Mount Esk Nursery School closure decision: letter to Midlothian Council
Letter from Learning Directorate to Midlothian Council, with decision to close Mount Esk Nursery School And re-designate to Hawthornden Primary School Nursery class.
To: Derek Oliver, Midlothian Council
From: Orlando Mason, Deputy Director, Workforce, Infrastructure and Digital Learning Directorate
23 March 2026
Dear Derek,
Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010: closure of Mount Esk Nursery School and re-designations as Hawthornden Primary School Nursery Class.
I refer to Katy Maclean’s email of 24 February 2026 notifying Scottish Ministers of Midlothian Council’s decision of 24 February 2026 to implement the proposal to close Mount Esk Nursery School and re-designate it to Hawthornden Primary School nursery class. Ministers have considered this proposal in line with the requirements set out in the Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010 (“the 2010 Act”).
Under section 17 of the 2010 Act, Ministers may only issue a call-in notice if it appears to them that the education authority may have failed:
(a) in a significant regard to comply with the requirements imposed on it by (or under) the Act so far as they are relevant in relation to the closure proposal, or
(b) to take proper account of a material consideration relevant to its decision to implement the proposal.
Section 15(2) of the 2010 Act requires an education authority to provide a copy of the proposal paper and the consultation report prepared under the Act to Ministers when notifying them of a closure proposal.
Section 15(4) of the 2010 Act requires Ministers to take into account any relevant representations made to them by any person during the three week period from the date that a closure decision is made. In relation to this closure proposal, the three-week period began on 24 February 2026 and expired on 16 March 2026. No reresentations were received.
Having reviewed the documents provided by Midlothian Council under section 15(2) and considered all relevant representations made under section 15(4), Ministers consider that Midlothian Council has fulfilled its obligations under the 2010 Act and do not intend to issue a call-in notice for this proposal.
Midlothian Council may now implement its decision to close Mount Esk Nursery School and re-designate it to Hawthornden Primary School nursery class in line with the timescales set out in its proposal paper. As noted in His Majestys Inspectorate of Education in Scotland report on the proposal, Midlothian Council should now produce a clear plan for implementation, both in the short and longer term. The Council should also ensure that progress with the implementation is communicated to all stakeholders.
Yours sincerely,
Orlando Mason
Deputy Director, Workforce, Infrastructure and Digital Learning Directorate
