Musings from the Merse
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Back to (Hutton) School
Huttonian being in the Hielands last week missed the Berwickshire on Thursday and is indebted to the on line edition for that rara avis * a story about Hutton. Read on
School transport row brewing in Hutton
"HUTTON Primary School may have been closed for over a year now but the repercussions are still rumbling on and a group of parents who opted to send their children to Swinton Primary School instead of Chirnside, the school designated by the council to receive the Hutton pupils, continue to battle with Scottish Borders Council about travel arrangements for the three six year olds and two nine year olds going to Swinton.
The issue was first raised with Scottish Borders Council back in August last year as pupils prepared to start their new school and parents, Hutton and Paxton Community Council and Roxburgh and Berwickshire MSP Euan Robson have all contacted the council about it.
Now South of Scotland MSP Christine Grahame (SNP) is calling for a meeting with the council's director of education, Glenn Rodger, to speak on behalf of the parents, whom she describes as "banging their heads against a bureaucratic brick wall".
"Because they chose to send their children to Swinton when Hutton school closed they aren't getting any help with bus fares," said Ms Grahame.
"There is a bus that goes through both Paxton and Hutton, and those in Paxton are closer to Swinton than Chirnside but they aren't allowed to put the children on the bus unless they pay.
"We now have the ridiculous situation where three cars are following the bus in the morning and coming back in the afternoon with these children.
"I just don't understand why the council has to be so rigid with the rules, there is some discretion to allow free transport."
Ms Grahame does not believe that allowing these five children to receive free transport to the school of their parents' choice after their local primary school was closed would set an unsustainable precedent, but Scottish Borders Council are adamant that it would.
"This was considered by Berwickshire Area Committee during the consultation process in February 2004 and one of the things that came across was that they didn't want to split the children up and that they should be sent to one school," said an SBC education department spokesperson.
"During the consultation not one parent expressed a wish for their children to go to Swinton so it wasn't part of the final package."
When the parents first approached the council about transport to Swinton school they met with the director of education who was clear paying transport costs would go against council policy and would set an unfair precedent.
However, he agreed to take to the matter back to the two councillors who hold the portfolio for education, the result being that they concluded that it was an "unsustainable precedent that the council could not afford."
"The public service bus has been re-routed through Paxton and Hutton to accommodate the children and our school transport officer assisted them with the times.
"It's council policy and why would we change policy? You either have a policy or you don't."
The council spokesperson also pointed out that parents of pupils at Burnmouth Primary School were in a similar position when their school closed at the same time but those that chose to send their children to an alternative primary school to Eyemouth did not ask for transport.
31 August 2006"
1
This is an old saga as the article makes clear. I fear that the problem is less to do with bureaucratic rules and matters of 'unsustainable' principle than with bruised feelings amongst the incumbents of education and life long learning in their bunkers in Newtown St Boswells. Harsh words were exchanged between the High Heidians in Ed. and Life Long Learning and the Save Our School Action Group fighting to keep Hutton school open. The former are in no mood to help out the parents of Hutton school children even in a way that would (a) be inexpensive and (b) help to heal wounds opened last year. So we are sticking to principal and unfair precedent until the former Hutton pupils are all safely at the University.
Go on, be a devil. Set a Fair Precedent, for a change.
*Is Paris Hilton a rara avis? (Blogg-ed)
Huttonian being in the Hielands last week missed the Berwickshire on Thursday and is indebted to the on line edition for that rara avis * a story about Hutton. Read on
School transport row brewing in Hutton
"HUTTON Primary School may have been closed for over a year now but the repercussions are still rumbling on and a group of parents who opted to send their children to Swinton Primary School instead of Chirnside, the school designated by the council to receive the Hutton pupils, continue to battle with Scottish Borders Council about travel arrangements for the three six year olds and two nine year olds going to Swinton.
The issue was first raised with Scottish Borders Council back in August last year as pupils prepared to start their new school and parents, Hutton and Paxton Community Council and Roxburgh and Berwickshire MSP Euan Robson have all contacted the council about it.
Now South of Scotland MSP Christine Grahame (SNP) is calling for a meeting with the council's director of education, Glenn Rodger, to speak on behalf of the parents, whom she describes as "banging their heads against a bureaucratic brick wall".
"Because they chose to send their children to Swinton when Hutton school closed they aren't getting any help with bus fares," said Ms Grahame.
"There is a bus that goes through both Paxton and Hutton, and those in Paxton are closer to Swinton than Chirnside but they aren't allowed to put the children on the bus unless they pay.
"We now have the ridiculous situation where three cars are following the bus in the morning and coming back in the afternoon with these children.
"I just don't understand why the council has to be so rigid with the rules, there is some discretion to allow free transport."
Ms Grahame does not believe that allowing these five children to receive free transport to the school of their parents' choice after their local primary school was closed would set an unsustainable precedent, but Scottish Borders Council are adamant that it would.
"This was considered by Berwickshire Area Committee during the consultation process in February 2004 and one of the things that came across was that they didn't want to split the children up and that they should be sent to one school," said an SBC education department spokesperson.
"During the consultation not one parent expressed a wish for their children to go to Swinton so it wasn't part of the final package."
When the parents first approached the council about transport to Swinton school they met with the director of education who was clear paying transport costs would go against council policy and would set an unfair precedent.
However, he agreed to take to the matter back to the two councillors who hold the portfolio for education, the result being that they concluded that it was an "unsustainable precedent that the council could not afford."
"The public service bus has been re-routed through Paxton and Hutton to accommodate the children and our school transport officer assisted them with the times.
"It's council policy and why would we change policy? You either have a policy or you don't."
The council spokesperson also pointed out that parents of pupils at Burnmouth Primary School were in a similar position when their school closed at the same time but those that chose to send their children to an alternative primary school to Eyemouth did not ask for transport.
31 August 2006"
1
This is an old saga as the article makes clear. I fear that the problem is less to do with bureaucratic rules and matters of 'unsustainable' principle than with bruised feelings amongst the incumbents of education and life long learning in their bunkers in Newtown St Boswells. Harsh words were exchanged between the High Heidians in Ed. and Life Long Learning and the Save Our School Action Group fighting to keep Hutton school open. The former are in no mood to help out the parents of Hutton school children even in a way that would (a) be inexpensive and (b) help to heal wounds opened last year. So we are sticking to principal and unfair precedent until the former Hutton pupils are all safely at the University.
Go on, be a devil. Set a Fair Precedent, for a change.
*Is Paris Hilton a rara avis? (Blogg-ed)
Comments:
It's my observation - based on only 18 months of taking any interest in SBC's doings - that they are a singularly unresponsive lot. They seem to forget that they are present because we put them there - mind you there's a school of thought that says your elected representatives will always be more intelligent than the electorate who elected them, so that makes me worry about my neighbours.....
The fact that the council is run by a coalition of "Independent" and Conservative speaks volumes - where I come from there is only one reason to put oneself forward as "Independent" - that's because if you nail your true blue colours to your flagpole you'd lose your deposit.
The sooner the Monster Raving Loonies in coalition with the Slightly Chocolatey party are in the better it might be for all. Then again power corrupts....
The fact that the council is run by a coalition of "Independent" and Conservative speaks volumes - where I come from there is only one reason to put oneself forward as "Independent" - that's because if you nail your true blue colours to your flagpole you'd lose your deposit.
The sooner the Monster Raving Loonies in coalition with the Slightly Chocolatey party are in the better it might be for all. Then again power corrupts....
I don't think it is the politicians who are the problem but the senior, unelected, highheidyin bureacrats
Ah, but if the "Scrutiny" committee actually did it's job semi-effectively then the unelected officials might be inclined to buck up their ideas. They can only get away with their current performance because their elected masters allow it (or more likely are ignorant of it given what I've seen and heard of them).
The trouble in Ber wick shire is that especially the land owning farming councillors know each other too well and dominate the proceedings of the Berwickshire Area Committee the lowest rung of the 'Political ladder' In consequence it seems that many decisions aee taken in narrow farming interests rather than the 'public good' Especially in development matters. Subsequent 'scutiny' changes nothing
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