Parents occupy school in Lanarkshire Scotland threatened with closure

http://libcom.org/news/parents-occupy-school-lanarkshire-threatened-closure-26012010

Parents occupy school in Lanarkshire threatened with closure

Parents in Glasgow occupied yet another primary school this week; the
latest in a series of school occupations which have taken place over the
past year.

Taking action in response to proposals to close St. Matthew's Primary
School, five concerned parents barricaded themselves inside the school and
announced their intention to remain there until their demands were met.
Protests have also taken place at three other schools in the area set to
close. These threatened closures are the most recent in a concerted
campaign by councils across Greater Glasgow to shut of schools and
nurseries.

In early 2009, Glasgow City Council announced plans to close at least 13
primary schools and 12 nurseries across the city. The consultations for
these closures have been branded flimsy at best by angry parents who feel
the decision had, in many cases, been finalized before the public
consultation was even finished. Over the past year budget deficits have
led to council cutbacks across Glasgow, with a £75 million shortfall in
North Lanarkshire where St. Matthew's is located. As the predicted cost of
the 2014 Commonwealth Games soars to £454 million, it perhaps comes as no
great surprise that the council is using the excuse of low pupil numbers
and building disrepair to mask their attempts at cost-cutting.

Both Glasgow City Council and North Lanarkshire Council have responded to
parents' protests with threats and intimidation. During the Wyndford
Primary occupation in early 2009, the school's water and electricity was
cut off after a council worker posing as a safety inspector gained entry.
The protest was only able to continue thanks to donations of bottled water
from local residents. In this latest occupation, the parents staging the
sit-in at St. Matthew's were threatened with the prospect of the pupils
being sent to another school because two of the occupiers do not possess a
Disclosure Scotland form.

The tactic of occupation now seems one which is more readily employed
since the closures were announced, with a number of similar actions having
taken place across the city over the past year. Various individual
campaigns have been linked together under the 'Save Our Schools' banner
and local parents have proved that they are unwilling to let these threats
to their children's future go ahead without a fight.
from www.afed.org.uk