Tullynessle Primary School closure decision: letter to Aberdeenshire Council

To: Laurence Findlay, Director for Education and Children's Services
From: Clare Hicks, Director of Education

24 June 2026

Dear Laurence,

Call-in notice under section 15(3) of the Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010: Aberdeenshire Council – proposed closure of Tullynessle Primary School

I refer to Rachael Goldring’s email of 30 April 2026 notifying the Scottish Ministers of Aberdeenshire Council’s decision of 30 April 2026 to implement the proposal to close Tullynessle Primary School and rezone the school catchment to Keig Primary School. 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.

After consideration of Aberdeenshire Council’s notification dated 30 April, proposal paper, consultation report and the further information provided by the Council on 18 and 23 June 2026, together with HMIE’s report, and the representation received, the Scottish Ministers have concluded that there are grounds on which to call-in this closure proposal with reference to section 17(2)(a) of the 2010 Act. Accordingly, this letter is a call-in notice under section 15(3) of the 2010 Act.

Ministers note that in the consultation Aberdeenshire Council has taken the position that Tullynessle School and the nursery are separate entities, and the proposal to close the school would not affect the nursery provision. Accordingly, the consultation proceeded on the basis that the nursery and school should be considered through separate processes.

The Scottish Ministers do not consider this approach to be viable. Ministers consider there is sufficient evidence about the nature and status of the nursery to consider that the nursery provision should have been treated as a nursery class forming part of the school's provision for the purposes of the process under the 2010 Act. This includes that prior to its mothballing, there appears to have been a significant degree of integration of the nursery in the school, and the school’s headteacher had management responsibility for the nursery. In any event, the Council has since confirmed that the nursery provision at the school is a nursery class for the purposes of the 2010 Act. Therefore, the Scottish Ministers are concerned that as the nursery class was excluded from the proposal the impact of its closure was not consulted on in accordance with the procedures laid out in sections 3 to 13 of the 2010 Act.

A nursery class is part of the school in which it is being provided. If the school closes and no further steps are taken, it is not at all clear how the nursery class could continue to be viable. Further steps may, for example, be to include the closure of the nursery class in the consultation process, alongside the establishment of a nursery school (which is not a relevant proposal for the purposes of the 2010 Act).

Paragraph 11 of the statutory guidance for the 2010 Act reflects the position:

'The 2010 Act applies to a proposal which affects a nursery class or nursery school (under the management of the education authority) in the same way that it applies to all other “relevant proposals” as defined in Schedule 1 to the 2010 Act (…). The authority should take care to ensure that any proposal for the relocation or closure of a school which includes a nursery class clearly explains the impact of the proposal on the nursery class. The proposal paper and consultation report should reflect and take into account any issues which are specific to the nursery class.'

The Scottish Ministers also note that section 19(1) of the 2010 Act requires the Council to have regard to the statutory guidance.

The Scottish Ministers therefore consider that it appears that the Council may have failed to comply with the requirements of the 2010 Act. In particular, in omitting the nursery class from the relevant proposal for consultation, it appears that the Council failed to comply with the requirements of section 3 of the 2010 Act, which requires a proposal paper to include an Educational Benefits Statement setting out the authority's assessment of the educational benefits of the proposal. As the nursery class was not included within the proposal, the Educational Benefits Statement did not assess the educational impact of closing that aspect of the school's provision. Ministers further consider that that error has also had an impact on the other requirements imposed on the Council by the 2010 Act.

After careful consideration, the Scottish Ministers consider that it appears that Aberdeenshire Council may have failed in a significant regard to comply with the requirements imposed on it by (or under) this Act so far as they are relevant in relation to the closure proposal. In particular, there appears to have been a failure to comply with section 3, which impacted on compliance with the other substantive requirements of the 2010 Act. Ministers consider this to be a potential failure in a significant regard because the exclusion of the nursery class from the proposal and consultation process may have resulted in that aspect of the school's provision being effectively closed without the consultation required by the 2010 Act. There further appears to have been a failure to have regard to the statutory guidance contrary to section 19(1) of the Act. Ministers therefore consider that the proposal warrants further independent review by the School Closure Review Panel.

Conclusion

Therefore, the Scottish Ministers are calling in the proposal under section 15(3) of the 2010 Act for the reasons set out above.

As required under section 17A(2) of the 2010 Act following call in, the Scottish Ministers are referring the proposal to the Convener of the School Closure Review Panel. The Convener is required to constitute a School Closure Review Panel which will review the proposal and reach a decision in terms of sections 17B and 17C, respectively, of the 2010 Act.

Aberdeenshire Council may not implement the proposal (either in whole or in part) unless the School Closure Review Panel grants consent to the proposal (either with conditions or unconditionally) and either the period for making an appeal to the Sheriff has expired without any appeal being made, or, if an appeal is made, it is abandoned or the Sheriff has confirmed the Panel’s decision (in terms of section 17A(4) of the 2010 Act).

Yours sincerely,

Clare Hicks

Director of Education