The Scottish Government is spending £2.7 million on school bags for children starting Primary One. I have some serious questions about whether that money could be better spent supporting their education.
Under the new Welcome to School Bags scheme, around 47,000 children each year will receive a backpack containing stationery, a water bottle and learning resources. The two-year contract, worth £1.35 million annually, has been awarded to Edinburgh-based APS Group.
I understand why the Government wants to help families with the cost of starting school. For many parents, particularly those struggling with household bills, every little helps.
But I also know, from my own experience as a parent and from speaking to teachers and families across the Highlands, that there are much bigger challenges facing our schools.
We have schools struggling to recruit teachers, concerns about the availability of pupil support assistants, pressure on classroom resources and school buildings that urgently need investment.
These problems can be particularly acute in our rural communities, where recruiting specialist teachers and providing additional learning support can be difficult.
That is why I am questioning whether spending nearly £30 per child on a school bag is the best use of limited education funding.
Imagine what £2.7 million could contribute towards if it were directed into our classrooms instead. Additional learning support, more books and teaching materials, or improvements to the facilities in which our children spend so much of their time.
Of course, £2.7 million would not solve all the problems facing Scottish education. But every spending decision tells us something about the Government’s priorities.
There is also a question about where the money is going. The bags themselves are reportedly being manufactured in China, despite the contract being awarded to an Edinburgh-based company. I would like to know what opportunities were considered to support Scottish manufacturing and businesses.
I am not against providing practical help to families. Far from it. But I want to see an education system where every child, whether they attend a large school in Inverness or a small rural primary on the Black Isle or in Strathspey has access to excellent teaching and the support they need.
Parents rightly expect us to focus on what happens inside the classroom, not simply what children carry into it.
That is where I believe our education spending priorities should lie.