Experts have suggested that the Scottish government should slash the number of teachers to save millions of pounds as schools are set to lose 90,000 pupils.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said that the number of pupils in school would fall by 12.5% by 2040 and its latest report on Scottish education said that while increasing teacher numbers would reduce class sizes, evidence suggested that it would only have a “modest impact” on attainment.
In 2021, the SNPs manifesto promised to recruit 3,500 additional teachers by May 2026, to bring total numbers up to 57,100.
However, recent figures show that numbers have instead declined to 53,312 - nearly 3,800 short of target.
Despite the government setting out joint-plans with councils to bring teacher numbers back up to 2023 levels, the IFS suggests that keeping teacher numbers in line with pupils could save up to £500million a year by 2040, which would free up resources for other public services.
Scotland spends more per pupil on education than any other part of the UK, with an annual cost of £10,000 per student, a 27% increase since 2015 and about 20% higher than in England.
Mike Corbett, the national officer for the teacher’s union NASUWT, criticised this suggestion.
“The IFS fails to take into account the rising volume of pupils with additional support needs, the number of which is expected to grow further in coming years,” he said. “Cutting teacher numbers would only exacerbate current problems with excessive workloads and working hours and negatively impact recruitment and retention. It could lead to a race to the bottom and undermine children and young people’s right to be taught by highly skilled, qualified and motivated teachers.”
The 12.5% cut of teachers would equate to around 6,200 jobs.