Investigation promised after pupils walk out

CONCERN: Three children left school at lunchtime and wandered the streets

Fife Council has insisted the safety of school pupils is a top priority after three unsupervised primary one pupils left school in Kirkcaldy.

The trio of P1 pupils left Valley Primary School during their lunch break, crossing several roads as they travelled nearly half a mile.

They were eventually taken in by a resident who called the police when the youngsters knocked on his door looking to use a toilet.

It comes just weeks after a four-year old boy was found wandering the streets near Carleton Nursery in Glenrothes after he left the premises by releasing a magnetic lock on a security door.

Insistent that the latest incident would be reviewed, Jacqueline Price, acting head of service (early years) at Fife Council, said: “Three primary one children from Valley Primary School left the school grounds without permission just after lunchtime on Wednesday of last week.

“As soon as the school became aware of this, the school building and grounds were searched, and when they were not found, the police were contacted. The children were quickly located in the local area and brought back to school.

“The safety and security of our children is our top priority, and we apologise for any distress caused by this incident. The school, working with the local authority and Police Scotland, will be reviewing supervision arrangements to reduce the risk of anything like this happening in the future.

“All Fife schools are required to risk assess their safety arrangements on a regular basis, and all Fife headteachers are provided with health and safety training to ensure they are equipped to respond to incidents relating to security. Any lessons learned from this incident will be shared across all establishments.

“The headteacher has spoken with all of the parents involved and is working to reassure them, and the school community.”

The three youngsters left the school and walked around half a mile to Wilson Avenue.

One of the children that went missing was five-year-old Calvin Barker, and his mother, Kimberly Ramsay, said the actions of the homeowner could have prevented a tragedy from occurring.

“These children were gone for 40 minutes,” she said.

“They could have been picked up and taken to Edinburgh, anywhere, by the time I phoned the police.

“A man took them in and gave them juice and a biscuit and phoned the police.

“He will never realise how much I appreciate what he did.”

Picture: Steven Brown. Valley Primary School in Kirkcaldy where P1 children walked out unchallenged.