North Lanarkshire has moved to confirm its reputation as a listening council with a series of teacher and parent conferences. It is hoped to have a draft development plan by September and a new round of consultation will finish in December.
More than 250 heads and heads of departments have been asked to give their views at three conferences over the past week. Three-quarters of the cost was met by the Scottish Office. Three conferences have been organised for parents.
Christine Pollock, North Lanarkshire’s depute director of education, said: “We need to know what the big issues are and these people are on the front line and know better than us. Our job is to come up with support systems to assist them. We want vision, but we want very clearly to be able to change that into action.”
Early intervention strategies and pre-five provision have been identified as priorities . Moves to improve attendance and cultivate an ethos of attainment have also been listed. Information technology, particularly in the primary sector, is seen as essential.
