The current minimum distance a mainstream secondary pupil must live from their catchment school is more than two miles, but because of budget pressures the proposal is to increase this to the required statutory limit set by the Scottish Government, which is more than three miles for children aged eight and over. However, the proposal will only affect secondary school pupils.

It should be noted that if the proposals are approved, the new statutory limits will not come into force until August 2025.

Parents can take part in the online survey which is now live.

Executive Director of Education Resources, Carole McKenzie, said: “The Executive Committee approved a statutory consultation on this matter.

“The option to consider is whether to continue providing the current level of service or a service more in keeping with the rest of Scotland.

“Pressures on the budget for Education, and indeed the wider council budget, means we have to consider all options. This is a result of severe financial constraints on the service.

“If we do proceed with this proposal, it means that the impact of budget cuts that directly affect pupils learning and classroom resources can be lessened.

“I understand that this proposal may cause some anxiety as we move forward with the consultation.

“It is important that everyone’s views are listened to and that is the purpose of the consultation.”

Any change would bring the local authority's policy in line with 19 of the 32 councils across Scotland.

More information is available on the council website.

A series of public meetings have also been planned for each of the four geographical areas of South Lanarkshire. More details on the dates and how to book a time slot is available on the council website.