Highland Council slammed for food, breaks and welfare area proposal while school kids eat in car parks
A body set-up to reform how Highland Council operates has been slammed for a proposal to develop a “staff welfare area” at the Inverness HQ while school kids at two huge local academies are forced to take lunch in the “car park and in the street”.
The revelation stemmed from a question by Lib Dem opposition leader Alasdair Christie who wanted to know how many secondary schools cannot provide a “sheltered, dry, warm, and safe space” for pupils to eat lunch.
He also wanted to know whether that was due “having to provide space for too many children over the lunch time period together” and “how many children are being affected.
He was referring to this proposal from the board: “Options are being considered to create a staff welfare area in Headquarters to provide a space to have breaks, eat food, socialise, or have informal meetings.
“These options may include a main canteen, individual breakout spaces, vending machines, or a coffee shop set up that will enhance staff experience and better support hybrid working”
The response from the council leader Raymond Bremner, who is vice chairman of the redesign board, was that it would take until the new year to provide a list “given the varied arrangements that exist for each secondary school”.
Cllr Christie then wanted to know what the council leader’s message is to so many kids at Culloden and the Inverness Royal Academy who have to take lunch outside, either on the street or in car parks.
Cllr Bremner said: “The message for anybody who is caught up in this question is – we are going to have a look at that and look at the issues in each of the schools and we are going to come back with a programme and actually deal with it.”
