St Cuthbert’s School Structural Problem: 180 Pupils Moved Mid-Term

When the kids have left the school, a certain kind of silence descends upon the building. Now, if you walk by St Cuthbert’s RC Primary in Slateford on a weekday morning, you’ll notice that the building appears to be in perfect condition from the outside. There are no foot scuffs on the pavement, no parents fussing at the gate, just the low hum of traffic on Slateford Road. That’s what’s unnerving. From the street, it is impossible to see what is wrong with it.

The City of Edinburgh Council called the closure, which took place on March 24, a “precautionary measure.” Councils use this kind of cautious wording when they want to act swiftly without coming across as alarmed. It was decided to close the building for the remainder of the academic year after structural problems were discovered inside.

Suddenly, about 180 students lost their classrooms. Strangely, the nursery has remained open, a minor detail that begs more questions than it provides answers regarding the precise nature of the issue.

The logistics have moved quickly. About 100 younger students in grades one through four were transferred to St. Peter’s Primary School, which is about two miles away. For the duration of the term, the older students—those in primary five through seven—have been integrated into St. Augustine’s RC High School. On paper, transportation between the original site and the temporary ones seems simple, but any parent who has attempted to arrange morning drop-offs with a bus schedule will attest that it rarely feels that way in reality.

The public-facing position has been assumed by James Dalgleish, the council’s convener for education, children, and families. He struck the tone that councils typically aim for in these circumstances, acknowledging inconvenience, putting safety first, and thanking families for their patience, in an interview with BBC Scotland. “Our priority is the health, safety and wellbeing of children in our care, and staff who work in the school,” he stated. It’s the right thing to say. It’s also what’s expected of you. It has been more difficult to extract what parents genuinely want to know, such as what was discovered, how serious it is, and whether August is a realistic target.

Listening to council updates gives the impression that information is being disseminated gradually rather than all at once. That is not out of the ordinary. Details of structural surveys are rarely made public by local authorities while contractors are still evaluating them. However, it does put families in a somewhat uncomfortable position because they have to trust that the work will be finished by August without fully understanding what that work entails.

In a more general sense, Edinburgh has experienced this before. The 2016 Edinburgh Schools crisis, which resulted in the closure of seventeen schools following the collapse of a wall at Oxgangs Primary, had a lasting impact on the city’s infrastructure. Even though the situation at St. Cuthbert’s seems to be contained and managed thus far, it is difficult to ignore the parallel.

The kids are settling in for the time being. Teachers are changing. The structure is waiting. It is unclear whether August will see a simple reopening or yet another round of delays.