Not one bit spent on IT gear for city schools last year

DUNDEE City Council did not spend a single penny on IT equipment for schools last year, it can be revealed.

New figures, obtained by the Scottish Liberal Democrats through Freedom of I nformation requests, show spending has almost halved across Scotland on technology key t o c h i l d r e n ’s futures between 2013 and 2016.

Spending has plummeted in Perth and Kinross and Fife but the most dramatic statistic was Dundee’s decline from £448,508 in 2014/15 to zero the following financial year. Angus did not return figures.

Lib Dems education spokesman Tavish Scott said: “This calls into question the credibility of the Scottish Government’s digital learning and teaching strategy, which places an emphasis on using digital technology in education.

“While there are always going t o be peaks and troughs, the news that the amount spent on schools’ IT equipment has almost halved i n the past three years raises concerns.

“Scottish firms have long projected shortages in computer science and other tech-based industries.

“These figures highlight how important it is to ensure young people are computer literate and prepared for the 21st Century.”

A Dundee City Council spokeswoman said a “number of factors” were identified that gave the authority the opportunity to “reduce the financial commitment for one year”.

She cited a “consistency of PC manufacturer” giving increased reliability and lengthened life cycle expectation, previous low-cost purchases, and a recent refresh of primary school servers.