Concerns over the lack of space in Robroyston schools have been raised by a mum whose daughter won’t be able to attend class with her friends when term restarts.

Lynsey Kane claims that too many family homes have been built in the area in recent years, meaning there are not enough primary or secondary schools to cope with the demand and families are having to put in placing requests or send their children further afield.

Lynsey’s daughter Lilly, who is 12 next February, has just finished Wallacewell Primary and will be going to Smithycroft Secondary School after her placing request for All Saints was refused. 

Despite Smithycroft being the catchment school for Wallacewell, Ms Kane is worried about her daughter having to rely on a public bus service which she claims only operates once an hour and is unreliable. 

A total of 36 parents from Wallacewell made a placing request on behalf of their children to other schools, of these 11 were granted and 25 refused.

Glasgow City Council has confirmed that of the 25 refused requests, 24 were from All Saints. 

Ms Kane said: “I think what needs to be highlighted is the wider problem in the Robroyston area that they are continuing to build more houses but not actually provide any amenities for the kids.

“The closest high school for Robroyston is All Saints which is a Roman Catholic school – the closest non-denominational school is Smithycroft which is a 40-minute walk and is only serviced by the number eight bus which only operates once every hour.”

Lynsey also applied for a place at Turnbull High School but was advised Lilly would be put on a waiting list as they could not accommodate her.

Ms Kane added: “Lilly is in a position where she is being separated from her friends and having to travel to her new school on her own.

“The new houses that are being built in the area are family homes and it is not like single people are going to be moving into them. 

“She has a younger brother who is at Wallacewell Primary and I know I am going to have the same fight on my hands in a few years’ time when he goes to secondary school. The situation is only going to get worse.”

Local councillor Thomas Rannachan says the new homes are straining the community which has led to a lack of proper schooling in the area.

Councillor Rannachan said: “The awful experience Ms Kane and her daughter Lilly are enduring with the school placement process just further highlights how such a centralised approach from Holyrood clearly doesn’t work. 

“All that it has achieved is in creating a level of anxiety no one, especially a young girl about to start high school, should have to endure. A people-centred approach must be adopted and this process rewritten.

“Robroyston is soon to be (if not already) the largest postal code region in Glasgow but lacks almost all of the facilities such a development requires for those who live there. The next wave of housing is well underway which will bring some 1600x new homes (up to 5-bed houses) bringing literally thousands more residents to the area putting immense strain on an already stretched community. 

“The case in question proves that families are having to look outside of Glasgow to satisfy their schooling needs, but the centralised and broken placement system doesn’t support this issue neither does the lack of proper schooling within the area.”

Glasgow City Council’s transport department has been working to identify safe routes to school including public buses for families.

A spokeswoman for the local authority added: “We know that placing request refusals are upsetting for families but when our schools are at capacity, we are left with no option but to follow the statutory placing request criteria to make the process fair and equitable to everyone in the city.

“Unfortunately there is no guarantee when submitting a placing request.”