The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Review panel to determine ultimate fate of Abernyte Primary.
Decision expected to take ‘few months’
A Tayside primary school has escaped the axe until reviewers have analysed the case, following Perth and Kinross Council’s failure to stop the Scottish Government from probing the closure.
Last week, Lady Wise announced Holyrood ministers were not breaching legislation by calling in the closure of Abernyte Primary School in the Carse of Gowrie.
The local authority had felt the Scottish Government should not have intervened and challenged the case in the Court of Session. The full extent of the legal fees Perth and Kinross Council will be forced to pay is still being calculated.
The school closure review panel will analyse the decision and are expected to come to a conclusion in a few months.
Pupils from Abernyte were expecting to be transferred to Inchture Primary after the summer but a decision may not be made until after the start of the new term in August.
The school’s parent council and local councillors are calling for a 12-month delay but the council said any date will be determined after the review.
Parent council chairman Gerard McGoldrick would eventually like the decision to be brought back to the lifelong learning committee but is backing a postponement in the interim.
While this measure could prevent potential disruption to pupils, Mr McGoldrick says keeping youngsters in their own village would also help with social distancing.
“The call-in process could take at least another seven weeks. By the end of that it could be into the new term,” he said.
“Social distancing will need to be in place for some time.
“Abernyte is an asset to help other schools. It’s reasonable to extend for a year for less crowding issues.”