News / Ministers to let Olnafirth primary close
THE COMMUNITY of Voe is coming to terms with the news their primary school will be the latest to close as part of Shetland Islands Council’s cost cutting drive.
On Tuesday Scottish ministers said they would not call in a decision last month to close the eight pupil Olnafirth primary at the end of the summer term on 4 July next year.
The development has been met with disappointment by the parent council who said they could see no educational benefit in closure.
Chairman David McDowall said the school had consistently performed well and attained awards, including an environment award last week for a model wave power machine the children designed, built and tested themselves.
In their letter the government said the council had fulfilled its statutory obligations and they were free to move ahead with the closure plan.
The council says the decision will save almost £100,000 from its education budget, which is struggling to cut its spending by £3.25 million over the next two years.
A transition group will be set up with education staff and teachers to smooth the move to the primary department in Brae high school five miles away, though some parents may choose an alternative school.
McDowall said: “We need to see what support the council offers us to ease the transition because there is going to be children here who have seen the school that they know and they love close.
“It’s a very sad reflection of where we have ended up, the council over the years have managed to squander the money and get us to a place where we need to save this money now and people are going to suffer, unfortunately in this case it is our school.”
SIC education and families committee chairwoman Vaila Wishart said she knew that staff, parents and pupils would be very disappointed, but stressed that the decision would the uncertainty which has hung over the school for years.
Plans to consult on the closure of Olnafirth primary were put on hold when the Scottish government set up its Commission on the Delivery of Rural Education (CDRE) in July 2011.
At the time the school had 25 pupils, more than three times the current school roll.
This week the government announced changes to the law it would be taking forward following the CDRE’s report.
These include making the process for closing schools more transparent, better informing parents and communities, clarifying the presumption against closure, and requiring clear financial information.
Meanwhile the SIC’s education and families committee will debate recommendations to close the three pupil Skerries secondary department on 10 December, with full council making a final decision the following day.
The consultation was delayed after a technical glitch meant that some of the electronic responses to the original consultation were not received. The consultation report can be found here.
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