Highland Council’s £818m budget challenged with 13 Liberal Democrat amendments ahead of crunch meeting amid push to place an emphasis on attainment in schools amid flagging results
More than a dozen proposed changes have been proposed for tomorrow’s Highland Council £818 million budget by the Liberal Democrat group.
They include hiring more staff to tackle littering and fly-tipping and ambitious proposals that could revamp education delivery in the region.
In all the 13 potential amendments are proposed but totalling £22.4 million and they would either partially defund or totally wipe out administration investment plans.
Earlier this week we revealed one of the main proposals is a £125,000 study to "comprehensively" look into establishing a six form style college to boost advanced learning and raise attainment.
The LibDems argue that it would “prioritise increased academic challenge and improved attainment, with greater success experienced by pupils at Higher level and greater synergy with first year university programmes”.
And attainment was at the fore in many of the other ideas with what amounts to a reorganisation of responsibilities in schools so that head teachers are free to concentrate on managing the education of pupils.
Among the new proposals attendance support officers would manage staff absences and help them return to work. Though not exclusive to teaching staff, we also reported on the high absence rates in schools.
A £500,000 plan to reintroduce the modern equivalent of bursars or business managers in secondary schools aims to free-up headteachers who are experiencing ever greater demands on their time.
Recognising that “the key focus for our schools should be raising attainment” and reducing “time consuming tasks” the LibDems want eight managers to handle “finance, business management, expediting queries and scheduling”.
Introducing three secondary executive heads would cost £840,000 and their role “would be strategic in nature and would allow other heads and deputes in schools to focus on delivery of improvements”.
Then there is the £636,000 plan for subject lead teachers in Maths, English, Chemistry, Physics, Biology and ASN to model best practice in teaching, provide training and support, and develop resources for schools, among others.
Others concern hiring eight more staff to get tough with those leaving their unwanted mark on the Highlands ramp up enforcement through fines of littering, fly-tipping, dog fouling and abandoning cars.
Finally, in a bid to tackle depopulation the LibDems want £200,000 from the budget to invest in strengthening the council’s inward investment focus through creating three new managerial posts.
They would “focus on the external opportunities the Highlands have to offer” and ensure “a close relationship” with external partners like Highlands and Island Enterprise, Scottish Government and UK Government.
