Question reference: S5W-32666
- Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 20 October 2020
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Current status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 9 November 2020
Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what action it is taking to prevent residential outdoor learning centres from closure, and how much it is allocating in Barnett consequentials towards this.
Answer
The Scottish Government is taking a range of steps to prevent residential outdoor education centres from closure and to ensure that they can work with schools to provide valuable outdoor learning experiences for learners. On 22 October 2020, we announced a £2m fund to support the sector. A suitable organisation is being appointed to administer the fund. We are engaging with representatives from the sector in order to ensure that funding awards are made as soon as possible. In addition, we will be issuing a package of communications materials to schools in order to clarify the support that can be arranged at the current time, and to signpost them to the centres in their area.
No specific allocation was made from Barnett consequentials towards this fund. Funding from additional consequentials from the UK government is allocated as part of a broader budgeting process which included reprioritisation of funding from work that has been delayed as a result of the pandemic.