§ Mr. MaclennanTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what representations he has received about difficulties faced by school boards in meeting their statutory duty to approve school budgets prior to the start of the financial year.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonThe only statutory obligation on school boards in relation to school budgets is the duty imposed by section 9 of the School Boards (Scotland) Act 1988 to approve a headteacher's proposals as to how funds provided by the education authority for the purchase of books and other teaching materials should be spent. No representations have been received on this subject.
§ Mr. MaclennanTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he will take to ensure that information on resources allocated to a school in a financial year is available to the school's board prior to the start of that financial year.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonEducation authorities have a duty, under section 17(4) of the School Boards (Scotland) Act 1988 and the School Boards (Financial Information) (Scotland) Regulations 1990, to provide a budget statement to school boards by 5 April for the following financial year. I shall shortly be issuing guidelines for schemes of devolved school management which will involve further information on resources being made available to school boards.