The leader of Fife Council Alex Rowley has urged senior councillors to “have strength” as they made the difficult decision to proceed to statutory consultation on proposals to close seven primary schools.
Mr Rowley praised the diligence of around 30 parents who handed over a 631- signature petition against the proposed closure of Tanshall Primary in Glenrothes ahead of the council’s executive committee at Fife House.
However, he said for the council to do nothing was “not an option” as it tried to improve children’s education and make a dent in the £66 million budget gap it faces over the next three years.
He said a “whole load of anomalies” including 19,000 vacant school desks and an imbalance of pupil investment in the region had to be addressed.
Emphasising that this was the start of a process that would see no more school closure proposals during this council term, Mr Rowley said: “There are seven schools here today that are facing closure. What we are doing today is concentrating on the wider review of how to improve education in Fife.
“At the engagement stage when we gave the public the facts and figures on school occupancy and running costs last summer, parents were generally accepting that there were problems with the school estate.
“I always knew there would be specific problems when it came to the proposal stage, so all credit to the parents who are raising their concerns here today.
“It would be my intention as council leader over coming weeks to go round the closure-threatened schools and have detailed discussions with parents and staff. I acknowledge their uncertainty and concerns but it’s the right thing for us to progress with this today.”
The local authority warned last year that the closure of some of Fife’s crumbling schools was “inevitable” as the council battles to bridge its funding gap.
And the decision by the executive committee gave the go-ahead for the education and learning directorate to consult on closing and merging a number of schools in North-East Fife, Glenrothes, Dunfermline and South-West Fife. A final decision on the schools will be made later.
The move is based on the premise that all schools should be rated A or B for condition and suitablility; schools should have an occupancy of greater than 60% of capacity; and a sustainable school estate should reduce the council’s carbon footprint.
But SNP group leader Peter Grant, who became emotional when talking about the battle to save Tanshall Primary in his Glenrothes ward, demanded to know why the school was being “singled out”.
Noting that Mr Rowley represented a Cowdenbeath area ward and his seconder David Ross represented a Kirkcaldy ward, Mr Grant accused the council leader of a “political stitch-up”.
Concerns were expressed that the council was “tying its hands” by proposing no more school closures in its lifetime, but Mr Rowley’s motion was overwhelmingly approved in a roll-call vote.