Monday March 30th 2026
Lasswade High School. Photo Credit Lee Live.
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Marie Sharp
A multimillion pound project to provide Midlothian pupils with remote lessons has been put on hold for another year after union bosses opposed the plans.
The digital campus aims to offer senior pupils the chance to take part in lessons online rather than having to travel to another school campus.
However teaching union the EIS says it is ‘strongly opposed’ to any plans to expand online learning which it says could lead to the replacement or ‘devaluing’ of a classroom teacher.
A meeting of Midlothian Council’s SNP administration cabinet earlier this month heard the ongoing dispute means the digital classes, which have been at the centre of dispute since March last year, are unlikely to be included in the next curriculum year starting in August.
Elected members were told that the dispute comes from national terms and conditions for teachers which do not mention digital learning and, therefore, cannot be introduced,
Michelle Strong, the council’s chief education operating officer, said: “The union position is very much because digital isn’t explicit in the teachers terms and conditions learning cannot happen beyond the classroom.
“What I have always maintained is that although digital may be silent, we have a duty to prepare our young people for the world they are going into which is very much digital.
“Also outdoor learning which is part of any school isn’t explicit in teachers terms and conditions but it is an accepted and adopted approach that all schools have to adhere to.”
Ms Strong told the meeting that attempts had been made to outsource the digital lessons by advertising for six new teachers to take on the posts but that had also hit a barrier because the terms and conditions at the centre of the dispute were national and applied to all teaching staff.
Councillors expressed their concern at the union’s approach and delay to the introduction of the scheme.
Ellen Scott, cabinet spokesperson for education, said: “Everyone knows that equipping our children with the skills they will need in the future is imperative and our young people are being affected now.
“Smaller secondary schools just do not have the capacity to offer the wide range of courses as the larger ones, as well as a lack of maths teachers and others.
“Parents are complaining about the need for transport to other schools or the lost study time walking between the different campuses and I feel our children are being held back because of this lack of resolution. I want to share my commitment to the digital campus and its implementation and the millions of pounds Midlothian Council has invested in this digital technology.
“We have been ahead of the field and it is a great shame it is being held back.”
Fellow cabinet member Dianne Alexander added: “I am really disappointed to hear the teaching unions are not on board with this. It is missing a great opportunity and stops teachers spreading their excellence in teaching. It gives teachers so much opportunity to teach to a wider audience and I cannot see why there are so many barriers to it.”
However a spokesperson for the EIS said the union was clear face to face education was the most effective way to teach.
They said: “The EIS strongly believes that effective learning and teaching is best delivered in-person, by GTCS-registered teachers in a classroom setting.
“We strongly oppose any expansion of online learning options that would lead to the replacement or devaluing of the role of the classroom teacher in delivering quality learning, teaching and assessment within classrooms or other physical learning environments as appropriate to learner needs.
“While online learning has been deployed on a limited basis in exceptional circumstances in the past, such as during the Covid pandemic, the EIS remains clear that learning and teaching occur most effectively when teachers and pupils work together face to face in classrooms, and that online learning is no substitute for face to face in school delivery – in style, approach or hours of delivery.”
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