A ROSYTH councillor has asked Fife Council: Where’s our £6milliion?

SNP education spokesperson Douglas Chapman wants to know when the local authority will stump out the cash as promised to West Fife schools last year.

In June 2013, the Press told you about Fife Council’s plans to inject £6.2million into 13 schools, as part of proposals under its Sustainable School Estate programme.

Of that total, around £4.4m would be invested in eight West Fife primaries – of which £3.9m would be triggered by the controversial closure of Pitcorthie Primary.

Investments would also be made in schools that would see an increase in pupil numbers due to the closure of Wellwood and Crombie primaries. All three schools were axed under Fife Council’s schools estate review.

The cash would go towards Camdean (£910,000), Pitreavie (£680,000), Commercial (£680,000), Lynburn (£580,000), Canmore (£410,000), Cairneyhill (£390,000), McLean (£385,000) and Touch (£330,000).

Camdean is set to be the new home of the behaviour support service currently based at Lynburn, and work on the other schools is required to be completed before the closure of the three schools.

With all three schools now set to shut, Cllr Chapman is demanding details of the funding package, improvements and timescales.

He said, “Following Fife Labour’s extensive school closure programme, the people of Fife were promised a £6m investment in Fife schools.

“Some saw this as a cynical bribe based on the assumption that if the council closed these schools then other schools will receive a significant investment.

“We are now at the stage where Labour have closed the schools they wanted to close but they remain strangely silent on the promised £6m investment. Another vow undelivered.” He called for a report to the next meeting, adding that the Labour administration’s response was “glib” and “totally unacceptable”.

He said, “This is a huge and significant investment in Fife schools and for the response to be ‘we’ll get back to you’ is a second kick in the teeth to Fife communities who expected their local school to be upgraded.” Education spokesperson Cllr Bryan Poole confirmed that work has started on on the programme, planned over the next three financial years, with the first projects are expected on site by Easter 2015.

The new nursery at Lynburn is now out to tender, with work expected to start in April and completed by August for the start of the new school year.

Cllr Poole also hit out at Cllr Chapman, calling his statement “disingenuous” and “attempting to mislead the public”.

He said Cllr Chapman was advised at the education, social and communities scrutiny committee earlier this month that a report was being prepared for the executive committee.

He added, “If Douglas paid more attention and/or read reports he would know that part of the investment was earmarked for upgrading the IT provision in the receiving schools – this was agreed by executive committee in 2013.

“Our officers will be bringing forward the details for the remainder of the investment to an early meeting of the executive committee of Fife Council.

“The reality behind Cllr Chapman’s statement is of course his infatuation with trying to score petty political points which people who live in the real world are thoroughly fed up with.

“I’ve had the responsibility for Fife Council’s education portfolio for just over two-and-a-half years and all I’ve heard from Douglas is carping from the sidelines.

“I know he’s capable of more than this and I sincerely hope he knocks on my door sometime soon with some positive ideas thus using his talents in a more constructive way.”