The School Placings and Exclusions Appeals Committee of Aberdeenshire Council met on Tuesday 1 September 2026. The meeting was scheduled to consider two appeals related to school placements and exclusions.

Placing Appeal at Clerkhill Primary School

The committee was scheduled to consider a placing appeal for Clerkhill Primary School, identified as E 1058. Information relating to the adoption, care, fostering, education, or supervision of a particular child was to be discussed in relation to this appeal.

Exclusion Appeal at Balmedie Primary School

An exclusion appeal concerning Balmedie Primary School, identified as E1059, was also on the agenda. Similar to the placing appeal, this discussion was expected to involve information relating to the adoption, care, fostering, education, or supervision of a particular child.

Public Sector Equality Duty

The committee was scheduled to consider and potentially adopt a resolution regarding the Public Sector Equality Duty. This duty, as outlined in section 149 of the Equality Act 2010¹, requires public bodies to have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, harassment, and victimisation; advance equality of opportunity between those with and without protected characteristics; and foster good relations between those with and without protected characteristics. The protected characteristics include age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation. Members were to consider any Integrated Impact Assessments (IIAs)² provided, which would highlight potential differential impacts of decisions on different protected groups.

Meeting Procedure

The committee was also set to review the procedure for remote meetings, which were being conducted via Microsoft Teams. This included outlining the process for introductions, confirmation of attendees, and the step-by-step procedure for presenting cases, questioning witnesses, and summing up arguments for both the education authority and the appellant. The procedure also detailed how decisions would be communicated to parties involved.