I raised the concerns of teaching unions that there is a “lack of response and action” on disruptive pupil behaviour in Fife in a question to Education Secretary, Jenny Gilruth MSP, in the Scottish parliament.
I asked when the Education Secretary will move beyond plans and guidance and start to look at what resources are needed to address the issues of pupil behaviour in Fife Schools.
My question follows the recent publication of a survey conducted by the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS), which found that two thirds of surveyed teachers in Fife were considering leaving teaching as a result of disruptive, challenging, or violent pupils.
EIS Fife and Unison Fife raised their concerns over “the level of additional support needs in Fife that are not being addressed”, and the need for more pupil support assistants and additional support teachers, as well as improved pupil support services when he met with them this week.
The issue of escalating disruptive behaviour in Fife schools is something I have been raising and teachers have been raising with me for far too long now.
Despite the Education Secretary’s “relationship and behaviour summits” last year, it is clear that teachers still do not feel like they have the support they need to tackle disruptive, challenging or violent behaviour in the classroom.
It is not right that teachers are going to their workplaces and being subject to behaviour that is making them feel like they need to leave teaching in order to get away from the problem.
I note that the Cabinet Secretary did mention there has been an increase of 725 pupil support assistants across Scotland but with over 2,500 schools in Scotland, it is clear that this is not enough particularly if teachers are still concerned about the support available in the classroom and considering leaving the profession altogether.
The time for warm words is over – this is an issue, not just for Fife, but across Scotland. We need to see serious action.
I was pleased that the Cabinet Secretary recognised the joint responsibility for this situation between the Scottish Government and Fife Council and I urge her to work with Fife Council to take the action and provide the resources needed to tackle this problem before we lose more great teachers to this issue.
Transcript of question on Pupil Behaviour (Teacher Survey) (S6O-03959):
Alex Rowley
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Fife Council following the publication of an Educational Institute of Scotland survey showing that two thirds of surveyed teachers in Fife were considering leaving teaching as a result of disruptive, challenging or violent pupils. (S6O-03959)
The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills (Jenny Gilruth)
Our schools should be safe learning environments for all. Violence and abusive behaviour towards staff are unacceptable.
The member will be aware that the specific response to those findings is primarily a matter for Fife Council. However, my officials have raised the survey data with Fife Council directly, and I am advised that the council has been working constructively with the EIS locally to address the concerns.
The Government is committed to providing direction at a national level, too. In August, we published our national action plan on relationships and behaviour in schools, to which the EIS contributed. Yesterday, we launched updated guidance called “Respect for All”.
This week, I met EIS Fife and Unison Fife, which raised serious concerns about the lack of response and action. They highlighted the level of additional support needs in Fife that are not being addressed, and they said that more pupil support assistants and additional support teachers, as well as improved pupil support services, are needed. In many primary schools across Fife, class sizes are far too large. When will the cabinet secretary move beyond plans and guidance and start to look at what resources are needed to address the issues that trade unions are rightly highlighting?
I thank Mr Rowley for raising a really important point. He knows that, before I was elected in 2016, I was an employee of Fife Council, as a teacher, so I recognise some of the challenges.
I have details of the action that the local authority has committed to, which my officials have shared with me, and I would be more than happy to share that information with Mr Rowley. If he would like me to meet him and the EIS locally, I would be more than happy to engage with them on those issues.
Mr Rowley talked about resourcing challenges. It is worth putting on the record that the Government is spending record levels on additional support needs in this financial year and that we spent £926 million in the previous financial year alone. That has allowed local authorities, including Fife Council, to increase the number of pupil support assistants by 725 in the past year, and it is a key reason why the Government is so committed to protecting and maintaining teacher numbers. I must observe that, in the past year, Fife Council’s teacher numbers have reduced, despite that additionality coming from the Scottish Government.
We have to work with local authorities on improvements to Scottish education and on all the issues that Mr Rowley has raised, but I recognise that there are joint responsibilities in that regard. With the budget approaching, I am sure that Mr Rowley will be making some of those points in his negotiations with his party’s leadership. I would be more than happy to meet him to discuss what those improvements might be, recognising the need for the protection of education budgets. That has been the Government’s approach over many years.
