Action Note of Wick Ward held on 18 November 2008
Forum members in attendance
Councillor Graeme Smith (GS) – Chairperson
Councillor Bill Fernie (BF) – Chair of Education Culture & Sports Committee
Councillor Katrina Macnab (KM)
Alistair Traill (AT) – Rector, Wick High School
Catherine Patterson (CP) – Tannach & District Community Council
Grant Ramsay (GR) – Chairperson, Pulteneytown Peoples Project
Coreen Campbell (CC) – Royal Burgh of Wick Community Council
Hugh Fraser (HF) – Director of Education, Culture & Sports, Highland Council
Graham Nichols (GN) – Caithness, Sutherland & Easter Ross Area Manager, Education, Culture & Sports
Councillor David Bremner (DB) – Landward Member
Chief Inspector Andy Brown (AB) – Area Commander, Northern Constabulary
Ian Hargrave (IH) – Caithness, Sutherland & Easter Ross Corporate Manager, Highland Council
Alex Macmanus – Ward Manager’s Team, Highland Council.
59 Members of the public including John O’Groats reporter, Noel Donaldson.
1. Apologies
David Sutherland – Caithness Wards Manager
2. Previous Forum Action Notes of 9th September 2008
Staxigoe & Papigoe School Transport – Meetings held with Stagecoach. New timetable due to start end of November should sort the problem of children hanging around town waiting for a bus home.
Wick Memorial gardens – Work is continuing as reported in local press only last week.
Riverside Area around Caravan Site – Problem with youths and anti social behaviour appears to have been sorted.
Swimming Pool – Majority of users now ok with swim times.
Community Fire Safety Officer Presentation – Chairman endorsed his recommendation of making use of Fire Safety Officer (Gordon Cook 08000 12 13 12)
Drinking in Public Bye Law (Wick Ward) – Now with Scottish Executive for their approval.
2a Community Safety (extra agenda item) –C.I. Andy Brown
Chief Inspector Brown gave an overview of his Commands Area from April 2008 to October 2008.
There are 5 priorities for his Area
• Reduce Crime
• Tackling Serious Crime
• Promoting Safer Roads
• Developing Stronger, Safer Communities
• Maintaining Public Order
Reduce Crime – figures are down 17.7%. Detection rate has risen by 3% to 55.1% Reduction in vandalism by 150. Operation Jacobite to tackle anti social behaviour with an increase in visibility of uniformed police officers on the street.
Local members had taken part in weekend night patrols with officers. Increased seizure of alcohol from under age youths.
Entered into a partnership with Gamekeepers this will increase the forces ‘eyes and ears’ on the ground.
Poaching is on the increase in line with the credit crunch. Seminar with Gamekeepers to be held on 27 November in North Highland College, Thurso.
Tackling Serious Crime – Reduced from 49 to 41 occurrences. CCTV now in use. Class A drugs are on the increase in town with an increase in search warrants being issued.
Automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) will be very welcome addition to the Chief Inspector enabling the targeting of mobile criminals.
Well published rape case and murder enquiry in area.
Cannabis factory uncovered at Evlix being run by Vietnamese gang from South of England. Street value of crop estimated at £1.5million
Promoting Safer Roads – 16 Drink drivers caught 2 of which were 4 times over limit. Also drunk driver caught at Lochinver driving a 30 ton truck.
Case of Caithness driver charged with driving offence whilst under the influence of prescribed drugs highlights dangers of this if public not aware of side effects.
Developing Stronger, Safer Communities – Blue light discos held to educate primary school children who are about to step up to High School on dangers of drink and drugs. Also establishes a rapport with local police to encourage youngsters to report issues to them.
Another successful Safe Highlanders event held this year working in partnership with local council, emergency services and building firms.
Pub Watch scheme, which C.I. Brown would wish that all licensees will sign up to, and new bye law hopefully in place by start of festive season as will the ANPR vehicle.
Drugs are being transported up the A9 by car and bus. Caithness is easy to close down due to road network and the ANPR vehicles will be based in the area.
Farm Watch scheme in place now to help framers and crofters protect against theft in particular diesel and oil.
Maintaining Public Order – 6 racially motivated crimes reported.
Prince Charles annual visit to Caithness takes up a lot of man hours but operation went smoothly.
On 25th October local Wick Members escorted police around town and witnessed policing on the front line. They witnessed an assault on CCTV in Bridge Street and followed this through to the processing of the perpetrator(s).
3. Education – Hugh Fraser, Graham Nichols and Bill Fernie
Hugh Fraser
Well aware of issues surrounding Wick Ward. General overview of Education, Culture and Sports in Highland Council Area and the main issues.
Service is responsible for all pre-school and schools, libraries, art galleries and all issues covering Culture and Sports.
Highland Area has 182 Primary Schools and 29 Secondary Schools. Schools vary from 56 pupils to over 1,000.
Challenges over size, distances and geography of the Highland Area with over 34,000 pupils to look after. Central belt has fewer schools as pupils living a lot closer together and easier to access learning.
Highland Council is a rural authority. £12m per annum is spent on transport costs alone which are £7.5m more than is received to cover. Caithness Members need to find more funding for this.
£210m revenue budget which is used to cover salaries, etc. £135m is devolved to Head Teachers which is 96% of all expenditure in High Schools such as Wick. There s not a lot of ‘wriggle’ room when 60% is used up by salaries, insurance and rates. Savings can only really be made on staffing levels.
There is very little leeway with Budgets. The £65m that is left £12.5m is used up on transport costs also monies to cover Public.Private.Partnership.rental costs and £20m is used by the Culture and Sports on their 13 Leisure Centres, 2 Archive Centres and 41 Libraries.
Being a Rural Authority looking at our strengths with partnership working. EC&S get involved with Head Teachers and Parent Councils as well as partners. Focus is on what is best for all children no matter what their achievement levels are.
Authority is facing financial difficulties over the next few years. The Service gets a generous share of Highland Council capital for replacement of Primary and Secondary Schools. Members agreed to a rolling capital programme in which Wick is included. Advised that Cllr Fernie had advanced the spending of the £1m on Wick High School. Also looking for further funding in capital programme
The capital account has a large amount but the spend is planned over a number of years, at present 5 until 2009. It is believed that the capital plan could be extended to 10 years. Capital programme is reviewed on an annual basis to allow up dates to be given to Members.
Graham Nichols
Overview of E.C. & S.in Wick Ward. Ward has 4 Primary Schools and 1 High School. A well stocked library and art gallery and also the Rosebank Park. A hand out of staffing and job descriptions in the C. S. & E.R. Area was left for information.
He mentioned all the good work that the Pulteneytown Peoples Project (PPP) had done in the town including involvement in the upgrading of the Rosebank and the MAASK Club at the South School. The Community Learning Team has also worked with the PPP and has links with the local police and, through Music Link Media, the local Youth Club
Service Vision is – ‘Working together to inspire learning in Highland communities’ Investigate the provision of starting on the street work in Wick and link in with PPP. Have made mistakes in the past but learning now. Plans to make more use of the consultation process with the Youth Forum already having been held.
£1m has been earmarked for the High School. Meeting had taken place on 18 September between Parent Council, School and EC&S Estate Strategy Manager on what to prioritise this £1m spend on. Items were toilets, dining area and swimming pool and this was confirmed on 8th October.
Since these meetings boilers had packed in and were replaced by second hand ones. EC & S Estates Strategy Managers visited school on 4 November along with architect and he has been advised that they are now working on sketch plans which should be ready in two weeks time when a further meeting would be called. He advised that although two months seems a long time this is not out with the normal time frames for the work involved.
Councillor Bill Fernie
Fully supportive of what is happening in Wick High School. Been involved in the moving of money to budget for school. Have to convince other members of the Highland Council that the school merits early attention. Parts of school listed C and others listed D.
Naturally he would like a new school at Wick but that will not be easy and will be a huge task. Need full support of all the Caithness Members who all wish a new school in Wick. Scottish Government should be lobbied for additional funding.
Need also to remember that Public, Private Partnership (PPP) money is borrowed from the private sector and the Council therefore only rent the buildings. He was not in favour of PPP when it was introduced but it was expedient at the time – accept or less schools.
Scottish National Party is now against PPP. Future Trust may be better borrowing but Highland as are all other Scottish Councils are still waiting details from the Scottish Government
He fully supports a new High School in Wick but realistically this is not liable to happen for a considerable period of time.
Comments and Questions from Forum Members
Chair – Councillor Graeme Smith
Service Vision is blurred or even suffering from double vision. Matrix is badly flawed. Wick was at top of PPP1 then matrix for PPP2 was changed and Wick dropped off the radar.
Matrix based on expanding school role but unlike Inverness and Moray Firth basin this is very unlikely to happen in Caithness at this time. In these areas parents can decided which school to put their children to. In Wick we only have Thurso or Golspie which are far too far away.
Condition of buildings is affecting attainment levels.
Councillor David Bremner
He was happy to talk about Wick High School all night and there would be no filibustering on his part.
He believes that although the Director talked about a Rural Authority Highland Council was not a Rural Community particularly around Inverness and the Moray Firth. It was more akin to an Urban Authority and the Council should decide which.
He agreed with Councillor Fernie that PPP was ‘crazy’. There would be no rabbits from hats and as Councillors we need to get on our bike and make it happen.
Looking at the Socio economic development of the County when folk were thinking about moving to the County to work the first thing they would look at was the conditions of the Primary and Secondary Schools. Wick does not leave a very favourable position and could swing the decision not to come.
Nuclear Decommission Authority (NDA) has spent big money in Cumbria and this is the route that the Highland Council should now be following.
Councillor Bill Fernie
We have talked to the NDA over the Socio economics but they have not yet come back to us with their response.
Councillor David Bremner
This should be formalised through the Education, Culture & Sports Committee.
Councillor Bill Fernie
The Highland Council do have representatives at the highest level on the Caithness and North Sutherland Regeneration Group.
Alistair Traill – Rector, Wick High School
Nothing to say at this time as my views are very well known.
Questions (Q) from the floor and written with Answers (A)
Submitted in writing by Mrs L Malik - Q1
Q1 -Why have Highland Council set a budget for each school and then requested the Head Teacher to make 'reconfigurated savings'. Would it not be easier on the Head Teachers to deduct this money in the first instance and hand over what the school can actually spend? There is no point in handing over cash which is not for spending. Will the money being allocated to Wick High School be included in next years 'reconfigured savings' that the school may have to make thus making it less than one million pound in real spend!?
A1 – First point is that reconfigurated savings only applies to Primary Schools. 90% of the budget is devolved to schools through their Head Teachers. Savings targets over the past 3years have been £6m, £5m & £5.5m ensuring that these savings do not impact on the front line service. Looking at different ways of working as we go forward and in discussion with Head Teachers.
Q2 – Is reconfiguration budget affected by low attendance and free school meal service?
A2 – No, additional monies are given in budget and support may also be put into school.
Q3 –Is it correct that disadvantaged schools need more support given to them.
A3 – Looking now at how budgets are being done. It is unlikely that they will be reconfigured again. There is no funding available to put in extra staff.
Q3a – Pulteneytown Academy Head Teacher reports that it is impossible to run the school on the heating budget allocated due to oil price. What is the Council doing about this problem?
A3a – Oil is not on the budget. Costs are averaged out but certainly the volatility of energy prices is concerning. The Head Teacher can carry forward a surplus of 5% and in primary schools the majority are in surplus. If the primary school carries forward a deficit this can be up to 3% but if more than 3% at end of financial year the service will try to get money to put this back below 3%. Look at each school on an individual basis this year, none will be disadvantaged.
Alistair Traill (statement) – Wick High School is at a disadvantage. Heating system is archaic and not very cost effective. Many leaks requiring a lot of maintenance. Heating is so difficult to control to a suitable level. Sitting with £30k deficiency in budget
From the floor – On matrix Millburn scored 6.5 yet a new school was built. Lochaber High School secured £15m. Wick has one of the worst matrix scores yet only secures £1m when £20m is needed. Not operating on a level playfield field and very unfair. Inverness area seems to have everything.
Talked 16 years ago about £1.3m needed at Thurso High School. Understands that Hugh Fraser has an impossible job. Equalisation of service is very difficult with perceived bias towards West Coast and the Gaelic influence within the Highland Council.
Can members please do a lot more to highlight the plight of Wick High School? The school even now gets second hand boilers when theirs break down.
£1m spend now is being rushed through as an emergency
Education Service & Committee have no longer any credibility. This has been a long standing problem.
Councillor Bill Fernie – We all have to convince other Council Members about Wick High School but it should be remembered that Wick is not the only school that is in need of work
Hugh Fraser – The £1m spend on Wick is not an emergency spend. This money has been in the capital programme for the past few years.
From the floor – In Inverness there are ‘arrangements’, money hidden from budgets. There is no equalisation or transparency for that matter.
Councillor David Bremner – Equalisation does not work with the ripple down effect created by the boom in Inverness. The further you are away from the core the less the benefit.
From the floor – We have 4 toilet cubicles for 400 boys and new soap in the toilets but no toilet paper. £250k of the £1m is needed to get the toilets alone up to scratch. Unlikely to get a new school within the next 10 years.
A consultation for an option appraisal was requested 6 months ago and was to be available by end of November this year. There is still no word of this report so why do we tolerate this?
Chairman of the EC&S has a lot of power but what have you done? Wick High School is rated as C & D yet C & C ratings are getting new schools. Why? This is very unfair.
Councillor Bill Fernie – Being Chairperson does not allow me to overrule other people. I have to ensure there is fairness. I have overseen the fund for the Vocational Training to keep young folk at college and making use of the Barrogill Hall in Wick to help relive the pupil numbers.
Councillor Katrina Macnab – The £1m was agreed by EC&S on 9th November 2006, this is now November 2008 and it has not been spent yet. It is an emergency spend.
From the floor – It is believed that the Chairperson of EC&S is well meaning but is not pushy enough. Political manoeuvring in the past by previous Chairmen of EC&S was a big influence.
Councillor Graeme Smith –History of past Chairmen of EC&S showed that they had influence in Skye and Ross-shire. It is expected that the present Chairman should bring more to the local community.
From the floor – I am a Primary Head Teacher in Wick. I only found out that my school was rated C & D when I read it on the front page of the John O’Groats Journal. Where did these ratings come from?
Councillor Graeme Smith – The Wick High School games room was rated B & B which I find almost unbelievable knowing the condition of the building.
From the floor – All Caithness members should attend all the EC&S Committee meetings. The political leader of the Council, Dr Foxley, should be invited to have a look himself at the High School.
Written question from Mrs L Malik (Q4)
Q4 -Why when the school is subject to such an intense campaign for a new build is the council releasing such a large mount of money to be spent on a building which may eventually be subject to a rebuild?
A4 – Money had been earmarked back in 2006. There are children going through the school now who need these monies spent. With the current rating of the school this would have been done as a matter of course. These monies are addressing a deficiency.
Q5– A feasibility study for a new school in Wick was to be done back in May 2 008. When will this be ready?
A5 – Being worked on at this time. Unable to give date of completion but a copy of the brief will be made available.
Q6 – One day a new school will be built at Wick. Can you give a best guess when this may happen?
A6 – I am sorry but with all the best will in the world I am unable to even best guess a date.
Q7 – In 2009 you will lay down your Capital Plan for the next 10 years. What happens if something is omitted? Is it shelved until 10 years period expires?
A7 – The Capital Plan gets reviewed every year for inflation factors and any emergency provisions. Elected Members will see new priorities e.g. building failures if missed in March 09. The Plan will be monitored at least twice a year.
Q8 – Wick is a new issue. The building is in a terrible state. Will Wick be in the new Capital Plan for 2009/19?
A8 – Future years Capital Plan will include refurbishing and replacing schools.
Councillor Graeme Smith – Wick was in the top 3 in 1999!
Q9 – With the proposed introduction of the Scottish Future Trust (SFT) has the EC&S Service prepared for its introduction now rather than wait until it is announced before staring their ‘list’. I would imagine that the EC&S already have a list and that it would not be to time consuming to get this up dated?
A9 – We are still unsure about the details for SFT as the Scottish Government has still to make these known however we will take this on board for future use.
Q10 – Pupils at Wick are being disadvantaged because they have to work harder to achieve results because of the condition of the school buildings. Data has been proven to show that results go up when new schools are opened. Conditions at Wick are very bad yet you build new Gaelic Schools. Why?
A10 – We are legally bound and have a duty to build Gaelic Schools. We have one already build with another two on the cards. We have to promote equality across cultural backgrounds as not much had been done for Gaelic in the past.
From the floor – This is at the cost of our children’s education.
Councillor David Bremner – The Gaelic issue rumbles on. There is a perception that this is righting a wrong from the old Education Act of 1808 and it now affects education today.
From the floor – A petition from the children in Wick High School was given to Alex Salmond on 23 September when he said that he would send it onto the Highland Council. Also 700 postcards were sent to him which he also promised to send to Highland Council. If these have not been received by the Director then Alex Salmond would be written to have these forwarded.
From the floor – A thank you to Mr Fraser for coming up to Wick to address the Forum. It is understood that he is only the servant of the Education, Culture & Sports Committee. I recall that when I started teaching every summer holidays the tradesmen would arrive to carry out the maintenance on the school buildings. This just not happen anymore perhaps through devolved school budgets.
From the floor – Council needs to look at DSM to make the allocations fairer. New Schools should not be getting the same DSM as older ones.
Alistair Traill – He is full of praise for his staff and pupils and what they have to put up with on a day to day basis. The pupils visit a lot of other schools and are astonished at the facialities most of these schools have compared to Wick. He is interested to see how part of the £1m spend on the ‘social spaces’ in the school will help moral.
The alarms have been taken away from the high aluminium concrete beams but this issue is being addressed.
From the floor – I am a parent who entrusts my children to the Education, Culture & Sports Service to be looked after but I am sorry to say that they are not whilst in Wick High School.
Councillor Graeme Smith – We must all continue the campaign for a new school as a united front. Matrixes need looked at very urgently to gauge the equality issues raised.
Councillor Katrina MacNab – The pupils at Staxigoe are just within the 3 mile limit for free school transport. They are 2.9 miles. Staxigoe is unique that no buses pass by and therefore unless the 3 mile limit is reduced pupils will always have to pay.
A petition signed by 34 pupils calling for a relaxation in this rule will be handed to the Director. She intimated that if the Kessock pupils were stopped being bused to Fortrose and put to a school in Inverness the savings would cover the relaxation of the 3mile limit.
4. Ward Discretionary Budget & Youth Fund
Total Ward cost of projects to 13.11.08 - £26214
Partner contribution - £48,305
Ward Budget remaining - £33,445
Youth Budget cost of projects - £11,885
Partner contribution - £10,885
Youth Budget remaining - £4,000
5. Date of future meeting
Tuesday, 3rd March 2009. Proposed topic – Community Care Forum presentation.
6. AOB
None
7. Questions & Answer Session
All questions asked under Section 3.