If you live in Aberdeenshire and have kids, now might be the time to start worrying.
The latest in a series of swingeing cuts to education and children’s services means speech and language therapists will no longer be present in schools.
Parents of children with additional support needs (ASN) are getting in touch with me daily at the moment.
There’s a distinct feeling among them that they and their kids are being trampled on disproportionately by Aberdeenshire Council in order to balance the books.
Whether or not you have an ASN child at home, the future for young people in the region – and their families – is starting to look rather bleak.
It’s not just that I feel sympathy for parents of ASN children. It’s the realisation that I could be next.
Aberdeenshire Council cuts: What’s next to be targeted in education?
Despite having three kids, I’ve been fortunate enough not to bear the brunt of the latest cuts to children’s services in Aberdeenshire.
The withdrawal of out-of-school care (after-school clubs) didn’t affect me as I’m lucky enough not to be reliant on them.
None of my kids have additional support needs, so the withdrawal of speech and language therapists in schools won’t affect me either.
Neither will the axing of school crossing patrollers, as my kids’ school doesn’t have them anyway. We’re all praying our jannie survives the school janitor cuts, mind you.
But parents like me are now wondering what’s around the corner. School hours? School transport? Teacher numbers?
Aberdeenshire Council leader Gillian Owen has said the local authority “can only spend the money we have”.
Parents aren’t stupid. We all understand the budget situation, and that money doesn’t grow on trees.
But to remove a provision, in speech and language therapy in schools and nurseries, which parents have told me is “crucial” for their kids’ life chances, all to save what equates to 0.05% of the total education budget, seems contemptuous.
If I were the parent of an ASN child, I’d perhaps use the word callous.
Lack of communication: Parents given no time to fight back
What is also contemptuous is the abject level of communication afforded parents by the council.
It was the same with the after-school club closures – parents completely oblivious until a day or two before the meeting, by which point the decision is a foregone conclusion.
They’re given no time to react, no time to fight back and stand up for themselves and their children.
This only exacerbates the shock and anxiety for parents, who incidentally councillors are there to serve.
I’m not an economist, an administrator or a politician.
But even a Joe Nobody like me knows that if you want your part of the world to survive, let alone thrive, there are few things more important than looking after your young people.
And giving the coming generation, at the very least, the same life chances you enjoyed.
It’s imperative to make the north-east a place where people can imagine settling down, laying roots and having children.
Very little this administration (or indeed Aberdeen City Council) has done has given the impression it ranks this as anything like a priority.
What does the education service in Aberdeenshire look like in a year’s time? In 10 years’ time?
The Scottish Government’s policy of having ASN kids in mainstream schools has been questioned by many.
But we are where we are. You can’t have increasing numbers of ASN children in these schools and then bit by bit, dismantle their support structure.
One does wonder how it’s all going to look come 2025, let alone 10 years’ time.
Parents are on the back foot, but they’re now mobilising and considering next steps.
I can only hope for all our sakes that it isn’t too little, too late.
Calum Petrie writes features about schools, education, and family matters.
‘It’ll wreck lives’: Parents slam Aberdeenshire Council speech and language therapy cuts
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