The council administration’s new education leader has said every child born in the city deserves the same start in life, regardless of their economic background.
Councillor Gregor Murray, who was announced as convener of the children and families services committee on Monday, said closing the attainment gap in the city is a top priority.
The North East representative, who was returned as a councillor for the SNP in May’s election, said the administration would continue to work with the findings of a report carried out by anti-poverty campaign, the Fairness Commission.
The report looked at the issues of inequality and poverty faced by the city’s residents, and Councillor Murray highlighted the importance of councillors “singing from the same hymn sheet”.
The convener said: “Closing the attainment gap throughout the city is going to be a top priority over the coming session.
“We need to make sure, as a council, that we are all singing from the same hymn sheet, and that all sections of the city community come together in doing this.
“A flexible approach will be adopted, giving full power to the head teachers at each school.
“Policy implemented at one school won’t always work at another and the outcomes are not always the same.
“Head teachers will be given the money to lead their schools, they are the experts and they know the educational needs of their communities.
“Everyone in Dundee has to get the same chance in life, and we will continue to use the findings of the Fairness Commission going forward.
“There would be no point in compiling all of the information in the report for it to be ignored, and it is important for us to listen to the findings of the commission’s report.”
The Fairness Commission was set up to assess the nature, impact and extent of poverty in Dundee, and investigate the causes of poverty and inequality.
A cross-party investigation, one of the unique elements of the commission’s study was it took into account the thoughts and viewpoints of residents in the city living in poverty.
56 recommendations were made in the report, released last year, which could help lift more than 40,000 Dundee residents out of poverty.
In January the council announced £5 million would be spent on closing the attainment gap in the city, allocated via the Pupil Equity Funding programme from the Scottish Government.
