Could there be a green eye shade and leather waistcoat in the welcome pack for a leafy suburb property in future? One of the reasons parents move into such areas is to secure a quality education for their children in a top-performing school. The popularity of such schools tends to mean that places are at a premium. There is already an element of gambling in buying into a leafy suburb if the property is not in the school catchment, if within the relevant local authority boundaries. In these circumstances, parents can make a placing request for a child or children and can appeal the decision of the council if it goes against them.

As The Herald reports today, the gambling element who secure a school place will become more significant if East Renfrewshire Council proceeds with proposals to introduce a lottery for places at one of its primary schools in Newton Mearns. To help meet the Scottish Government's targets for reducing class sizes to 18 in the first three years of primary schooling, the local authority has decided to reduce the intake of five-year-olds at Mearn Primary in the next academic year so that there will be fewer children in each class. This will mean there will be fewer places available in August.

This will affect the prospects of a place for children who live outside the school's defined catchment, even if they have siblings at the primary. East Renfrewshire says the pressure on places at the primary, which will be intensified by the decision to start cutting class sizes, left it with no option but to consider a lottery. If the proposal were implemented, it would be the first lottery of its kind in Scottish education. It will be a matter of regret if that moment comes to pass.

It will cause anger if it turns out that the proposal was drafted with one eye on forcing the SNP administration at Holyrood to provide the funding for more schools in East Renfrewshire and avoid a scenario that is out of kilter with the traditions of Scottish education. There is no evidence to show this to be the case, although a council spokesman has pointed out that the authority needs to be funded for the growing number of pupils in its schools.

East Renfrewshire schools are among the best in Scotland and are rightly recognised for their achievements. Securing a place should not depend on the luck of the draw for some children. It is not clear how the proposal would fit with the placing requests regulations and the criteria which determine the strength of a case. Also, there is the option of recourse to law if parents are unhappy about a decision. East Renfrewshire is in a situation most local education authorities can only dream of. Popularity brings its own problems. These will not be solved by playing politics with education or making the luck of the draw a criterion for a school place.