Parents accuse council of plans to quietly close nursery without consultation

Parents have accused Highland Council of “quietly” deciding to close their children’s nursery without any consultation.

Letters were sent out announcing the proposed closure of Brora Nursery last week, which the authority has said is a result of the Scottish Government’s target to increase free childcare for three and four-year-olds from 600 to 1,140 hours. Under the plans, the eight children will be relocated to the Care and Learning Alliance (Cala) operated Stepping Stones facility – which is also on the site of the primary school – and merged with the local playgroup. But furious parents believe the move will have a detrimental effect on their children and have argued the nursery is a “valuable asset” to both the school and youngsters.

A public meeting was held to give families the chance to quiz officers. Local councillor Deirdre Mackay, who is working with the campaigners, said it was an “outrageous” proposal to shut the nursery.

“The decision was made without any consultation whatsoever with local members or parents, we have been presented with a fait accompli with no opportunity for peoples’ views to be taken into consideration. It’s completely unacceptable and the process must be placed on hold until such time as parents are consulted in a meaningful way. It is positive to see Highland Council and Care and Learning Alliance officers meeting with members of the community to respond to parent’s concerns and to help begin to resolve the issues which have created such anxiety in the community.”

The authority said it would not progress with the proposals until a consultation has been carried out.

Interim head of education Nicky Grant said: “We will be pausing changes until further solutions can be considered in liaison with the local school community.”

A spokesman added: “Highland Council is committed to rolling out the delivery of 1,140 funded hours across the region. In Brora, a review of provision has been undertaken to ensure suitability and readiness to deliver the extended hours flexibly. This has enabled the Highland Council to prepare for discussions with alternative service providers who can accommodate and meet the demands of 1,140 to offer high-quality ELC (early learning care) provision in the Brora area. Importantly it will allow us to maintain strong links with Brora Primary School. The merging of services will provide greater opportunities for families to access the provision all year round.”

 

Article originally appeared on The Press and Journal

The Institute cannot confirm the accuracy of this story or confirm that it presents a balanced view. If you feel this is inaccurate, we would welcome your perspective and evidence that this is the case.

Shopping Basket
Scroll to Top

Your membership questions answered

View our frequently asked questions or contact our dedicated account manager for further support.

You can reset your password here. If you’re still having issues, please send us a message below.

We have many ways you can pay for your membership.

  • Credit card
  • Online
  • Invoice
  • PO
  • Monthly

You can renew/upgrade your membership here.

To find out more, send us a message below.

You will receive a reminder email from our dedicated membership account manager 4 weeks before your renewal date. This email will contain all the information you need to renew.

You can also renew your membership online here.

You can update your contact details here. Alternatively, please send a message to our membership account manager below.

Please send a message to our membership account manager below. 

Still need support?

Our dedicated Membership Account Manager is on
hand to assist with any questions you might have.

Request a callback

Leave a message and our team will call you back

"*" indicates required fields

Name*

Send us a message

We’ll be in touch with you soon.

Name(Required)
Email(Required)