The Scottish Government announced this week that schools would close as of Friday, 20 March at 5pm and also confirmed that the SQA exam diet would not take place this year.
As a priority, our Education Service has been working to put in place contingency plans to support families and allow learning and care to continue across Stirling during this unprecedented emergency situation.
These arrangements will be tailored to each learning community and will start to be delivered as of Monday, 23 March.
Each school and nursery across the area has already began sharing the plans with families, parents and carers at each setting through their own communication channels.
Primary Schools, Early Learning Settings, Additional Support Needs (ASN) Provision, and S1-S3
Pupils should not attend school as of Monday (23 Mar), with flexible learning supported from home via a variety of digital tools and learning packs. These details have been explained to pupils by teachers.
Secondary schools S4-S6
In broad terms, from Monday (23 Mar), all Stirling Council secondary schools will remain open for senior phase pupils (4th year to 6th year) who are fit to attend to enable them to complete required SQA coursework as soon as possible. Current transport and catering provisions will be maintained.
School Meals
The local authority will also continue to deliver free school meals by delivering packed lunches to homes for all entitled children from P1-S6 – lunches will not be provided for all children in P1-3 as is the current position.
Childcare
The local authority is also organising care facilities for children and young people whose parents have been identified as essential workers during the emergency situation. There has been a high response to this and we will reply as soon as possible. For more information, read our news story and access the survey.
Patience and support
Convener of Stirling Council’s Children and Young People Committee, Cllr Susan McGill said: “I would like to thank all our dedicated staff for working round the clock to put in place these alternative arrangements, which will allow our children and young people to continue their learning and care during this emergency situation.
“We understand this a time of uncertainty for our young people, particularly those working towards national qualifications, with the cancellation of the SQA exams. These temporary arrangements will ensure they can complete their required coursework so their hard work throughout the year is rewarded.
“This remains a fluid and fast-changing situation and we have had to move quickly to put these contingency plans in place. Inevitably, there will be some details that still require clarification and we appreciate your patience and support during this challenging time.
“Finally, we would also like to thank all our staff in our schools and early learning settings for their dedication and professionalism to maintain continuity in this unprecedented situation.”
More information
We are collating the key education updates during the COVID-19 pandemic on a dedicated page on the Stirling Council website - https://www.stirling.gov.uk/learning-education/coronavirus-education-updates/