Council / SIC admits to series of failures over botched Aith ASN plans
Staff at the school raised concerns about the project with trade unions, investigation finds
PARENTS only found out about unpopular changes at Aith Junior High School through “unplanned” communication, a damning council investigation has found.
Shetland Islands Council (SIC) has conducted a ‘lessons learned’ report into its own botched plans to create an enhanced provision hub for children with additional support needs at the West Mainland school.
The project was stopped in July 2025 after parents and staff raised serious concerns about the plans, with a lack of consultation a major factor in the backlash.
Among the findings from the council investigation are:
- Parents only found out about the planned changes a month before construction was due to start
- The SIC’s own health and safety manager was not included in the consultation process
- Staff raised concerns with trade unions about the plans
The SIC has now admitted that there were a catalogue of failures in the process of the £1.3 million project, which it has vowed to learn from.
It said trust was “badly damaged” between the council and parents after they heard of the enhanced provision plans through “unplanned and incidental communication”.
Parents of children who were set to move into Aith JHS were also not consulted, with the SIC saying that parents “did not feel listened to and that no-one was leading or taking responsibility for their child’s transition”.
Children and young people were not involved in the process either, which the SIC admitted “should also have been undertaken at an earlier stage”.
“This could have included a range of accessible methods of gathering their views, including those with the most complex needs,” it said.
“By simply observing them engage in their day-to-day learning activities it would be apparent that they need to experience consistency and coherence throughout their time in school.”
Staff raised concerns with trade unions
Trade unions and health and safety officers were not included in the process either, the SIC has admitted.
It said that trade union representatives and the SIC’s own health and safety manager requested a visit to the school in April 2025, to see the space first-hand.
This visit was only arranged, the council said, because staff expressed worries with them about the project.
Following the visit, the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) union rep raised concerns in writing with the SIC about the plans for Aith.
While a meeting then took place with the union representative, “no immediate action was taken” in relation to the enhanced provision plans.
The SIC said that decision-making for the Aith project was devolved to a learning estate liaison group, which had a “limited diversity of professional experiences” among its members.
It admitted that “officers and staff with extensive specialist knowledge of children’s complex needs” should have been included.
‘No reference’ for consultation with parents
Much of the decision-making was devolved from the group to Aith JHS’ head and depute head teacher, with the council saying it was “unclear” where the responsibility lay for signing off on changes to the plans.
A meeting was held with all head teachers about enhanced provision in January 2024, but the SIC said this focused on the “physical aspects” of the works.
There was “no reference to how they should consult with staff and parents”, it said.
With work due to start in July 2025, there were attempts between January and May between the Aith parent council and SIC officers to find a date for a meeting.
However this did not happen until June 2025 – which led to details being leaked to the media.
Staff were also late to find out about the exact details of the plans. There was less than three months to go until construction started when staff first saw the proposed changes.
In its recommendations, the SIC said it would look to establish an oversight group including members with “specialist knowledge of children and young people’s complex additional support needs” for future enhanced provision projects.
The Aith plans “need to be revised as soon as possible” to take into account the concerns raised, it said.
And it added that floor plans “need to be labelled with care and not with their current purpose (e.g. cupboards being adapted for sensory spaces)”.
There was strong concern and criticism last year that school cupboards were going to be used as sensory spaces in the plans for Aith.
‘Trust damaged’ by Aith exercise
The SIC said it was acknowledged that “trust and relationships have been damaged” during the whole process.
“The lack of consultation led to poor communication and created doubt and uncertainty for many people,” it said.
“For some parents, their experiences of planning for their children over many years has undermined their confidence in the enhanced provision strategy and what SIC will do next.
“There has been a breakdown in collaboration, misinterpretations of intent and resistance to change.
“Recognising these factors is important in designing the future of enhanced provision that will rebuild trust through empathy, consistency, and open dialogue.”
The plans were paused in late June 2025.
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