Save Scalloway School

[Njugle]

Possibly because they wanted to be seen to make a firm decision in the eyes of the Scottish Government, while some of them firmly believed that the call-in would make the ultimate decision for them.

 

What it is essential to remember though, is that the Scottish Government only responded as to whether the consultation process had been complied with, not whether the closure was a good idea or not. In this respect Mike Russell exhibited the utmost hypocrisy, after intervening to retain schools undergoing a similar process in his own area, then hanging Scalloway out to dry on nothing more that the fact that 'due process' had been followed. But then, perhaps the consultation in his own area did not take into account the views of the parents and community representatives in his area.....oh, haad on a minute......

[KTL]

The financial savings for closing Scalloway Junior were claimed - but never proven. SIC figures showed all staff costs magically disappearing as soon as the school was closed. The same stunt is being played out with other schools threatened with closure.

If councillors can now vote to keep Scalloway open until a new and suitable AHS is built, the disruption to bairns at AHS and Scalloway will be kept to an absolute minimum.

Scalloway bairns will finish up for the summer term, and return again to Scalloway in August. What's complicated or disruptive about that?

If you want to see education disrupted, try rushing through the closure and untested transfer of an entire school in less than 3 months.

[kittybee]

Its just a shame the bairns have more uncertainty now - I hope the council make the right decision (keep scalloway open for now)

and that they do it in minimal time for their sakes.

 

 

...it is easy to be wise after an event....

[O.G.]

The council, I bet, will go ahead with closing Scalloway school regardless of what everybody says. They don't exactly have the interests of the people of Shetland at heart, do they? I honestly don't see the need to close down the Scalloway school, and ship all the kids over to the Anderson, in the hopes that sometime in the future the new school will be built.

[north]

One of the first acts of the newly reformed and reorganized council.

 

Obviously old habits die hard - whether they are good or bad decisions, doesn't seem to matter. I'm sure the new Chief Executive is absolutely delighted with the improvement!

[JustMe]

From the Shetland Times website

The SIC has this week invited tenders to construct an 80 square metre social space extension at the AHS, to be built this summer.

Ah, very interesting!. An extension?. When did the planning application for this go in and why are the council spending money on a school they are going to close?.

[Njugle]

Well, if you were under scrutiny by Mike Russell for closing a fit for purpose school and moving the pupils to a school with inadequate social areas, what would you do?

 

That planning application, if ever submitted, was approved before it was written.

 

And the expense of building this space is, of course, a capital spend and not a running cost, so it in nooooo way affects the viability of the closure that necessitated it.

 

Money gets tighter and it will still be there in 40 years time, full of bairns who have never seen a built-for-purpose secondary school. Hamnavoe, Nesting and Tingwall bairns will take the electric bus to Scalloway each morning, and the old schoolhouse will be a private postal address, or a lambing shed.

[Rivlins]

From the Shetland Times website

The SIC has this week invited tenders to construct an 80 square metre social space extension at the AHS, to be built this summer.

Ah, very interesting!. An extension?. When did the planning application for this go in and why are the council spending money on a school they are going to close?.

This is because (as my AHS attending nephew tells me) the AHS's "socialization spaces" are way overcrowded as it is, before the Scalloway bairns even get there.

 

I see a fulminating email from Dr Wills on the Shetland News website today (link)where he claims:

 

It does have room for the extra pupils.

and

Admittedly, its buildings are not ideal but that’s why we’re building a new AHS at Lower Staney Hill

[Wagon Wheel]

Does the AHS have room for extra pupils?

 

They claim to have seating for 260 at lunch (don't know where) this means about 30% will be able to sit down for lunch, where will the rest eat?

 

The new 80 sqm portacabin to be built as a social space shall give about 0.5 sqm each.

 

School service and the head teacher have both claimed publicly the social and dining spaces are not fit for purpose.

 

Was it not Jonathon Wills who spearheaded the motion put before councillors to move the new AHS to Staney Hill at the last minute even though £5million had already been spent.

 

One last question, What does (con)sultation mean?

[Graeme_Storey]

.... a fulminating email from Dr Wills.....

Hehehe - those words sit very tidily together - I think fulminating is a superb word in this particular case.

[viking74]

I hae tae applaud those councillors wha have stuck tae the task of saving scalloway!! and i hae to condemn those who hae no regard for a whole communitys feelings! "the problem with politicions/councillors is that they are/or think they are so superiorly intellectual to us mere peasants that they lack the obvious...BASIC COMMON SENSE!"

I have to change that opinion slightly as not everyone has this lack of wit, i refer to the councillors who are trying to save scalloway!

Any haaf-wit space cadet cood see that the only reason for this farce is going ahead is so da mighty toon has the numbers it needs to justify buildin a muckle ower da tap skool because lerwick wants a owir da tap skool!

if da sic wanted to save money on skools then heres a BASIC COMMON SENSE step.

close soond and bells brae and put all the bairns to the anderson.

whits da point in haen 3!!! skools within walking distance of each other???

taa daa! geez ive joost saved the sic how much we dat thought??.....

 

Iam also sick to death of opening da shetland times only to find shock horror!...yet another whinging letter from that loony toons Dr? Wills!!

Wha da hell is dis fjool? an deary me wha da hell voted fur yun ta b a cooncillor?????

He does nothin but constantly bullies,condemns others! its aboot time this eejjitt! wis asked/ordered tae QUIT as a so-called cooncillor! he his done nothing and brings nothin to shetland, weel da only thing he did do wis dat cartoon book "da adventures of magnus pole"!!! back in da dae....

 

Hes affy grumpy obviously no gein enyoch o' da ol nudge tae da budge!

mibee Doctor"wha" Wills an his peerie lap dug robinson cood team up an gee hit ta da budge in a ménage-à-trois?...

den every week in da times we'd hae happy pretty peerie letters fae da clown cooncillor Dr(haha) Wills.

 

Sack wills,robinson and budge!! A.S.A.P!! keep scallawa open, close bells brae an soond build a skool fur lerwick the appropriate size.

 

p.s. if Wills,robinson an budge quit then theres the money saved fae dir wages instead o closin scalloway.

 

hmm or is dat tooo much lik common sense....towt dat

[trowie246]

At the sic meeting last June Jonathon Wills and Betty Fullertson were the only 2 councillors that voted for the more radical plan, option 3, which was close ALL the junior highs in Shetland. Betty only changed her mind when the Burra mafia started breathing down her neck but her personal opinion is that not only should Scalloway secondary dept close but all the junior highs in Shetland.

[fusion]

Well i feel sorry for the Scalloway kids and teachers, just as they were ready to move its all up in the air now. Its a good idea keeping them in the school till the new AHS is ready, but why did no one think of it when the decisions were being discussed and passed months ago. Its too late now!!!

 

Why can our top brass pass something then un pass it when its 'nearly' too late.

 

I voted to JWills and I'm right behind him in almost everything he says. Yes, hes a bit gluffie and i'm sure he could be a pain in the bottom if he finds out your 'fiddeling' desisions, or making ones when the oposision is away. Not that I'm saying that goes on ofcourse.

 

One idea i heard was close Burra School (as the Burra folk love Scalloway so much they wont mind going there from P1) then the money saved could keep Scalloway open?

 

We need more like JW people we a bit of umph, i duna like the silent sneaking about type. I want Billy Fox as conveiner!

 

I'm sure he can tell you when they closed Quarf school the kids got on better in Cunningsburgh, and the community is still there - so using the school as a hub idea didnt make any difrence.

[icepick239]

Wonder who the 7 Councillors are, that have taken out "Super, Super Injunctions"?

It is purported on Twister, that each are trying to cover-up the fact that none of them, (individually or collectively) have a brain between them.

[KTL]

Closing viable rural schools may seem politically expedient to some councillors. Lobbying by some Lerwick parents to "close someone else’s school, don't touch ours" may give short term satisfaction. But they forget that viewed from Edinburgh or London, Lerwick is an insignificant, and completely disposable peerie toon as well.

 

How would these councillors / parents like it if parents or councillors in say, Glasgow lobbied in favour of education cuts to made in Shetland instead of cuts on a far greater number of children in Glasgow. That would stink.

 

This divide and rule tactic now being played out between Lerwick and rural Shetland is very short sighted and in the long term very damaging to us all.

 

We need councillors who want to reach the right decision, even if that means refining or adjusting previous decisions.

 

Cramming more bairns into a old school scheduled for replacement is not good for the bairns from either AHS or Scalloway.