Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee 10 December 2025
I wonder whether the committee would consider closing the petition under rule 15.7 of standing orders on the basis that the Scottish Government has not indicated that it will take forward the aims of the petition, and has stated that raising the school starting age and introducing a kindergarten stage would represent a fundamental change in the scope of education in Scotland and a significant structural change in the provision of education. There would be a number of significant delivery implications in raising the school starting age, including for the early learning and childcare school workforce, infrastructure, legislation and the curriculum framework, which would need to be fully analysed and costed.
It is therefore unlikely that the petition’s ask could be achieved at this point in the parliamentary session and the committee is limited in the actions that it can take to progress the petition in the time remaining in this session.