Scotland’s largest teaching union has called on all local authorities to recruit more teachers as education recovers from the Covid-19 lockdown.

The EIS also wants jobs to be prioritised for newly qualified teachers (NQTs) and recently qualified teachers (RQTs) before retired teachers are recruited back into the classroom.

In the letter to the 32 councils’ heads of education, EIS general secretary Larry Flanagan says: “At the moment, there is intense discussion around the process of how schools will reopen in August and clearly that is a pressing matter which we all need to attend to. Beyond getting pupils back, however, lies an even bigger challenge about supporting their recovery from what will have been for many, indeed most, a traumatic experience.”

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Mr Flanagan warns of ”the deepening of poverty-related disadvantage” during lockdown “as well as the impact on educational attainment more generally and the potential damage done to children’s wellbeing and welfare”.

Coronavirus: Schools need more teachers, says union

He adds: “Tackling all of these aspects will be a labour-intensive process as children will need counselling, support and nurturing. To this end, we will need more teachers, more specialists and more support services.”

Mr Flanagan urges heads of education to make the case for more resources to support education recovery.

He says: “We have unemployed NQTs, RQTs and teachers on supply lists and temporary contracts - all of whom are anxious about their employment prospects for next session when there is such a glaring demand for all of them to be utilised in our schools. The GTCS (General Teaching Council for Scotland) has identified thousands of retired or inactive teachers waiting in the wings to be deployed but before we even begin to consider this cohort, we need to employ the staff already there.

“Teachers make the difference - let’s get as many as we can into our schools.”

Mr Flanagan’s letter can be read on the EIS website.