Report to the People
Education for Looked After Children
We would all, I am sure, agree that every child in Scotland has the right to a decent education.
But, while advances are undoubtedly being made - as we saw recently with Inverclyde's excellent HMI report - some young people still have unfair, extra hurdles to clear.
For example, children who are looked after by local authorities are, according to a recent report, at a particular disadvantage. They tend to lag behind their peers, leave school with fewer qualifications and are more at risk of being excluded from school.
The most recent figures show that there are 11,309 looked after children in Scotland. The vast majority - 9,724 - are looked after at home or in the community, with 1,585 in residential care.
That these young people find it more difficult to realise their full potential does not mean they have less of a right to do so. An unstable, impoverished or abusive background may explain a child struggling at school - but it in no way excuses it.
And a troubled child's learning experience is hardly likely to be enhanced if he or she has to make do with old text books and other outdated learning materials. While extra money for books and equipment has been invested throughout Scotland, the distribution arrangements mean that looked after children - in particular those educated outwith local authority schools - lose out.
I was pleased to see, then, that a new fund of up to £10 million has been set up to provide books, equipment and homework materials for every looked after child in Scotland. Inverclyde Council will receive £500 for every child looked after in a family home and £2,500 for every child looked after in residential accommodation.
This cash boost will be vital in helping our local services help some of our most vulnerable young people make the most of the advantages education has to offer.
A truly fair society ensures everyone has an equal chance to reach his or her full potential. Just because some children have the misfortune to be born to uncaring or abusive parents, should not mean that they remain disadvantaged for the rest of their lives.
It will come as no surprise that I believe the best place to begin breaking out of the cycle of poverty is the classroom. Education is a golden opportunity to transform your prospects - an opportunity our most vulnerable children cannot miss.
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