A council must consult parents, children, young people and the wider community when it proposes a change to its school estate. This includes changes such as proposals to close schools, changes to a school’s catchment area and setting up of catchment areas for Gaelic Medium Education. Bòrd na Gàidhlig must be consulted on proposals for Gaelic Medium Education. More detail can be read in the Statutory Guidance on Gaelic Education, 2017.

The Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010 sets out the formal process that councils must follow. HM Inspectors of Education have a statutory duty to produce an independent and impartial report on these proposals. These reports may be accessed on our school consultation reports page.