Letters / Education must pay
An open letter from Councillor Jonathan Wills to his fellow councillors
Dear Colleagues, I enclose a copy of the resolution passed 18:4 at the council on Wednesday and would ask that you note in particular the final paragraph, which says:
• That the Director of Children’s Services/Executive Manager – Finance bring forward a report to the Education and Families Committee and the Council, on the detail of the savings or shortfall required once the statutory consultations have been concluded, and there is a more definite understanding of the financial figures.
(This wording is unfortunate as the council cannot legally “require” a shortfall in any budget.)
This was added by the mover and seconder of the motion, after they had agreed to remove their original wording at 4c, which read in part as follows:
• …that any shortfall on the £3.268 million savings target be found from a further examination of all Council budgets and consideration of the Council’s Reserve Policy… [emphasis added]
It therefore follows that, unless and until the full council decides otherwise, following receipt of the promised report from Helen Budge and James Gray, the current financial policy, agreed unanimously only two months ago, remains in force.
This means that the entire shortfall on the Education Committee’s savings target (i.e. £916,000 per annum before the meeting on Wednesday and £1.56m or thereabouts after it) stands to be met by that committee and not by other committees that have already met their targets.
To insist that the £1.56m will be found elsewhere, as the mover of the motion repeatedly said on Radio Shetland last evening, may cause unnecessary confusion among staff and the general public.
That may be his opinion and his fond hope. It is not in accordance with council policy as it stands at present, which is that the shortfall in education savings will not be passed on in the form of reduced ferry runs, even higher charges for home care, even fewer refuse collections or even less road maintenance and snow-clearing.
On the other hand, it is entirely possible that the money not saved on Wednesday may result in accelerated amalgamations of primary schools (one thinks of Dunrossness, Sandwick and Cunningsburgh, or Hamnavoe, Tingwall and Scalloway) and even fewer books, working computers and teaching materials for pupils in the three Lerwick schools, one of which, the AHS, serves the whole of Shetland.
I hope a correction and clarification will be forthcoming promptly from the council leadership, lest our staff and the public be misled, no doubt inadvertently, due to a failure to appreciate the precise meaning of what the majority voted for on 13 November.
Best wishes (you may need them)
Jonathan
Text of resolution follows:
The Council RESOLVED to:
a) Create an ambitious partnership between Shetland High Schools and the Further Education sector in Shetland. The Council delegates to the Chief Executive the coordination of this element of the Strategy for Secondary Education with the implementation of the Shetland Tertiary Education Research and Training Project. The Chief Executive will present enabling reports in due course.
Actions:
• Align the implementation of the partnership with the current proposals relating to tertiary education;
• Explore appropriate governance arrangements to maximise the learning opportunities for Shetland’s learners;
• Shetland High Schools will retain their identities and continue to have Parent Forums/Councils;
• Align curricular models and timetabling and staffing arrangements across the High Schools and the Further Education Sector in Shetland to maximise the opportunities for young people in Shetland;
• Link employers to the curriculum developments for the senior phase to enable the development of vocationally related courses.
b) Create a Shetland Learning Campus. The Council delegates the implementation of these resolutions to the Director of Children’s Services.
Actions:
• Align the curriculum at all secondary schools in Shetland to ensure common content, progressions and ease of transitions;
• Develop on-line access to all curricular learning materials;
• Develop and implement an independent learning programme for all students to enable them to access learning opportunities on offer in Shetland and elsewhere;
• Provide independent learning time within all student timetables to enable personal learning to take place;
• Develop and implement a professional development programme for all education staff in Shetland relating to open on-line learning;
• Enable all qualifications delivered through secondary school or college to be undertaken by adult learners – either via on-line materials or through face-to-face attendance in classes.
c) Rationalise secondary education provision in Shetland to ensure an equitable standard of education for all pupils. The Council delegates the implementation of these resolutions to the Director of Children’s Services.
Actions:
• Children’s Services progresses with statutory consultation on the discontinuation of stages of education, namely Secondary 3 and Secondary 4, in Aith Junior High School Secondary Department with a proposed transfer date for pupils at the end of Secondary 2 at a date to be agreed;
• Children’s Services progresses with statutory consultation on the discontinuation of stages of education, namely Secondary 3 and Secondary 4, in Sandwick Junior High School Secondary Department with a proposed transfer date for pupils at the end of Secondary 2 at a date to be agreed;
• Children’s Services undertakes statutory consultation during 2014 on the discontinuation of stages of education in Whalsay School Secondary Department, namely Secondary 3 and Secondary 4, with transfer of pupils to the Anderson High School at the end of Secondary 2; to take effect from the start of the school session 2015/16 onwards;
• Children’s Services undertakes statutory consultation during 2014 on the discontinuation of stages of education in Mid Yell Junior High School Secondary Department, namely Secondary 3 and Secondary 4, with transfer of pupils to the Anderson High School at the end of Secondary 2; to take effect from the start of the school session 2015/16 onwards;
• Children’s Services undertakes statutory consultation during 2014 on the discontinuation of stages of education in Baltasound Junior High School Secondary Department, namely Secondary 3 and Secondary 4, with transfer of pupils to the Anderson High School at the end of Secondary 2; to take effect from the start of the school session 2015/16 onwards; and
• That the Director of Children’s Services/Executive Manager – Finance bring forward a report to the Education and Families Committee and the Council, on the detail of the savings or shortfall required once the statutory consultations have been concluded, and there is a more definite understanding of the financial figures
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