Families in Fintry and Aberfoyle are anxiously awaiting the outcome of a political wrangle which could provide a lifeline from controversial cuts to their nursery hours.
The cuts for Fintry and Aberfoyle nurseries were voted through by the minority Labour administration, with the support of Conservative councillors, at Stirling Council’s recent budget meeting.
Fintry Parent Council say the nursery opening hours in the village will be reduced from 8-6pm Monday-Friday to 9-3pm Monday-Friday, in efforts to save around £28,000 in 2023/2024 and close to £17,000 the following year.
Parents will no longer be able to pay for extra days or hours beyond their state-funded nursery hours, and the nursery itself stands to lose one staff member.
Critics say questions also remain over where children will be placed once overall capacity has been reduced as a number of nearby nurseries in Balfron, Killearn and Arnprior are thought to be near capacity.
It is thought that children returning to Aberfoyle Nursery will have the 8am-6pm maintained next year only, but Fintry youngsters are not being offered that option. Parents of both nurseries are also believed to have been told they have until March 31 to request a place with the new hours - just 24 hours after councillors are expected to meet for an update on whether cash could be freed up to halt the cuts altogether.
The nursery hours reductions are just one of a raft of unpopular cuts that could be reversed if the Scottish Government agrees to fully fund Big Noise orchestra projects in Stirling.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced that the Scottish Government would come up with £1.5million after SNP-led councils in Dundee and Aberdeen cut 100 per cent of the funding they provided for the Big Noise projects in their area and Stirling Council cut its contribution to the Raploch and Fallin projects by 10 per cent.
However, the council’s Labour administration says, had they known the Scottish Government was going to fork out, they could have similarly gone for a whole funding cut, freeing up £392,000 and avoiding a host of other budget cuts, including those at Fintry and Aberfoyle nurseries.
Now council leader Chris Kane has said that, given it would be unfair to do otherwise, the authority will expect confirmation that the whole sum will be provided.
At a recent special meeting of the council, Labour presented a motion to reverse the cuts – which would have required two-thirds of the council to vote to suspend standing orders on a six- month rule on revisiting decisions.
However, all SNP councillors, and independent councillor Alasdair Macpherson, voted against it, saying it was premature to do so without confirmation of the exact sum the Scottish Government would be providing and how it would be routed.
Following a fractious debate, councillors unanimously agreed to pursue further details about the funding and reconvene within two weeks by which time it was hoped officers would have firmer information.
At the meeting, Councillor Kane said: “The First Minister has said she will step in and fund Big Noise and made it clear that’s her intention. We would hope the chamber collectively will take the opportunity to take the First Minister at her word and we can take the opportunity to reverse some of the cuts.”
Conservative councillor Rachel Nunn said: “If the Scottish Government only reinstated the £44,000 [Stirling Council cut from Sistema] that would be very unfair to this council. If the £1.5m was given to Sistema and we retained only the £44,000 cut then Sistema might grow its operation in another local authority area, which would be great for the children of Scotland, but would be unfair to Stirling. It’s important to ensure Stirling is treated equally fairly and we are able to share the money we do have with the wider people of Stirling.”
This week SNP Forth and Endrick ward councillor Rosemary Fraser urged the council to reverse the nursery cuts regardless, saying: “The community pushback here in Fintry has been huge. A reduction in local nursery provision will have profound implications for Fintry Primary School, especially once catchment areas and childhood friendships come into play. If these cuts are not reconsidered, we may well see Fintry Primary School come under pressure too.
“I urge Stirling Labour to do what’s right by Fintry, and revisit the sums.”
