Chamber and committees

Last month concluded a series of summits I held with a wide range of stakeholders on behaviour in schools. The Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research was also published and considered as part of the final summit, which set out that while the majority of pupils are well behaved there has been an increase in disruptive behaviours.

I was clear in my statement to Parliament on 29 November that I encourage local authorities and schools to consider their policies in the light of the findings of BISSR.

To support local authorities and schools, we published guidance in June 2017 - ‘ Included, Engaged and Involved – Part 2 – preventing and managing school exclusions’ . This guidance gives a stronger focus on supporting positive behaviour and approaches that can be used to prevent the need for exclusion. The guidance sets out an expectation that education authorities and schools will use the guidance to revise and review existing policies and procedures on exclusion, taking account of local circumstances and involving all partners in the development of the new policy.

Education Scotland has also published a resource to support schools or local authorities who are refreshing or reviewing their relationships and behaviour policies. This guidance on developing a local relationships and behaviour policy is available at Guidance for developing a local relationships and behaviour policy (education.gov.scot) .

Finally, we are currently working with the Scottish Advisory Group for Relationships and Behaviour in Schools to develop a national action plan on relationships and behaviour which we expect to be published early in the new year. We will update parliament on the action plan in due course.

The Scottish Government is committed to protecting learning hours in Scottish schools. We are carefully considering the responses to the consultation on learning hours that closed earlier this year. We will publish our analysis of the consultation and engage further with stakeholders, including COSLA, on next steps in due course.

I was invited to attend the November meeting of the Anti-Racism in Education Programme Board. I did attend, and met with Programme Board members, commending the work they have undertaken to date and reiterating that there is no place for discrimination or prejudice in our schools.

The Scottish Government is currently considering the findings of the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research and outputs from the relationships and behaviour summits, which will inform the actions that are included in the national action plan. This will include consideration of what further support local authorities may require. The national action plan will be developed in collaboration with the Scottish Advisory Group on Relationships and Behaviour in Schools and we expect it to be published early in the new year.

Education Scotland have already published a suite of practical materials to support schools and authorities, developed with teachers, on areas such as expectations and consequences, available at: Promoting positive relationships and behaviour in educational settings | Resources | Education Scotland

Education Scotland will continue to develop practical materials to support teachers’ professional learning needs and practice, including those which form part of the behaviours and relationships theme of its professional learning framework. These resources have been developed using the core funding received from the Scottish Government for the functions of Education Scotland.

In my statement to Parliament on 29 November, I confirmed that we will develop a multi-year plan to tackle instances of challenging behaviour, working with local authorities, trade unions and others.

We are committed to working with trade union partners on developing this national action plan. I hosted a productive roundtable meeting with trade unions on 6 December 2023, with a focus on behaviour. The national action plan will be developed in collaboration with the Scottish Advisory Group on Relationships and Behaviour in Schools (SAGRABIS), which includes representatives from all the main teaching unions. My aim is to publish the plan as soon as possible in the new year.

I have made it absolutely clear that our schools should be safe and consistent learning environments for all, and that violent and abusive behaviours towards pupils or staff is unacceptable.

I have recently concluded a series of relationships and behaviour summit events, which engaged widely. Participants in these events included teachers, support staff, teaching unions, local authorities, parents, children’s organisations, academics, community justice and violence reduction organisations, and a spectrum of third sector organisations. Details of the summits, including organisations represented, can be found here Health and wellbeing in schools - Schools - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

Our research into Behaviour in Scottish Schools report published on the 28 November 2023. The findings from this research, and the outcomes from the discussions at the summit events, will be used to inform the development of a national action plan. This national action plan will be developed in collaboration with the Scottish Advisory Group on Relationships and Behaviour in Schools, which I chair jointly with COSLA’s Children and Young Person spokesperson, and membership includes representatives from unions, education, and parents and carers. We will publish the plan as soon as possible in the new year.

We look forward to continuing our engagement as we develop out action plan to help make a difference on this issue.

The 2021 Programme for Government included a commitment to review Allied Health Professions (AHP) Education in 2022. To deliver on this, the Scottish Government worked in collaboration with a wide range of partners including the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, the professional body for Speech and Language Therapists in the UK. The Review has now been completed and recommendations were published reporting a number of short, medium and long terms actions needed to address workforce and education challenges, including the development of ‘earn and learn’ routes to become an AHP in Scotland.

An advisory group has been established to oversee the effective implementation of the recommendations and the first meeting was held on 9 October 2023. The group will be chaired by Carolyn McDonald, Chief Allied Health Professions Officer who will report progress towards the implementation of the recommendations to the Chief Nursing Officer and Scottish Ministers as required.

The Scottish Government is currently considering the findings of the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research and outputs from the relationships and behaviour summits which, will inform the actions that are included in the national action plan. This will include consideration of what further support local authorities may require. The national action plan will be developed in collaboration with the Scottish Advisory Group on Relationships and Behaviour in Schools and we expect it to be published early in the new year.

I was clear in my statement to Parliament on 29 November that I encourage, in the strongest possible terms, more accurate recording of all incidents of inappropriate, abusive or violent behaviour in our schools. Recording and monitoring plays an essential role in helping schools identify recurring patterns of behaviour and ensuring early intervention and appropriate support.

Our national guidance on monitoring and recording incidents of bullying in schools makes clear that all schools and local authorities are expected to record all incidents of abusive or violent behaviour. The Scottish Government is currently considering this guidance as part of the review into the national anti-bullying guidance, ‘Respect for All’. In particular, updates to this guidance will be informed by the forthcoming second phase of Education Scotland’s thematic inspection looking at good practice in responding to bullying. Updated Respect for All Guidance will be published in 2024.