Claims by anti-closure campaigners that a further 21 schools will be shut by Fife Council have been described as “outrageous” and “completely without any foundation” by the council’s education spokesman.
Crombie Residents Association (CRA) secretary and vice-chairman Tony Orton said he believed the decision to close seven primary schools in Fife, including Crombie Primary, was only “the first phase of a programme to close a hit list of 21 schools”.
Mr Orton said the association believed that because of the current “public backlash”, Fife Council’s Labour administration has “decided that the remaining 14 school closures will not take place in the current council’s tenure, ie until after 2017.”
Decisions have already been taken to close Pitcorthie, Tanshall, Crombie, Wellwood, Dunino, New Gilston and Rathillet primaries.
Mr Orton said: “Crombie Primary School (CPS) has serviced the needs of Crombie community well for 85 years and the school building could easily outlive the modern structures.
“Consequently, the closure of CPS has very little to do with educational benefit or the cost of a deteriorating building and everything to do with the lack of the council’s ability to financially provide the services that the electors want and deserve.
“Additionally, the Curriculum for Excellence is being used and abused to justify the closure of small rural schools.
“The only way that the electorate can register their objections to those that we elect to represent us is through the ballot box.
“When voting in next year’s general election and the 2017 council elections the electorate might like to bear in mind that the only councillors that opposed the closure of CPS and other schools in Fife were SNP councillors.
“For the avoidance of doubt, CRA is political neutral.”
But Fife Council’s executive spokesman for education Councillor Bryan Poole urged Mr Orton to reconsider his comments.
Mr Poole said: “I can understand Mr Orton’s disappointment on hearing that the proposal to close CPS was not called in by the Scottish Government, thus allowing Fife Council to proceed with arrangements for the transition to Limekilns Primary School of the Crombie pupils.
“But Mr Orton’s disappointment doesn’t excuse his outrageous assertion that Fife Council has a ‘programme to close a hit list of 21 schools’.
“This claim is without any foundation and I challenge Mr Orton to provide evidence of how he has arrived at that conclusion.
“If he can’t, then I hope he has the decency to publicly apologise for putting such a nonsensical scare story into the public domain.
“Furthermore, Mr Orton, writing in his capacity as secretary and vice-chairman of CRA, is coming dangerously close to encouraging people and canvassing support for a particular political party, although he claims that CRA is ‘politically neutral’.
“I hope and trust that Mr Orton and CRA reflect on the statement issued and ask themselves if he/they are indeed acting in a politically-neutral manner.”
Fife Council wrote to Crombie parents last week telling them the Scottish Government has not overturned Fife Council’s decision to close the primary school.
The school was proposed for closure as part of Fife Council’s programme to improve the condition and suitability of its school estate and the overall learning environment and experience for children.
The programme also aimed to reduce the number of spare classroom places across Fife.
Catchment areas will now be rezoned and children from CPS will move to Limekilns primary.
Fife Council education service has pledged to work closely with parents, children and staff to help them through the process.