The number of schools in Scotland sharing a headteacher has risen sharply, according to figures highlighted by the Scottish Conservatives.
The figures supplied by education secretary Jenny Gilruth - in response to a written question from her Tory opposite number - reveal that while 134 schools shared a head with at least one other school in 2007, that number had grown to 469 by 2023.
Miles Briggs, the Conservatives’ shadow education secretary, said the “dramatic and alarming rise” compromised the ability of headteachers to provide the leadership that schools required.
He added that parents would be concerned that this could impact the standard of schooling, and said it was evidence of the SNP’s “chronic mismanagement” of Scottish education.
Schools sharing headteachers
Mr Briggs said: “It stands to reason that heads responsible for more than one school cannot give both the same level of attention and strategic leadership they would if they were in charge of only one.
“Yes, there will be some situations where a shared headteacher make sense, but in most cases it is detrimental to schools and pupils.”
Concerns have been expressed in recent years that it is difficult to attract applications for primary headteacher roles, partly because, despite all of the extra responsibility, the extra pay for the role in Scotland is viewed as relatively small.
One case often made by local authorities - over many years - for headteachers working across more than one school is that this means there are fewer “teaching heads” who carry a heavy burden of both leadership and classroom duties.
Earlier this week the Scottish Conservatives said the school leaving age should be lowered to 14 or 15.
A Scottish government spokesperson said: “Local authorities are responsible for the recruitment and deployment of teachers and headteachers, which meets local needs and circumstances.
“Ministers expect councils to consult with the local community before undertaking changes to school staff approaches, such as shared headships, to ensure that they are providing the very best outcomes for young people.
“The Scottish government is increasing funding to local authorities to £186.5 million this year as part of an agreement with [local authorities body] Cosla to restore teacher numbers to 2023 levels, as well as freezing learning hours and making meaningful progress on reducing class-contact time.”
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