Perth and Kinross Council has said lessons will be learned after parents complained about its consultation procedures during a feud over a school extension.
Education officers were accused of presiding over a “fait accompli” at a planning and development committee meeting earlier this month as councillors waved through plans to build on part of Rattray Primary playground.
Rattray Primary School Parent Council members said their complaints had fallen on deaf ears as they detailed the outcome of meetings with officers during the consultation process.
Parents now say they will be taking steps to prevent other families experiencing the kinds of problems they encountered during the consultation.
Claire Galloway, chairwoman of the Rattray Primary School Parent Council, said: “We are looking at what we can do.
“Hopefully we can change whatever process is in place so this doesn’t happen again.
“Lessons need to be learned.
“The work is supposed to start next month.
“It’s going to be an awful time. All the playground activities are going to suffer.”
A spokesperson for Perth and Kinross Council said: “The issue of consultation regarding the proposed expansion of nursery provision at Rattray Primary School was considered by the council as part of an investigation into a formal complaint from Rattray Primary School Parent Council in 2018.
“A detailed response to the complaint was provided to the parent council on 21 December 2018.
“In that response, we indicated that our approach to consultation on projects of this nature in the future would be reviewed, based on the learning from this situation.”
A Blairgowrie SNP councillor has also apologised for his actions during the planning committee after attempting to intervene on the parents behalf.
Tom McEwan, who was observing from the public gallery, interrupted the meeting to defend the parent council’s position that talks had completely broken down between it and education officers.
Mr McEwan said: “It was a spur of the moment decision to speak up at the committee and with hindsight it is one which I regret.
“I now understand also that my comments regarding accounts of meetings held at the school have caused officers distress.
“I wish to be very clear that I have full confidence in our council officers.
“More importantly, it was never my intention upset anyone and I apologise unreservedly for this.”
Mr McEwan stepped in after Ewan Lister, a representative from the parent council, told the planning committee education officers had tried to railroad through the proposal against families’ wishes.
A representative from the education committee had admitted that at least one of the meetings had “gone around in circles” before being abandoned.
