A radical scheme to give up to five schools to individual headteachers in “clusters” across the Highlands has been approved.
Education chiefs’ plans to group feeder primaries with their secondary school under one management team were met with dismay in many commmunities.
But yesterday, the first phase of the project was voted through by councillors – although the process has been delayed in two areas to allow further consultation.
But the postponements were compared to the X Factor by one critic.
The education committee voted 15-9 to roll out the first stage of a controversial, region-wide, programme that will leave some head teachers running up to five schools simultaneously after next summer.
The first tranche will encompass 38 rural schools. The new management arrangements will first impact schools connected to Kilchuimen Academy, Kinlochbervie High, Dornoch Academy and Plockton High as well as some primaries feeding into Lochaber High and Millburn Academy.
Farr High in Sutherland and Mallaig High were yesterday taken out of the equation for the time being to allow further consultation with parents in areas strongly averse to the move due to the scale of geographical area and multitide of different communities.
Several councillors warned there was no “one-size-fits-all” solution.
Sutherland councillor Linda Munro spoke out strongly against a proposal to have a single head teacher and a deputy to cover Farr High School, Farr Primary, Altnaharra Primary, Tongue Primary and Melvich Primary.
Speaking after the debate, she said: “I want a quick turnaround that says ‘this is what it looks like and this is what we’re offering by way of a five-school cluster and its management structure’.”
Also speaking after the vote, Highland education director Bill Alexander ruled out any reversal of the cluster programme after its implementation.
“We need to better support head teachers. We’ve been discussing the development of this model since early 2015,” he said.
“When you’re at the front of the queue it might feel a bit rushed but we’ve been talking about it for two years. No-one in the chamber disagreed with the principles. I accept it’s complex but if it needs more time to talk it through then we need to do that.”
SNP MSP Kate Forbes whose Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch constituency includes Plockton, Invergarry, Mallaig and the Small Isles was glad Mallaig was exempted for now but called for a wider deferral.
“I’ve received a lot of correspondence from parents, teachers and others deeply concerned at the lack of consultation,” she said.
“These plans are significant and parents need to have answers before they are pushed through.
“Given that there was no official consultation for people to express their views, it is not right to base decisions for the future management of schools on the volume of complaints received by the chair – we are talking about the future of the Scottish education system, it’s not the X-Factor.”
The issue will return to the next education committee in March.