FORMAL closure of Hutton Primary School looks set to occur in January.
Dumfries and Galloway Council has now finished their review and is proposing, subject to the outcome of the statutory consultation process, to discontinue education provision at the village school.
And they want to split the catchment area so that, in future, children attend either Applegarth or Langholm primaries.
Hutton was mothballed in August 2020 due to low pupil numbers and officials predict that the school roll will not rise significantly in the near future.
In the meantime, the building is deteriorating and costs £5380 to keep mothballed every year.
Some villagers have expressed a desire to see it reopened but the council is ruling that out as an option and say there would be “no specific educational benefits” from re-opening and have pointed out the challenges in recruiting teaching staff and the considerable expenditure needed to bring the building up to standard.
Their report states: “For these reasons and following a review of the proposal and all reasonable alternatives in light of the consultation feedback, reopening Hutton Primary School is still not considered to be the best option.
“The positives for pupils and staff outweighed the potential negative of the reduction of a council facility in the community.”
Education officers are also reluctant to add in Lockerbie Primary as an alternative school, despite better transport links, saying: “It was felt on balance that Applegarth Primary School would provide a small school experience. Parental choice continues to be an option to all families.”
Meanwhile, Education Scotland has considered the educational aspects of the proposal and is supportive of the closure. They believe “children from the catchment area are benefitting from the educational benefits available at Applegarth Primary School and Langholm Primary School.”
The review report will now go to the October meeting of the council’s education committee for a final decision.
