Tories say more schools in rural Scotland ‘dilapidated’ than in urban areas

‘Deeply alarming’ school estate figures highlighted by opposition party

Schools in rural Scotland are more than twice as likely to be in a poor state of repair, with Tories saying the “deeply concerning” figures show ministers have “disregarded” more remote communities.

The Scottish Conservatives hit out after the school estate survey for 2023 revealed that 13.2 per cent of primary, secondary and special schools in rural councils were classed as being in either poor or bad condition.

The compares to 5.2 per cent of school buildings in urban council areas.

School pupils. David Jones/PA Wire

Highland Council has recently discussed declaring a school estate emergency due to the state of its school buildings, amid frustration after the Scottish Government failed to offer financial backing to five schemes in the area as part of the third phase of the learning estate investment programme (LEIP).

Scottish Conservative education spokesman Liam Kerr said: “The dilapidated state of many school buildings is yet another black mark against an SNP Government that is destroying Scotland’s once-proud reputation for education.”

Mr Kerr added: “The condition of the school estate is deeply alarming – and it’s both unacceptable and entirely in keeping with this nationalist coalition that the situation is far worse in forgotten rural Scotland.

“Councils in remote areas have a greater number of schools per head because of the geographical spread of the population.

“After years of brutal SNP Government cuts, all councils are struggling to meet costs. Yet again, rural areas are being disproportionately short-changed.”

The Tory MSP continued: “For too long the SNP have disregarded Scotland’s rural communities.

“It is completely unacceptable that rural children’s education must suffer more simply because of where they live.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: "The proportion of schools in good or satisfactory condition in Scotland has increased from 61 per cent in April 2007 to 90.7 per cent in April 2023 as a result of Scottish Government investment and the next phase of LEIP will build on this progress.

"Pupil-teacher ratios across the country remain at near-record levels. Scotland also has the most teachers per pupil and the highest-paid teachers in the UK – showing how much the Scottish Government values the profession.

“The 2024-25 budget further supports teachers with an investment of £390 million to protect teacher numbers and fund the teacher pay deal.”