I was sitting there packing up my papers after a school board meeting. Head teacher, parents, representatives of the local community like me, we all had enjoyed an evening learning of the successes of the school.
As we discussed the date of our next meeting it became clear that the Head teacher was trying to fit us around a date when others were also going to be in the school building. It didn’t really suit many of our diaries but we acquiesced.
But on enquiring more why such was a preferred date our Head told us that it would save over-time costs for the Janitor. Why, I enquired, did the Janitor have to be there, at taxpayer’s expense, to unlock one school door and then wait for two hours to lock it again when the Head and six parents would be the only ones in the school? Could the Head teacher not open and close the school for us? Apparently not. Her years of training clearly have not trained her for such a task.
I multiply that by the factor 12 for a meeting a month of our Board. And multiply that by the number of schools in Scotland. You come up with a figure that, while not enormous, is certainly enough to employ a lot more teachers. I reckon at least 3 more in my own local authority area.
Just another area of inefficient waste that Labour is unwilling or unable to tackle. So why are we allowing it to happen?
Answers and angry comments on a post card to your local Councillor.
