News / Olnafirth closure consultation to be delayed
A DECISION to consult on shutting a small primary school in Shetland has been postponed for at least a year after the local council agreed to accept a moratorium on school closures requested by Scottish education secretary Michael Russell.
Consultation on closing the 25 pupil Olnafirth primary school, in Voe, will now be delayed until at least August 2012.
Councillors in Shetland voiced their dismay with the way the newly elected Scottish government appeared to be interfering with local government decisions.
They are now seeking assurances from the SNP government that decision making will be left with the community.
They also want guarantees that new money will be made available should the Scottish government require local authorities to keep rural schools open.
Shetland Islands Council vice convener Josie Simpson said that councils up and down the country had been appalled when Mr Russell proposed the moratorium at the end of last month.
The education secretary said the “clear legislative presumption against school closures” was not always followed and that therefore time was needed to review the Schools Consultation Act.
But some councillors condemned this as a “purely political move” to introduce “centralisation by stealth”.
Earlier this week, local government umbrella body CoSLA recommended rejecting the government proposals when they meet next week.
Following a long and at times passionate debate at the council’s new education and families committee on Wednesday morning, councillors decided by six votes to two – with three abstentions – to agree to the request by the cabinet secretary, “because there will be a moratorium whatever”.
Councillor Jonathan Wills had moved to go ahead with the consultation as planned, but only found support from councillor Florence Grains.
A further motion by councillor Rick Nickerson not to agree with the education secretary’s request for a moratorium, but to postpone the statutory consultation of the proposed closure of the primary school was defeated by four votes to six.
They also called on the Scottish government for the SIC to be represented on the commission that is to be set up to look at the legislative framework of school closures.
The consultation into the possible closure of the Olnafirth school was scheduled to be carried out between August and December this year.
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