Teacher Numbers Maintained In Scotland

The Scottish Government's been taking the credit for new figures on schools

Figures out today show pupil teacher ratios are roughly the same as they were last year, although there's been a slight drop in teacher numbers.

The annual Summary Statistics for Schools in Scotland publication also shows that 84% of schools are in a good or satisfactory condition, compared to 61% in 2007. 

607 schools have been rebuilt or substantially refurbished over the last eight financial years.

The number of teachers in Scotland in September 2015 was 50,717 FTE. The figure for last year was 50,720

The class size in primary schools is broadly the same as last year (23.4 compared to 23.3 in 2014)

The pupil teacher ratio is the same as last year at 13.7.

The number of exclusions have dropped by 16% (18,430 last year, down from 21,955)

Commenting on the statistics during a visit to Trinity Primary School in Edinburgh, Education Secretary Angela Constance said:

"We want our young people to have the best education possible. Having the right number of quality teachers in world class school buildings is a key part of that.

"Thanks to the action we have taken to secure agreements with every local authority and committing a £51 million funding package, the number of teachers and the pupil teacher ratio in our schools have been maintained at last year's levels despite an increase in the number of pupils."