and in particular to disabled voters.

Ms Murray added that the council “tries, wherever possible, to avoid the use of schools as polling places, to reduce or remove the inconvenience this causes to pupils, parents and the school.” However, Conservative councillor Tom Marshall has intervened after the Kelburn Parents Council had raised additional concerns regarding the situation.

Cllr. Marshall said: “Last year, Kelburn Primary was used three times for elections, and concerns have been raised about losing additional days of the school year.

“I wrote to the Chief Executive in December, and the council have now been persuaded not to close Kelburn, and instead they will have a polling station at the Games Hall at Largs Academy.”