page_title: Spier's School
section_title: Natural history
hierarchical_section_title: Spier's School / Natural history
caption_attribution_description: English: Epipactis helleborine (Broad Leaved Helleborine), Speir's School, Beith, North Aryshire, Scotland.
context_page_description: Spier's school, at Beith, in North Ayrshire, Scotland was opened in 1888 and closed in 1972. The school, now demolished, was built using Ballochmyle red sandstone and was reminiscent of the ancient Glasgow University. The school motto was 'Quod verum tutum'. The gardens and woodlands are open to the public at all times.
  Sustrans National Route 7 at Kilbirnie Lochside is the nearest cycle-route access. The Barrmill Road entrance is on the bus route from Beith to Barrmill.
context_section_description: The grounds had previously been the farmland of Marshalland farm and the evidence from OS maps does not show the presence of any old woodland after the mid-eighteenth century. Several orchid species are present and a few of the indicators species of older woodland. Ivy dominates the ground flora near the Geilsland Road to the extent that almost all other species are eliminated.55°44.781′N 4°37.384′W
caption: A broad-leaved helleborine orchid growing in the old school grounds
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