Concerns have been raised about support for pupils with additional support needs (ASN) after figures showed that the number of specialist teachers in Scotland fell by more than 1,000 in a decade.
The data shows that, in 2019, schools employed the full-time equivalent (FTE) of 2,836 specialist additional support needs (ASN) teaching staff, down from 3,887 in 2010.
Scottish government figures show that last year, 215,897 pupils - 30.9 per cent of the total number - were recorded as needing additional support, up from 199,065 in 2018.
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The Scottish Green Party - which received the data in an answer to a parliamentary question - said there is now only one specialist teacher for every 76 ASN pupils.
Teacher support for ASN pupils
Scottish Greens education spokesman Ross Greer said today: “Thousands of children in Scotland with additional needs are being failed.
“I have raised this with the government time and again over a number of years, but the picture still is not improving.”
Mr Greer said: “Specialist teachers are essential to supporting pupils with additional needs but they are gradually disappearing from our schools, at the same time as demand skyrockets.
“We know already that this lockdown is disproportionately hard for young people with additional needs and for their families, with a real risk that the attainment gap will be widened.
“As well as the need for urgent support, the Scottish government must ensure that when schools do return to normal, it is a new normal where those with additional support needs are given a far fairer opportunity to learn than they have been this past decade.”
A spokesperson for the Scottish Children’s Services Coalition (SCSC), which campaigns to improve services for vulnerable children and young people, said: “It is vital that those with ASN get the care and support they need, especially during and as we come out of the current Covid-19 crisis.”
The SCSC raised concerns that the educational attainment gap will “inevitably widen” during lockdown.
The coalition added: “The cost to society in the long-term if adequate support is not provided will far outweigh any potential savings made today.”
A Scottish government spokesperson said: “All children and young people should receive the support that they need to reach their learning potential, and all teachers provide support to pupils with additional support needs, not just support-for-learning staff.
“Education authorities are responsible for identifying and meeting the additional support needs of their pupils. This includes the employment and provision of appropriate resources, including teaching and support staff, to meet children’s needs.
“We will continue to provide additional support to education authorities by investing an additional £15 million this year to further enhance capacity in education authorities and schools to respond effectively to the individual needs of children and young people.
“We recognise children and young people with additional support needs may be finding this difficult time particularly challenging. Local authorities are best placed to identify how best to meet the needs of the children and young people in their local area and have been using creative ways of supporting them.”
