´óÏó´«Ã½

I am wondering if Keir Bloomer, the leading educationalist who has called this week for an independent commission to consider whether schools should be wrested away from local councils, has come out from under his kitchen table yet.

The volley of quiet criticism from civic offices around Scotland has been substantial.

"Poacher turned gamekeeper" is the phrase commonly applied by Mr Bloomer's critics. He is a former depute general secretary of the EIS teaching union who went on to become the leader of council education bosses and a Scottish government advisor. (To give just one example of the scope of his influence, he is one of the architects of the Curriculum for Excellence.)

In short he knows where all the bodies are buried in Scottish education and if he suggests some systems are decaying, aren't serving children, then it isn't an opinion lightly dismissed.

That said, while some see him as an intellectual visionary, his critics sometimes suggest he's an abstract romantic who doesn't always make obvious connections between theory and the day to day realities of running a school.

Whatever the rights and wrongs of that argument, Mr Bloomer is suggesting the money from the public purse for running schools could be given to charitable trusts or non-profit-making companies. The claim is that councils are, with notable exceptions, wooden and bureaucratic in the way they run schools.

It has to be said that the issue of school closures doesn't suggest councillors are unresponsive. For years, book-keepers have pointed out the cost of running schools with relatively few children from the catchment on the roll. But many councillors have dismissed closure as an option because they are aware of the distress it causes in communities.

The possible loss of votes may also cross their minds. The persistent handling of the issue of closures indicates council control is a responsive, democratic way to run schools.

Head teachers may be tempted by the concept of greater independence if key decisions aren't made in distant town halls. But management by a trust or company using modern management techniques, brings with it the prospect of greater accountability too. Some worry that heads could, like football managers, be put on short term contracts and asked to move on if results are disappointing.

If this day ever dawns, Mr Bloomer might find this week's criticism just a minor skirmish.

Related links: