FOR a school to be successful it must have one vital ingredient above all others: a headteacher who does her or his best by and for the pupils and staff under their charge. Leadership entails challenging each young person to be the best they can, regardless of background or ability.

Perhaps Education Secretary John Swinney had these qualities in mind when he announced plans, out for consultation, to give headteachers more power and direct funding to support pupils from disadvantaged areas. The National Parent Forum of Scotland, in its response to the plans, questions whether they would raise standards. It also warns that they could worsen headteacher shortages as leaders would come under greater pressure.

Also, the plan to create educational regions could add to the bureaucratic burden on schools, parents warn; this at a time when the burden needs to be eased so that the focus can be placed on raising attainment, particularly among young people from poorer areas.

The forum’s submission is a valuable contribution to the debate about how best education should be managed and schools led to raise standards and give young people the best life chances regardless of background. The most effective headteachers would probably make the best use of new opportunities (it is no coincidence that their representative bodies welcome Mr Swinney’s plans) but they would need material support. Filling headteacher vacancies is becoming increasingly difficult in present circumstances without making the job even more challenging.

There is room for improvement in education, even allowing for legitimate reservations about the robustness of recent national and international assessments of attainment levels that did not show Scotland in the best light. Mr Swinney has tests to pass before he can make a convincing case for the plans he has outlined that are dividing opinion.