Several centres for outdoor and residential education - traditionally a major part of a schooling in Scotland - have warned that coronavirus could put them out of business.
Four charities that run six national outdoor and residential education centres have written to Scottish education secretary John Swinney, warning that the lockdown could make the centres disappear “for good”.
The charities - Scouts Scotland, Girlguiding Scotland, The Boys’ Brigade in Scotland, and Outward Bound Trust in Scotland - say in their letter that the financial impact of the lockdown on their centres, which hosted over 42,000 young people last year, has been “immense”.
However, they say if they get the support they need they could play a crucial role in rebuilding young people’s confidence post-lockdown - as well as helping schools to deliver social distancing when they reopen.
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In the letter to Mr Swinney, who is also deputy first minister, the charities say: “Due to the current Covid-19 pandemic and following government guidance, all of our centres have had to be closed for the foreseeable future. We have projected loss of income of millions of pounds from these closures, with no real idea of when we can open again.
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“The reality is that outdoor and residential centres were already struggling in Scotland before this crisis, with many losing funding and closing their doors. Without serious stabilisation and resilience funding, these centres will be forced to close for good, leaving children in Scotland with a significant loss of opportunity for outdoor education and residential experiences that is well known to be hugely important to their development.”
The charities say that many outdoor and residential centres are not eligible for any support other than the UK government’s furlough scheme.
They argue that, if funding is made available, as well as playing a part in rebuilding young people’s confidence and improving their mental health and wellbeing post-lockdown, they can provide some of the advice and additional space schools will need to deliver social distancing.
The Scottish government has said that it is “inconceivable” that the entire pupil population will return to school “in one go” when schools do reopen.
However, there are concerns about how it will be possible to deliver social distancing in schools - especially among younger pupils.
In a Tes poll of more than 18,000 UK school staff, 74 per cent said social distancing in UK schools was “impossible”.
The charities, however, argue they could advise schools on taking “learning outdoors within their own spaces” and also make their centres - which have “a large amount of outdoor and indoor space” - available to schools and local authorities “to expand the space available to them for learning”.
They conclude: “The Scottish government has always committed to Scotland being the best place in the world for a young person to grow up and the value placed on outdoor education and residential experiences is crucial to this. We need significant support now, through and after this pandemic, to deliver this vital work in the future.”
