 |
© Dundee Courier Tuesday 4 March 2014
Click on image to enlarge |
Yesterday, I accompanied Scottish Labour Leader Johann Lamont MSP and Jenny Marra MSP to two meetings about the plight of the Early Years Practitioners that currently work in twenty two Primary Schools in Dundee. In the Council's budget meeting last month, SNP Councillors bulldozed through proposals to move these staff from working in P1-3 classes so that they could make up the numbers of staff required in nursery schools. This was despite Dundee Labour Councillors proposing a budget amendment which would have kept the Early Years Practitioners in their Primary School posts.
The first meeting was at St Andrew's RC Primary School where Johann met Michael Wood, Director of Education; David Dorward, Chief Executive, Lina Waghorn, Head of Primary Education and Avril Barnett the Acting Head Teacher at St Andrew's. Following that meeting, Johann's response to the Courier is detailed in the article above.
In the early evening, Johann Lamont, Jenny Marra and I attended a meeting with the Early Years Practitioners at a meeting convened by UNISON. What struck me was how highly motivated and dedicated these Early Years Practitioners are. Unlike many disputes, this group of trade unionists are not campaigning for their jobs, rather they are campaigning for the continuation of their roles in Primary School classrooms. While they have been promised continuing employment working in nursery classes from August this year, their concern is for the children with whom they currently work who will miss out when they are withdrawn from their primary schools at the end of June. Their removal will represent a cut in the front line staff working directly with children in primary school classrooms.
I am sure that pupils, parents and carers and class teachers will notice the difference when their Early Years Practitioner is withdrawn. Link to the list of twenty two Primary Schools that will lose their Early Years Practitioner in June 2014. The last word should go to Johann, "I don't think this kind of 'robbing Peter to pay Paul' is the way to address our education provision."
