Dumfries and Galloway sees a rise in students requesting to switch schools

Education chiefs are concerned about the disruptions moving schools will have on their learning.

The Education board are seeing a sudden rise in students requesting school transfers
Author: Ruth RidleyPublished 16th Jan 2024

There has been a 65% increase in students seeking to be transferred schools.

From September 2022 and May 2023, 95 young people have requested to move to different schools.

This has sparked concern amongst education chiefs who are worried about managing the school changes and the disruption caused to the young person's learning.

The council's head of education, John Thin, says he's noticed the recent trend of pupils and families making these requests during term time and is worried about the potential affect it could have:

"This can be disruptive to the young person's education and causes significant challenges in managing the change of school for both the young person and the receiving school."

Thin will have a report ready for the education committee meeting next Thursday where he recommends amendments to admission policies for schools and the procedures for school transfers during the school year.

A transfer during the academic session can take as long as eight weeks except if it's for logistical reasons, such as moving outside the catchment area.