Teachers shortage council may have to move nursery staff into primary classes

A council has warned it may have to move nursery staff into primary school classes due to a teacher shortage.

Clackmannanshire Council also said some children in the right catchment areas may be turned away while class sizes could rise beyond the maximum limits.

The shortage could also have a “major impact'' on school improvement and moves to close the attainment gap, the local authority added.

The issue was raised in a briefing note from the council's education department and highlighted by the Scottish Conservatives.

The Tories said the shortage reflected the Scottish Government's “boom-and-bust'' approach to teacher training.

Earlier this year, government guidance revealed there were about 700 teaching vacancies across Scotland, with almost 300 of these in the primary sector.

Tory education spokeswoman Liz Smith said: “We've heard warnings for many years about the possible impact of teacher shortages.

“Now we have hard-hitting predictions which could happen within a matter of months and there will undoubtedly be negative consequences for children.

“This is the consequence of an SNP government which has had a boom-and-bust approach to teacher training.''

Primary rolls across Clackmannanshire are forecast to increase by 90 pupils in the new school year, with 13 additional teachers needed to meet the demand.

The local authority took on 25 teachers earlier in the year and has sufficient numbers to fill all vacant posts.

However, the briefing adds this relies on no staff leaving and no staff absence from the beginning of term - a proposition which is described as “an unlikely scenario''.

The briefing states: “We have carried out a risk assessment and identified that there could be a major impact on school improvement and closing the gaps.

“Senior managers in schools will have to cover for absences, which would take them away from their leadership roles.

“It could be the case that some schools may have to turn catchment children away and offer alternative places in other schools.

“Ultimately, a level of teacher absence beyond the norm could lead to some schools unable to run classes for certain year groups.

“The service may have to move nursery teachers out of nursery classes into primary classes.''

The council also risks not being able to spend additional funding for raising attainment which had been earmarked for teachers while it may not be able to retain the pupil-teacher ratio demanded by government.

It is taking a number of steps to mitigate the risks of recruitment shortages.

A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: “All primary teachers registered with the General Teaching Council for Scotland are fully qualified to teach in both primary and early-years settings.

“Local authorities are free to assign staff as needed and it is not uncommon for teachers to work across both nursery and primary school settings as required.''

She said the government recognised some councils have faced challenges with teacher numbers and had taken action on recruitment and retention, including increasing teacher training places

A Clackmannanshire Council spokesman said: “As part of a regular exercise in due diligence and risk management, the education service noted a potential issue relating to staffing in primary schools only.

“Currently we have sufficient teachers to fill all teaching vacancies for the start of the new session in August.''

The council said it is taking proactive action to mitigate the risks associated with the potential recruitment shortages, including that the service has an open advert for teachers, both temporary and permanent.

It is also working in partnership with Strathclyde University to develop a “return to teaching'' course and intends to advertise this widely in the next few weeks.

The council said: “All Clackmannanshire schools work effectively in clusters, thus enabling schools to support each other should a school have short-term issues.

“Clackmannanshire Council successfully retains staff once appointed.'