BLUEPRINT FOR EDUCATION

Consultation Form - Comments

Staff Meeting

Meeting Area / Skeld Primary School / Date: 16 March 2010
Facilitators: / Stephen Renwick / 4 in group
Maria Edwards / 4 in group
Lead Officer: / Matthew Moss
Comments on Viable / Not Viable Options
(See Pg 6 onwards in “Options” Leaflet)
Primary Options
  • Keeping Skeld - taken out of non-viable and placed into viable - transport and community reasons.
  • If schools amalgamated, where would it be and would the opportunities be the same as other Shetland primary schools?

Primary Options

  • The viable options are not viable to this group.
  • For the younger pupils, travel is too far to Aith and Happyhansel. Some Skeld bairns walk to school, some cycle (so healthy option) and some travel by bus or car.
  • Also must consider weather conditions and road conditions which are not safe. Roads will need major improvements. Some are not safe for cars and especially not buses - especially in winter with the single track roads.
  • During adverse weather, those in the Skeld catchment area will miss school in either Aith or Happyhansel, therefore detrimental to pupils’ education.
  • Will have to build new school for all pupils from Skeld / Sandness to go to Happyhansel. Skeld’s building is in a much better condition than Happyhansel. No space in Happyhansel.
  • What will happen to the schools if they were closed? Will they be derelict?
  • This school is an excellent place for the community to meet. The school is the main place for people to meet, for example, coffee mornings, playgroups, night classes, Out-of-School clubs, Christmas concerts, Christmas Fair.
  • The transition from playgroup into the nursery and then to primary - the transition is well established.
  • Big concern if there is no school here. Will people want to move to Skeld - feel that community will decline without a school. Lots of young family in the Skeld area and is still stable at the moment. Sure the young people have moved here so that the children can go to Skeld school.
  • Should extend the invitation to the Blueprint consultation meetings to anyone who has children, for example, those in the toddler groups. Information should have been used from the NHS on parents with babies as they too will be affected later on. Anyone in the community should be invited (for example, those who are planning to start a family soon, and also include grandparents). If they were only included later on in the formal consultation, then it would be too late.

Secondary Options

  • Keep Aith S1 to S4 - in Glasgow and other parts of Scotland, they can do it with CfE, why can’t we?
  • If pupils from junior high schools go to S4 at AHS, will the new AHS be ready in time to accommodate these pupils from country schools?
  • What happens to those pupils who go to AHS at the end of S3, then leave at the end of S4 - seems like a lot changes just for one year.
  • It would be interesting to have figures of those who leave after S4 and also pupils who go to S5 at AHS and then leave.
  • If Aith is doing so well in the league tables (first in Shetland), why should pupils go to another secondary school?
  • Huge change for P7 pupil to go straight to AHS or Brae - big transition from such a small school to a big school. Consider the travel time. Consider size of classes.
  • If going after P7 to AHS, there may be pupils who get overlooked (“lost in system”) and lost in big classes.
  • How will AHS cope with extra pupils; will AHS need more support staff to cope?
  • What happens to staff when a school gets closed?
  • Contradicting the statement of ‘Sustaining rural communities’ if the school was to close.
  • Going to AHS after P7 - will that not mean an increase in the budget? Or, S4 at AHS?

Other options that should be considered
  • Leave us alone!
  • If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.
  • Keep the school open and reduce PE and Art secondary teachers coming into the school.
  • If you close Skeld, what happens if the pupils are at Happyhansel or Aith School and the road conditions are bad, so pupils from Skeld, Reawick and Sand can’t get to the school - these pupils will fall behind with their education compared to those living in the Aith / Happyhansel areas.

Any other relevant matter you wish to be considered
  • All secondary pupils spend their time in one school.
  • Changes at S3 will be bad for the pupils in terms of social issues, relating to moving to established high schools. It is the wrong time to move them!
  • Primary - transport, road, distance, time, etc to move to Aith / Happyhansel.
  • The school is the only thing left in the community, loss of shop already.
  • It is a long way for nursery pupils to travel especially with a 2½ hour session.
  • More pupils in rural schools if there was better child care provision in the local area.
  • Introduction of breakfast clubs / After-school clubs could help with child care.
  • How much has the Blueprint cost?
  • Long term transport costs (as fuel prices increase). Environmental costs will increase.
  • Secondary staffing should be looked at before primary.
  • Primary - allocation of McCrone teachers - these be located to schools for full days (for example). These can teach Music / Art / PE or other subjects. This will mean one teacher rather than three separate specialist subject teachers.
  • Keep the school open.
  • A school this size, all pupils feel part of the school. Difficult for parents of outlying areas to be involved if there wasn’t a school. They wouldn’t feel as valued or as welcome.
  • Schools of this size - older pupils take care of the younger ones without being asked.
  • In a small school, staff know one another, there is continuity with what they do as you see the same faces compared to a big school. Relationships with children are better.
  • CfE is already working well in Skeld and should be allowed to continue (see CfE leaflet with Skeld pupils in the photograph).
  • Some parents of children who may attend affected schools within two years of any proposal being published hadn’t been invited to the Parents’ meeting. These parents should have been invited to the meeting (re: Parents of children who may attend affected schools within two years of any proposal being published) (Consultation Plan, page 8). For example, a three-year old child now already attending a nursery will be attending P1 in an affected school within two years. A child who is one now will be attending nursery in an affected school within two years.
  • Councillors are welcome to spend a day or half a day in the school to see what is happening in the school. This includes Community Councillors as well.
  • If enough people say they want to keep the junior high school to stay at S1 - S4, will the Councillors listen? Are we going to have to go through the consultation process again in five years’ time?
  • Will it cost more for P7 pupils to travel to AHS if Aith is closed?

Wed 17 March 2010

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