PARENTS in Scotland would be able to ask for a Gaelic school to be established in their area if fresh legislation is given the green light.
Under the plans in the Scottish Languages Bill, councils would be required to assess if the request was practical and affordable.
After taking advice, ministers may direct local authorities to proceed with the establishment of a new Gaelic school if the authority's assessment considers it to be viable.
Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic Kate Forbes set out the measures on a visit to Bun-Sgoil Ghàidhlig Inbhir Nis, a Gaelic primary school in Inverness, alongside Scotland's first Gaelic-speaking Makar Dr Peter Mackay.
Forbes said: “This bill aims to build a strong foundation to support Gaelic’s continued growth following an encouraging increase in Gaelic speakers and learners across Scotland.
"It would boost Gaelic education provision throughout Scotland and better establish Gaelic and Scots as national languages.
“Gaelic medium education enriches communities and offers good value for money. Gaelic medium schools frequently demonstrate above average performance with some local authorities showing better grades across all qualification levels despite costs being no greater than English medium schools.
“To support the growth of Scotland’s indigenous languages, we are also providing an additional £5.7 million to promote Scots and Gaelic this year.”
The bill also includes provisions for establishing Gaelic and Scots as official languages and enabling parents in every part of Scotland to apply for Gaelic nursery and early years places for their children.
Census statistics show that 130,161 people in Scotland had some Gaelic skills in 2022, an increase of 43,105 people from 2011.
Meanwhile, the census shows that 2,444,659 people in Scotland had some Scots skills in 2022, an increase of 515,215 from 2011.
Stage 3 of the bill is expected to be considered next week on Tuesday, June 17.
Mackay said: “It’s fantastic to have seen the growth of Gaelic medium education over the last 40 years: it’s something we should be very proud of.
"It’s vital that there’s ongoing support to maintain and develop Gaelic as a community language in the Highlands and Islands and to give people all over the country every chance to learn and speak it – and also to encourage Scots speakers and communities across Scotland."
