A KELTY based MSP is calling for a rethink on budget cuts to school budgets after raising the issue in the Scottish Parliament.

Alex Rowley, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, asked the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills, John Swinney, what support the Scottish Government could give to secondary school teachers being asked to make hundreds of thousands of pounds of cuts and was told the Scottish Government was making an additional £10 million available direct to Fife schools as well as an increase of £8.8million in the council budget.

Mr Rowley said: “The education of children is the greatest gift that one generation can pass on to another and never has education been so crucial for access opportunities and work.

"I find it unacceptable that high schools across Fife are being told they will have to cut hundreds of thousands of pounds out of their budgets this year and I cannot see how they can do this without having a detrimental impact on frontline education.

“I am asking Fife Council to explain why they are making these unacceptable levels of cuts to frontline education at a time when we are being told there is more money available for education. We also have a situation where frontline office staff in the primary schools have been put on 90 day notices with their jobs either changing or going. This will just put even more work onto overworked teachers”.

The Labour politician has written to the Executive Director of Education and the joint leaders of Fife Council asking them to reconsider the cuts to the frontline classroom and pupils.

The council has stated before that it has been making adjustments to education funding to ensure that schools are given the backing to provide good quality education at all levels.