Current status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 28 May 2024
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of how early retirement has impacted the number of active teachers, and what steps are being taken to address any potential teacher shortages arising from any such trend.
The Scottish Government's annual teacher workforce planning process is informed by a statistical model which estimates the number of Initial Teacher Education students required to maintain teacher numbers. The model considers a number of inputs, including projections of the number of teachers retiring.
The Strategic Board for Teacher Education, which comprises a range of key education stakeholders, is also considering issues around the recruitment and retention of teachers in Scotland.
The Scottish Government is committed to protecting teacher numbers, and we are offering local authorities £145.5m in this year’s budget for that purpose. This funding will allow councils to protect teacher numbers in order to support children’s education.