THE attainment gap between the richest and poorest Scottish pupils should not be politicised, a former headteacher has said.

Frank Lennon, who held the top job at Dunblane High School, said that it was more important to get the job right than for politicians to look for success stories.

Now representing the right-leaning think tank Reform Scotland, Mr Lennon has written to Holyrood’s Education and Skills Committee ahead of discussions on education reform.

He said: “The First Minister’s declaration that she wishes to be judged on the extent to which the attainment gap is narrowed, however well-intentioned, has served only to politicise the debate about school reform even further by indicating that she intends to take personal credit for any progress made by schools.

“Given the low regard in which politicians continue to be held by the public, few teachers or headteachers will believe that she will publicly shoulder the blame for any failure.

“That the timescale is to include measuring progress within the lifetime of this parliament, further suggests politicisation since few if any headteachers would dream of making parliamentary terms part of the timeframe for any improvement at school level never mind something as important as tackling poverty-related attainment gaps.”

He welcomed the consultation on measuring the attainment gap but said evidence of sustained improvement would be "so far in the future as to be beyond the political lifetime of any currently serving politician".

He also criticised John Swinney's move to enhance the role of Education Scotland.

He said: “Leaving aside concerns over the leadership qualities of specific individuals, there are some weaknesses in how the implementation of change in the system is being led that are not being addressed.

“The Deputy First Minister’s recent decision that Education Scotland (ES), whose leadership of Curriculum for Excellence has been universally condemned (including by the OECD in their 2015 report), is to have an enhanced role following the recent Governance Review, is not only irrational and ill-advised but baffling.

“It is the educational equivalent of appointing the leadership of RBS responsible for its catastrophic financial collapse – from a share price of £6 in March 2007 to 11p 22 months later – not only to lead financially recovery, but to take on enhanced powers across a wider range of responsibilities.”

A Scottish Government spokesman said: “Local government funding to schools has been very fair and is increasing, despite the cuts to the Scottish budget from the UK Government.

"We want far more decisions on school funding to be in the hands of those with the expertise and insight to target resources at the greatest need – the schools themselves.

"That’s why we consulted on fairer funding for schools, as set out in Programme for Government, and we are committed to producing firm proposals by summer 2018.

“Our education reforms are focussed on giving schools and headteachers more power and money to raise standards and close the gap. They will deliver extra help for teachers in the classroom, more professional development and a stronger voice for parents and pupils.”