School sustainability scoring revealed

AN updated review of Dumfries and Galloway schools and their sustainability for the future has been drawn up by council bosses. The region’s primary and secondary schools have been assessed and given sustainability scores based on a points system based around eight key principles. These include travelling distance to schools, number of classes, staff numbers, building condition, community use, accessibility, and key facilities. Each principle is marked from zero to two, with a score of two fully meeting the principle requirements. Therefore, 16 is the highest achievable score and would pretty much guarantee the future sustainability of that particular school. Only five of the 113 schools (97 primaries and 16 secondaries) received a 16 score: Georgetown Primary, Hardgate Primary, Heathhall Primary, Lochmaben Primary, and Lockerbie Primary Meanwhile, seven schools (excluding mothballed buildings) scored under ten: Amisfield Primary, Closeburn Primary, Hightae Primary, Johnstonebridge Primary, Portpatrick Primary, St Joseph’s RC Primary, St Mungo Primary, and Dalry Secondary. However, council bosses stress that this scoring framework “serves as a benchmarking tool for future appraisals”, and that lower sustainability scores are not automatically being considered for closure. The report states: “The cumulative score provides an overall measure of a school’s sustainability, enabling comparative analysis across the school estate. This scoring framework serves as a benchmarking tool to support future appraisals, strategic planning, and the identification of areas for improvement. The report states: “Importantly, the school model profiles themselves do not predetermine outcomes for any school. Instead, they act as a core evidence base to support option appraisals, transformation planning, estate maintenance and the delivery of related strategies. “They ensure that future decisions are made with full awareness of local demographic change, financial sustainability, educational benefit, and community impact.”