Wendy Alexander MSPPaisley North
Briefing on Teachers/Pupils/Rolls in Renfrewshire
Summary
(1) Cash Position
(2) Teacher Numbers
(3) Falling Rolls
(4) Pupil Teacher Ratios
(5) Average Class Sizes
(6) Case Example
(7) Conclusion
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(1) Cash Position
The SNP are underfunding Education in Renfrewshire
The SNP Government in Edinburgh claim to have funded education to maintain teacher numbers. Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning, Fiona Hyslop:
“Under the concordat…sufficient funding has been provided to local government to maintain teacher numbers at 2007 levels which, at a time of falling school rolls, provides headroom to make progress on the joint commitment.”
But in Renfrewshire teacher numbers are falling sharply because Renfrewshire’s SNP-led administration has chosen to underfund education. In Renfrewshire Council’s budget under the SNP for 2009/10 education failed to get its fair share of cash coming to Renfrewshire. In both the 2008/09 and 2009/10 Renfrewshire budgets, large “efficiency savings” were forced on education – many of which hit the front line and led directly to the loss of teachers. The combined effect of the last two budgets is to take £8.6m (6.4+2.2) out of education budgets in 2009/10. This makes a mockery of the council leader’s claim that essentially no cuts are necessary:
“Scottish Government have provided the resources to ensure that a council tax freeze will have no adverse impact on frontline services.”
Derek McKay, Paisley Daily Express, 28th January 2009
The table below (click to enlarge) summarises how the SNP-led Council have chosen to deprive Renfrewshire’s education service of its fair share of Government funding:
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These figures are even worse when you factor in the changing treatment of debt by Renfrewshire Council. As Finance Secretary John Swinney himself argues in a letter to me, “this (debt support) has no effect on front-line service such as education” and so removing it from the 2008/09 and 2009/10 monies to Renfrewshire Council from the Scottish Government is therefore “a more accurate comparison” than the £10.6m in additional cash grant funding in 2009/10. So he argues,
“Renfrewshire Council will have an extra £26.4 million or 7.2% to spend on services in the coming year.”
Yet, we see that the Council have chosen not to give education its fair share, passing on just a 0.7% cash terms rise.
Whilst the Council leader is quick to highlight the record spend on education this year, the true consequence is that there is a real terms cut of 0.3% in the education budget for this year (click to enlarge):
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In short, the SNP’s school report in Renfrewshire is a disaster:
Teacher numbers – Failed
Class sizes of 18 – Failed
PE in school – Failed
Nursery school teachers – Failed
School building programme – Failed
The rest of this briefing focuses on the broken promises on teachers.
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(2) Teacher Numbers
In just one year (2007 to 2008) SNP have obliterated all progress made by Labour on Renfrewshire teacher numbers during last administration (2003 to 2007)
Labour increased the number of teachers by 74, SNP have cut by 83 already. At least a further 28 losses are planned.
Total cut since SNP took power has already reversed Labour’s 4 years of progress.
In the last year from Sept. 2007 to Sept. 2008 Renfrewshire has lost 122 teachers:
- 42 Primary School Teachers – (784 to 742)
- 79 Secondary School Teachers – (927 to 848)
- 1 Centrally Employed Teacher – (6 to 5)
- Pre-school and special school teacher numbers remained unchanged
Renfrewshire 3rd worst in absolute terms:
- Glasgow City lost 186
- Aberdeen City lost 140
- Renfrewshire lost 122
In % change terms, Renfrewshire is in the 3rd worst position; one of 3 Local Authorities axing 7% of teachers:
Amongst Secondary schools Renfrewshire ranks 2nd worst in % change terms
Amongst Primary schools Renfrewshire ranks 5th worst in % change terms
(Click to enlarge)
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Sources:
Scottish Parliament Research Services
Teachers in Scotland, 2008 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/School-Education/teacher-2008
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(3) Falling Rolls
School rolls in Renfrewshire have been consistently falling for past decade. The real difference between Labour and the SNP is Labour raised teacher numbers despite falling school rolls and the SNP are cutting them.
- SNP in Renfrewshire claim that falling school rolls require fewer teachers.
- This contradicts SNP Government line which is falling rolls should be used to deliver smaller classes.
- The drop in total school rolls from 2007 to 2008 is just 1.8% whilst teacher numbers have fallen by a whopping 6.7% (click to enlarge):
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Sources:
Pupils in Scotland, 2008 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2009/04/01090908/63 table 5.2
Teachers in Scotland, 2008 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/School-Education/teacher-2008 table 6.1
School rolls are falling less steeply under the SNP than they did under Labour. By end of SNP term primary and secondary school rolls will be down by approximately 5%.
(Click to enlarge)
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* Projection available from: Revision of Pupils Educated Outwith School and Pupil Projections, 2008 http://openscotland.gov.uk/Publications/2009/01/06145342/0
Sources:
Pupils in Scotland, 2008 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2009/04/01090908/0
Pupils in Scotland, 2007 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/07/28100032/0
Pupils in Scotland, 2004 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/04/11114958/51360
Teachers in Scotland, 2007 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/03/18093809/0
Teachers in Scotland, 2005 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2006/03/28083648/74
Teachers in Scotland, 2008 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/School-Education/teacher-2008
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(4) Pupil Teacher Ratios
Overall pupil teacher ratios in Renfrewshire are now the 2nd worst in Scotland and the worst in Scotland for secondary schools. This deterioration has happened since SNP came to power.
The worst rankings for overall pupil teacher ratios are as follows:
1) East Ayrshire – 14.6
2) Renfrewshire – 14.4
3) South Lanarkshire – 14.1
4) East Lothian – 14
The biggest risers were:
1) Renfrewshire – up 7 (to 14.4)
1) West Dunbartonshire – up 7 (to 13)
3) East Ayrshire – up 6 (to 14.6)
3) Aberdeen City – up 6 (to 13)
Scottish average remained stable at 13.1.
Renfrewshire now has the worst secondary school pupil teacher ratios in Scotland:
1) Renfrewshire – 13 (up from 12.1)
2) South Lanarkshire – 12.8
3) Fife – 12.5
Scottish average remained stable at 11.8
Source:
Teachers in Scotland, 2008 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/School-Education/teacher-2008 tables 6.2 and 8.2
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(5) Average Class Sizes
The SNP manifesto promised to reduce P1 to 3 class sizes to a maximum of 18. In Renfrewshire the SNP have not even attempted to keep this promise.
- Renfrewshire SNP plan to reduce P1 and 2 class sizes not to a maximum of 18, but to 25.
Note: although the SNP may employ more teachers to meet pledge of P1 and 2 maximum class sizes of 25 – they are forcing 19 existing teachers in the pre-5 sector to accept either forced redeployment to the primary sector or to take voluntary redundancy. (Currently 39 FTE pre-5 teachers, December 2008 Education Board agreed to 20 FTE in future).
- They have also abandoned Labour’s target to keep S1 and 2 English and Maths class sizes below 20 – the most critical subjects at the start of secondary school.
- Ironically, many average class sizes in Renfrewshire are now rising again after years of decline under Labour.
In the last year 2007-2008, average class sizes have risen under the SNP for P1, P3, P5 and in composite classes.
(Click to enlarge)
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Compared to when Labour left office in May 2007, average class sizes in P3, P4, P5 and in composite classes have risen.
(Click to enlarge)
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Sources:
Pupils in Scotland 2008: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2009/04/01090908/0 table 6.6
Pupils in Scotland 2007: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/07/28100032/0 table 6.6
Pupils in Scotland 2006: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/02/27083941/0 table 6.6
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(6) Case Example
The Scotsman, 25th March 2009: “Number of Scots teachers plunges by 1,000”
“KEN McDermott wanted to make a difference when he quit the electronics industry after 16 years to retrain as a teacher.
After gaining his postgraduate teaching qualification from Glasgow University in 2007, he enjoyed a year as a probationary physics teacher in a secondary school in his home town of Paisley.
But at the end of that year, when he became a fully registered teacher, the work dried up for the 43-year-old.
’Between August and December last year, I had just two days work in a school,’ he said.
’I was led to believe physics was an in-demand subject, and that’s very far from the truth.’
Mr McDermott was one of thousands of people attracted to the profession by a guaranteed year of work. However, after that year, there is no guarantee of employment and councils turn to the new cohort of probationers to fill posts.
Mr McDermott has now returned to work for his former employer in the electronics industry.”
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(7) Conclusion
The SNP Government say their policy is for councils to use falling rolls to cut class sizes. This is not happening in Renfrewshire. Instead teachers are being cut faster than rolls are falling.
Even for Renfrewshire to maintain pupil teacher ratios at the level when Labour left office in 2007 (see Fiona Hyslop quote above) requires more teachers in primary and secondary schools than there are in Renfrewshire after the recent cuts.
To maintain primary school pupil teacher ratio in 2008 at 2007 levels the number of teachers could fall by just 14 from 784 to 770 (due to falling school rolls). Yet, 42 teachers have been lost so the ratio has risen to 17.2.
To maintain secondary school pupil teacher ratio in 2008 at 2007 levels the number of teachers could fall by just 18 from 927 to 909 (due to falling school rolls). Yet, 79 teachers have been lost so the ratio has risen to 13.