Courier Editorial attacks Council on Thursday's decisions

"WAS it political pragmatism or weak leadership that yesterday saw members of Highland Council’s ruling coalition backtrack on plans to scrap 344 mostly part-time classroom assistants from the region’s schools and replace them with 150 part-time auxiliaries working with specific children?

The last-minute decision has delighted those who launched spontaneous local campaigns when the plans emerged a fortnight ago, ranging from the Skye parents withdrawing their children from school on “Walk Out Wednesday” to 10-year-old Zoe Atkinson from Nairn speaking to her MP and MSP and collecting names on a petition."

So begins the Courier's editorial, it goes on to speculate whether the Council's administration is likely or deserves to survive. More here.

Comment too from Jane Atkinson and Merv Riley in this article: Financial ‘fudge’ leaves school staff in limbo

Classroom assistants: "The firing squad has been told to go away for a coffee"

Sandy fills up the glass before getting down to business. The mannie to the right of him Mr Alistair Dodds, chief executive, apologised publicly for the way the classroom assistants heard of their proposed sackings.

Protestors filled the concourse outside the Council headquarters and an equal number were on the lawn opposite the entrance too.

There will be many that agree with the comment in the title of this post, it came today from Cllr John Finnie, leader of the opposition on Highland Council. Have the administration just created a device to get everyone past the May Holyrood elections or will the promised review save any jobs? An amendment from the SNP to keep the levels of Classroom Assistants at current levels and to fund this with projected savings from implementation of the ongoing £70million IT contract was defeated by the LibDems/Labour/Independent ruling group.

The Plockton National Centre for Excellence in Traditional Music was left in limbo too as lots of nice words were said but it still remains in the cuts package even if there is the will within the administration to look for ways to save it. Brinkmanship looking for funding from the Scottish Parliament might be one strategy but it's also a form or Russian Roulette that could backfire on the Highlands.

Backdown on Classroom Assistants tomorrow?

The BBC is reporting this evening:

"BBC Scotland understands that in a series of pre-budget meeting discussions Liberal Democrat councillors have proposed a compromise to the plans.
Parents on Skye have staged protests twice this week over the planned cut to classroom assistants.
A group of parents from Thurso had also been preparing to join demonstrations in Inverness on Thursday as councillors met to discuss cuts and the local authority's budget for 2011/12." More here.

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Graham Marsden indicated at the West CC meeting this evening that some sort of review was being planned. Could the Highland Council administration's cuts proposals be unravelling as a wave of outrage sweeps the Highlands? No doubt more will be revealed at 10.30 a.m. tomorrow.

The parents from Thurso will be joining those from Skye, Inverness and elsewhere in the Highlands tomorrow and over 200 demonstrators have pledged on Facebook to turn up to protest at the planned closure of the National Centre for Traditional music based at Plockton. Trade Union protesters have also promised to be outside the council headquarters. It could be a very busy day tomorrow along at Glenurquhart Road.

10 year old Zoe's petition to support Classroom Assistants going strong

The Courier reports:

"TEN-year-old primary pupil Zoe Atkinson, Kilravock Crescent, Nairn, has launched a campaign to save classroom assistants."

You can view/sign her petition here.

Also in the Courier news of a gagging order from Highland Council, they are trying to stop employees speaking out against the education cuts.

Nairn Protest on front page of Courier

There's a picture of Nairn teaching auxillary Merv Riley handing leaflets out to concerned mothers outside Millbank Primary. Mervy is one of 344 assistants who will be paid off if the Highland Council cuts go through as planned next Thursday.

Merv is quoted: " In a large class of 30 you are looking for the children who are not focusing and you bring them back on track," he explained."You are effectively a second pair of eyes and a second pair of ears for the teacher and help motivate the children."

Mum Lorraine McBeath also spoke to the newspaper about the job-slashing exercise, the Courier report states: "It is really bad news," she said. "They are very important for supporting the teachers and help the youngsters especially ones that need to be brought up a level."

It seems from this Courier article that assistants and parents will be demonstrating along at Glenurquhart Road next Thursday. There could be quite a crowd with supporters of the Plockton School for traditional music promising to turn up for a "session" too. The crunch is coming for oor Sandy, Graham and Laurie. Yes the financial crisis was not of their making but many in the Highlands will put the blame for the cuts on them.

A petition has now been created for this campaign too. You can view/sign it here. With the social media tools available now, those concerned by this cut will obviously get organised very quickly and set about lobbying their local councillors throughout the Highlands. One wonders if there will be some adminstration defectors when it comes to the nitty gritty? Will some Independent/LibDem/Labour members just be unable to go through with it?

Here's the Courier article.