Council rejects controversial school census

Orkney Islands Council has taken the decision not to take part in the Scottish Government’s controversial health and wellbeing census, which asks children as young as 14 questions about their sexual experiences.

While it intends to consider the national findings from the census when they are released, in the meantime, the council says it is opting for “a local approach to help us better understand the wellbeing of young people in Orkney.”

Last December, the census sparked criticism from some politicians and parents nationwide, over concerns about the explicit nature of some of the questions, and how privacy will be handled.

The questions behind the controversy ask pupils, in a multiple-choice format, what types of sexual acts they have performed. It also asks how many people they have had sexual intercourse with in the past 12 months, whether they use contraception, and what age they were when they first had sex.

Other topics include their attitude to school, their sleep pattern, their physical or mental health condition, their social media and online experience, their use of alcohol (S2 pupils and above), their use of drugs (S4 pupils and above), and their career planning.

While the Scottish Government says that the census is used for “statistical and research purposes only,” it also says that the identity of a respondent would be sought in rare circumstances, using their Scottish Candidate Number, if action was needed to help that individual.

Last month, it was reported in The Orcadian that OIC was yet to reach a decision on the census, and that the opinions of elected members were being sought.

Asked for an update, a spokeswoman from the council said that the local authority has decided not to take part.

“Having considered the census in detail, and taking soundings across the community, it has been decided that Orkney will not be participating,” she said.

“We will review the national findings when they are published but in the meantime we are considering a local approach to help us better understand the wellbeing of young people in Orkney.”