The closure of a rural school is never a decision that should be taken quickly or lightly. It is very unlikely to reopen and its demise can rip the heart from a small community, especially if it is the only public building. Scottish Government proposals published yesterday for the country's 1000 rural schools are designed to ensure that the voices of parents and residents are given the hearing they deserve. They would confer what amounts to a legal presumption against closure.

New legislation ought to be unnecessary. On paper, local authorities are meant to consider local representations and the wider social ramifications of a closure. Some do. Others give the distinct impression that closure decisions are a fait accompli and consultations a sham. Information supplied to back decisions can be opaque or downright misleading, hampering objectors' ability to challenge arguments about sustainability. Under the new proposals, local authorities would be obliged to publish a consultation paper and justify the move on educational grounds.

This is a complex issue. Greater transparency and obliging councils to make a robust case for closure are to be welcomed, provided the bureaucracy involved is not disproportionately burdensome. It should bring all authorities in line with the best. However, it will not dispel arguments about closures because they are an emotive issue. Ultimately, what matters is the education on offer to children. Good small schools can give children a flying start educationally, while poor ones can blight their chances. That is why the involvement of school inspectors under these proposals makes good sense. If there is an educational case for closure but a social one for reprieve, education must take priority.

These changes should not, indeed must not, translate as those residents who shout loudest always getting what they want. Education authorities have to consider the whole school estate and a wide range of local circumstances before deciding how to discharge their responsibilities, within a set budget. There is a need for rationalisation, following a drop of 50,000 pupils in 10 years. It is too early to tell if recent immigration will alter this trend substantially. Crumbling elderly buildings with no disabled access may be unsustainable if there is a bright modern primary up the road.

Much will turn on where and how Scottish ministers come into the decision-making process. Education Secretary Fiona Hyslop has already demonstrated her intentions by reprieving two schools with tiny rolls.

Councils are justified in arguing that such meddling is not in the spirit of the concordat which froze council tax in return for an end to ring-fenced budgets. If the SNP believes in local democracy it should trust local authorities to deliver it. Keeping very small rural schools going is extremely expensive. Authorities obliged by the Scottish Government to sustain lots of schools with single-figure rolls would have their answers all prepared when ministers want to know why they cannot afford to meet government commitments on smaller class sizes for other primary children.