Prosecutors warn mum over ‘lies’ to top school
She tried to win child a place
A MOTHER was reported to prosecutors for trying to ‘cheat’ her child into a top state school in the first case of its kind in Scotland.
The Crown Office spared the 29-year-old a court appearance and she was instead hit with a ‘direct measure’ – which could be a fine, warning letter or a form of community service.
Although a record is kept of such measures having been issued, they are not legally regarded as convictions.
The move came after concerns that documents used by the family to prove where they lived were fraudulent.
Currently, only parents living in a designated catchment area are guaranteed entry to their local
‘Highlights lengths some will go to’
primary or secondary school. Those living further afield are only allowed access through a placing request if the school has enough spaces available.
East Dunbartonshire Council runs some of the best-performing state schools in the country, including Bearsden Academy and Douglas Academy, which regularly top league tables.
Last night, Scottish Tory young people spokesman Elizabeth Smith said: ‘ With the current postcode lottery in state education, this episode only highlights the lengths that some parents will go to in order to get their c hi l dren i nto t he best schools.
‘It would be far better if parents were not constrained by a postcode when it comes to choosing the best school for their children.’
A Crown Office spokesman said: ‘ The Procurator Fiscal at Glasgow received a report concerning a 29- year- old woman in relation to alleged incidents between January and March 2015.
‘After full and careful consideration of all facts and circumstances, the case was dealt with by way of an offer of an alternative to prosecution to the accused.’
The alternative was not disclosed as it is not deemed ‘public information’ but it could i nvolve a warning letter, fiscal fines or Fiscal Work Orders, a form of community service without the need for a court appearance.
The identities of the parent and the school involved were not disclosed.
Ian Black, East Dunbartonshire Council’s director of finance, said: ‘ Every person enrolling a child in an East Dunbartonshire school must bring along documents proving their residency in the catchment area f or t he school.
‘We conduct investigations when we have reason to query an individual’s residency and, in the last three years, the corporate fraud team has received ten referrals regarding alleged fraud.
‘Five cases of fraud were identified resulting in a school or early years place being refused and one case has recently been submitted to the Crown Office for consideration of criminal proceedings.
‘This is a first for a Scottish local authority.’
It emerged earlier this week that six families in Edinburgh lost their school places after being caught giving false statements to get their children into popular primaries.
A crackdown by the city council’s fraud team saw the six offers of places withdrawn and several other families dropping their requests when they discovered they were being investigated.
In some cases, families were also found to be fraudulently claiming housing and council tax benefits and were then forced to repay the money.
In one instance, where a tenant was discovered to be sub- l etting their council house, t hey l ost t hei r tenancy.
Paul Godzik, convener of education for Edinburgh City Council, said: ‘We know this is an issue that concerns many parents and we take it very seriously. If we believe there is a possibility that fraud is being committed, we will investigate. If we discover this to be the case we will withdraw the school place.’
A spokesman for East Renfrewshire Council, which is home to some of the country’s best performing state schools, said it had put a ‘rigorous application system in place to prevent such cases.’
He added: ‘When registering for a school place for the first time, parents need to provide a council tax demand notice and a recent utility bill.
‘When pupils move from primary to secondary they are allocated a place based on the current address information held by their school, but spot checks are carried out to ensure this is accurate.’
Prosecutions for ‘cheating’ parents are more common south of the Border.
One case in September last year involved a mother who forged documents to secure a school place for her daughter in a neighbouring borough.
It was one of the first prosecutions for so-called ‘education tourism’.
‘We take this very seriously’