Blueprint for Education Update - Closures Again - Aith

[exciseman]

The best way save money on Education is to sack Budge and her legion of incompetent little helpers – it is through their mismanagement of the schools budget over the years that the cost of education in Shetland is far too high.

[Frankie]

Why not forget about building a new AHS.

Refurbish the existing AHS at a fraction of the cost but do it well.

Change the AHS to only go up to Secondary 4.

Keep the existing rural Junior Highs but change them to go up to secondary 6. Bus the Lerwick secondary 5 and 6 pupils to whatever rural Junior High they choose.

Close Bell's Brae and Sound Primaries and move them to the refurbished AHS.

AHS will then take Lerwick pupils from Primary 1 right up to Secondary 4 same as rural junior highs do at present.

I don't know how many Lerwick pupils stay on for 5th and 6th year but it must be less than the number of rural pupils they intend to transport.

This would also mean a much smaller percentage of pupils would have their education disrupted by having to move between schools.

Rather than having a few half full rural school buildings, two Lerwick schools would become completely empty with good potential to be sold on for other uses.

[hairyian]

The best way save money on Education is to sack Budge and her legion of incompetent little helpers – it is through their mismanagement of the schools budget over the years that the cost of education in Shetland is far too high.

 

For years now, every year Councilors have asked the Education officials to cut their budget. Every time they come back with same answer. That is you need to close schools. Every Council has found this unacceotable and defrred the problem, hoping that 'something will turn up'. Well it has, the bottom of the money box is fast coming into view.

 

So, what do we see this week... a school gets exemption. More information needed on the others. This bunch of Councilors are fast beginng to show they have no more desire to actually manage the situation than their predecessors.

 

I don't know quite what it takes to concentrate the mind of some Councilors? Perhaps pointing out that they could be personally liable for overspends? Maybe it is time for them to simpy let the experts get on with the plan.

 

What we need to do is stop thinking about 'cuts'. Think about 'extras'.

 

Council officials present Councillors with the cost of what is needed to cover their stautory duties. Then say we have £x million left. This is the cost of providing various 'extras' and tell Councilots that they can choose from the shopping list so long as they do not exceed the £x left to spend.

 

This is what most housewives have to do on a daily / weekly / monthly basis.

[CHUCK NORR1S]

Why not forget about building a new AHS.

Refurbish the existing AHS at a fraction of the cost but do it well.

Change the AHS to only go up to Secondary 4.

Keep the existing rural Junior Highs but change them to go up to secondary 6. Bus the Lerwick secondary 5 and 6 pupils to whatever rural Junior High they choose.

Close Bell's Brae and Sound Primaries and move them to the refurbished AHS.

AHS will then take Lerwick pupils from Primary 1 right up to Secondary 4 same as rural junior highs do at present.

I don't know how many Lerwick pupils stay on for 5th and 6th year but it must be less than the number of rural pupils they intend to transport.

This would also mean a much smaller percentage of pupils would have their education disrupted by having to move between schools.

Rather than having a few half full rural school buildings, two Lerwick schools would become completely empty with good potential to be sold on for other uses.

 

[Frankie]

^^^ I assume this option would also reduce hostel costs substantially too ?

[humptygrumpty]

Its a pity this thread has descended into a bit of a scatter gun slanging match in the main.

I hear a lot about how SIC should leave schools alone/shut Lerwick schools, but what is really needed is alternative ideas to what has been proposed, not just knee jerk anti town bile.

 

Ah stoness , its not ati town bile as you claim , its just pointing out the real truth , as muted eleswhere on here that what lerwick wants it gets !!

 

Hundreds of thousands could be saved by cutting out all the many yellow vans running around , all the expense accounts of already overpaid layabouts that cant provide a believeable set of figures for any of this , all the sic credit cards spread amongst these "officials"

 

We all know this is where the cuts should be made , and could be made !!

 

All Im saying is the town shouldnt be excluded in this latest round of manure to spring from the sic. Like it or lump it.

[humptygrumpty]

Why not forget about building a new AHS.

Refurbish the existing AHS at a fraction of the cost but do it well.

Change the AHS to only go up to Secondary 4.

Keep the existing rural Junior Highs but change them to go up to secondary 6. Bus the Lerwick secondary 5 and 6 pupils to whatever rural Junior High they choose.

Close Bell's Brae and Sound Primaries and move them to the refurbished AHS.

AHS will then take Lerwick pupils from Primary 1 right up to Secondary 4 same as rural junior highs do at present.

I don't know how many Lerwick pupils stay on for 5th and 6th year but it must be less than the number of rural pupils they intend to transport.

This would also mean a much smaller percentage of pupils would have their education disrupted by having to move between schools.

Rather than having a few half full rural school buildings, two Lerwick schools would become completely empty with good potential to be sold on for other uses.

 

 

Well Said !!!

[hazyday83]

Why is the council targeting Aith, Baltasound, Skerries, Whalsay schools etc. All in outlying areas furthest from the centre of the mainland?

 

Why is Mossbank, Cunningsburgh and Tingwall not on the list. Shorter commuter distances with no ferry journey?

 

I am bemused at the councils approach to saving money by simply shutting things. Start from the top and start cutting staff. Budge is costing the council £100,000 a year to come up with these hairbrained ideas.

 

We must all fight for the rural schools and ask questions why we are being targeted so heavily with cuts.

[trowie246]

As I see it the education depts stance is that these proposed closure are for educational reasons, as if they don't happen, then all schools budgets will have to be cut so education will suffer across the board.

 

Thats fair enough, and pretty obvious really.

 

 

Spinner, the amounts of money we are talking about are so huge that education is going to suffer across the board whether schools close or not. They have been asked to save 3 million pounds this year (which is unacheivable) and 4 million pounds next year.

 

This 'stance' being taken by the education dept is simply a way of dividing communities in Shetland and giving people an excuse to justify school closures.

[Spinner72]

^^ That was my point, you missed the second half of my post

[humptygrumpty]

what a grest idea it is to close the lerwick schools and move the lk kids to the country schools who thouthg that up? how many busses will it take to move the hundreds of kids in lerwick to even scalloway? keep it real folk.

/quote]

 

And how many bairns will end up getting bussed Into lerwick once the sic has its way in a few yrs time with further school closures ? My point was merely to highlight the way lerwick escapes any proposed changes / closures etc.

 

And to those who think this is anti town "bile" its not , its about fairness and equality , should you wish to take it the wrong way then thats up to you......there's none so blind etc etc.....

[Para Handy]

what a grest idea it is to close the lerwick schools and move the lk kids to the country schools who thouthg that up? how many busses will it take to move the hundreds of kids in lerwick to even scalloway? keep it real folk.

 

 

 

The same number of busses that would tale to run them from outside Lerwick to town Oh and hasn’t fuel been cheap lately but no waste of millions of pounds on a new pointless school in Lerwick,

[crofter]

Why not forget about building a new AHS.

Refurbish the existing AHS at a fraction of the cost but do it well.

Change the AHS to only go up to Secondary 4.

Keep the existing rural Junior Highs but change them to go up to secondary 6. Bus the Lerwick secondary 5 and 6 pupils to whatever rural Junior High they choose.

Close Bell's Brae and Sound Primaries and move them to the refurbished AHS.

AHS will then take Lerwick pupils from Primary 1 right up to Secondary 4 same as rural junior highs do at present.

I don't know how many Lerwick pupils stay on for 5th and 6th year but it must be less than the number of rural pupils they intend to transport.

This would also mean a much smaller percentage of pupils would have their education disrupted by having to move between schools.

Rather than having a few half full rural school buildings, two Lerwick schools would become completely empty with good potential to be sold on for other uses.

 

I see some SIC support for your idea Frankie...

 

 

 

South Mainland councillor George Smith said no costings had been made.

 

“There are two options – one is the option that is costed and is on the table at the moment, to close five junior highs along with five primaries to save around three and a half million. The other way would be to not have the Anderson and bus everybody out. It can be done – whether it will be done is another matter because of political will, and it hasn’t been costed. I think it is one of the options that could be costed.â€

[Frankie]

^^^^

http://www.shetlandtimes.co.uk/2012/09/18/sandwick-parents-call-for-rethink-on-school-closures

 

Quote South Mainland Cllr. Fox''If I felt the consultation process was going to be carried out in a truly inclusive form, with really good ideas taken onboard, I wouldn’t have a problem with the consultation process, but I don’t have that confidence.â€

 

OK, so they are asking for folk to come forward with ideas but Cllr Fox has no confidence in the consultation process and Cllr. Smith refers to ''political will'' possibly being a hurdle to one suggested option.

 

It seems these two Councillors are open to ideas though.

[Clickimin Clippie]

"11.42am: Robinson says he is appalled at some of the things said about him in public over last week.

 

He lists a lot of things which are not true."

 

There's nothing more pathetic than a 'man' that can dish it out but can't take it.

 

What a hypocrite.