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The employment of teachers, includingthe type of contract offered, is a matter for local authorities. However, teacherworkforce planning is designed so that new teachers are completing their inductionyear at the volume needed to achieve a broad balance between supply and demand forteachers.

Inprevious years, surveys by the General Teaching Council have found that most newlyqualified teachers are in full-time positions by the middle of the autumn term.

The Scottish Executive has madeadditional funding of £50.3 million available to local authorities for the employmentof additional teachers to meet the target of a workforce of 53,000 by August 2007.This funding covers staffing costs for the end of school year 2006-07, and partyear costs for 2007-08.

Data relating to teachersbeginning Chartered Teacher programmes is not held centrally.

Chartered Teacher programmesare modular in nature and were designed so that steady progress can lead tofull qualification in about six years. At the moment prior learning can also beaccredited and most of those completing the programme have taken advantage ofthis to some extent.

Based on information fromthe General Teaching Council for Scotland, the numbers achieving full Chartered Teacher statusin each year since inception of the programme in August 2003 is as shown in thefollowing table.

Year	Number
2003	0
2004	37
2005	113
2006	242

 

A 24-hour helpline for peoplein emotional crisis is already well established through Samaritans. The ScottishGovernment supports Samaritans’ work in Scotland through core grant funding. Inaddition Choose Life (the implementationteam for the government’s strategy on suicide prevention) have provided fundingto enable Samaritans to develop a co-coordinated approach to suicide interventionin branches in Scotland. This funding has included support to Samaritans to recruitand train more volunteers, with specific training in suicide intervention trainingskills, and support to pilot a phone texting service which will be reviewed in November2007.

There are no plans to introducea separate service to meet the same needs.

The government also supportsa number of other initiatives which provide support to people in crisis or experiencinglow mood or depression. This includes the free Breathing Space telephone adviceline (open 6pm to 2am nightly; currently piloting extended hours to 6am at weekends).

In emergency situations the emergencyservices can be contacted on 999 for assistance, 24 hours a day.

Through Choose Life, suicideprevention training is being rolled out across Scotland; over 11,500 individualsin community and public service settings have been trained in suicide interventionand risk management skills in the last three years.

The information requested innot held centrally.

Funding for the previous administration’scommitment to reduce S1/S2 maths and English classes to a maximum of 20 is alreadyin place. We have no plans to reverse this commitment.

The information requested isgiven in Changes in the Agency and NDPB Landscape 1999 – 2007 a copy of whichhas been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 42836).

ScottishIntercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) Guideline 62 on Prophylaxis of Venous Thromboembolism (VTE)states that all patients admitted to hospital for major trauma, major surgery oracute medical illness should be assessed individually for risk of VTE. This guideline,which is about to be reviewed, is followed in surgical units throughout Scotland.

Other Guidelines relevant toVTE are SIGN 89 (Diagnosis and management of peripheral arterial disease,October 2006) and SIGN 36 (Anti Thrombotic Therapy, March 1999),which is currently under review. Prevention of VTE is also covered in guidelinessuch as that on Prevention and Management of Hip Fracture in Older People(January 2002).

This information is not heldcentrally.

We recognise the acute shortageof affordable homes that exists in many areas of Scotland and are committed to improvingthe supply and affordability of housing. We are developing a range of initiativesto achieve this objective and will be pursuing these over the coming months.

The Executive has been workingwith Irvine Bay Urban Regeneration Company and local partners, including North AyrshireCouncil, Communities Scotland and Scottish Enterprise Ayrshire, to assist in thedevelopment of comprehensive proposals for the regeneration of the Irvine Bay areaof North Ayrshire. These proposals will focus on both retaining the existing populationand also attracting new people to the area, by creating a vibrant area with a strongeconomy, a high quality of life and an enhanced environment.