School closures: '˜You can understand that parents are furious'

MORGAN McLeod is just one of around 8000 pupils across the city affected by Friday's shock closure of 17 schools.

Amanda J McLeod and daughter Morgan, a pupil at Royal High. Picture: Ian Georgeson

The 16-year-old, who attends the Royal High and lives in Cramond, is gearing up to sit her Higher and National 5 qualifications in a matter of weeks.

But her preparation has been thrown into disarray following last week’s announcement.

The teenager has a looming practical Hospitality exam in just over two weeks requiring urgent use of school facilities – along with vital coursework that needs to be handed in over the coming days.

SCHOOL CLOSURE CRISIS

• Architect Malcolm Faser says school closures show folly of PFI scheme

• Edinburgh Schools Partnership facing million-pound penalty

• Safety fears to shut 17 Edinburgh schools

• Full list of schools affected

Mum Amanda, 51, an interior designer, said she was “lucky” that being self-employed had allowed her to be flexible with childcare.

She said: “We got an email on Wednesday saying that everything was fine and then on Friday we find out that actually, no it’s not fine. You can understand that parents are furious.

“It would have been bad at any time of year, but even more so three weeks before exams. With subjects like Higher physics, they have not even finished their curriculum yet.

“I’m self-employed and have my own business – I would never expect clients to pay me until they have checked on my work. Why were [the council] not rigorous with the school checks when it’s costing millions?”

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