A delegation from Moray Council’s education service met service families at RAF Leuchars, ahead of their move to RAF Lossiemouth this year.
Children of RAF personnel currently based at Leuchars will begin to enrol in schools in Elgin and Lossiemouth when squadrons of Typhoon aircraft begin transferring to the Moray air base in the summer.
The meeting in the community centre at the Fife air station included a presentation by Lindsey Stanley, business support team manager for Moray’s education service.
She was accompanied by David Barnett, head teacher at Elgin Academy, and Linda Brown, head at Lossiemouth High, as well as Kathleen Blacklaw, head teacher at Bishopmill Primary. They were joined by Hazel Sly, acting deputy head at Seafield Primary, Stephanie Gibson, head at St Gerardine Primary, and Madeline McCutcheon, head at Hythehill Primary.
The delegation is also visiting secondary and primary schools in the Leuchars area to begin enrolling pupils ahead of their move. At lunchtime yesterday delegation members met Madras College rector David McLure at the school’s Kilrymont campus in St Andrews.
It is anticipated around 100 service children connected with Leuchars will enrol at Moray for the start of the new school session in August, with more to follow as the transfer of the Typhoon fleet progresses.
Education officials from Fife Council visited schools in Elgin and Lossiemouth before Christmas as part of the preparations for the move by pupils and their families.
Two years ago education officials from Moray travelled to Waterbeach in Cambridgeshire to meet army families preparing to relocate to the former RAF Kinloss. That exercise proved extremely valuable in helping to familiarise parents with the Scottish education system, curriculum issues and extracurricular facilities and activities.
Mrs Stanley said the meeting aimed to provide Leuchars parents with an introduction to schools and educational provision in Moray, with members of the delegation available to answer questions.
Fife Council education officer John McLaughlin told The Courier the close working between Fife Council, the RAF and the Moray authority was intended to make the transition smoother for parents and the children who will be enrolling in Moray schools, address any issues for youngsters with particular needs and to allow service parents to start the school enrolment process in Moray even if they do not yet have a fixed address. He said the Leuchars-to-Moray transition was “well advanced” in education terms.
For those families being relocated to England, however, he said it was “more challenging”, as they would be moving to a new education system where not all pupils would be guaranteed a place at their local school. He said Fife Council was working with the MoD-funded Children’s Education Advisory Service for the English transfer.