Tag: schools

Supporting Gaelic’s growth

Funding for schools and cultural projects

A new Gaelic primary school is set to open in Glasgow next year after a £2 million investment from the Scottish Government. 

The funding will complete the refurbishment and extension of the former St James’ Primary School building to establish Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn (Calton Gaelic Primary School) which will become the city’s fourth Gaelic language primary.

Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic Kate Forbes announced the investment as part of a £2.4 million package to support Gaelic schools and cultural initiatives across Scotland.

The funding will also support:

  • the construction of a second classroom at West Primary School in Paisley
  • the expansion of two Gaelic cultural centres in the Highlands
  • cultural events through An Comunn Gàidhealach who will host this year’s Royal National Mòd in Lochaber

On a visit to the site of the new school, Ms Forbes said: “This school will build on the encouraging surge we have seen in the number of Gaelic speakers and learners in Glasgow and support the language’s growth into the future.

“Gaelic medium education enriches communities and offers good value for money by providing better grade averages across all qualification levels despite costs being no greater than average. 

“To support Gaelic’s growth across Scotland, we are providing an additional £5.7 million for Gaelic initiatives this year. We are also progressing the Scottish Languages Bill which, if passed by MSPs, will introduce measures to strengthen the provision of Gaelic education.”

The new school, with space for 416 pupils, will be managed by Glasgow City Council. It meets a growing demand for Gaelic primary education in the city. Census figures published last year show a 45% increase in the number of people with some Gaelic skills in Glasgow compared to 2011.

Alison Richardson, headteacher of Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn, said: “With Gaelic medium education continuing to flourish in Glasgow, our pupils and parents are excited and proud to be moving Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn into its very own repurposed school located in the East End.

“We look forward to supporting Gaelic’s growth in the Calton area, where many spoke it in the past, and for the school to become a real focal point and asset to the local community.”

Projects benefiting from Scottish Government Gaelic Capital Fund allocations for 2024-25 are listed below: 

ProjectCapital allocatedSummary
Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn (Calton Gaelic Primary School)£2,000,000.00Refurbishment and extension of the former St James’ Primary School building.
West Primary School, Paisley£43,000.00Construction of a second classroom.
Broadford Primary School, Skye£60,630.00Upgrade to Games Hall.
Calder Glen High School, East Kilbride£51,935.00Construction of a bothy with computing, cooking and gardening space and provision of laptops, speakers, desks and other equipment.
Greenfaulds High School, Cumbernauld£38,772.50Equipment to allow more children from across North Lanarkshire to attend classes virtually.
Whitehills Primary School, Forfar£5,748.36Chromebooks, tablet cases and a replacement smartboard.
Inverclyde Academy, Greenock£2907.00Installation of bilingual signage throughout the school.
Feasibility study on establishing a Gaelic secondary school in Stornoway£30,800.00Study to explore the feasibility of establishing Gaelic secondary provision.
An Comunn Gàidhealach£65,600.00Delivery of this year’s Royal National Mòd.
The University of Edinburgh’s Opening the Well Crowdsourcing Gaelic Transcription project£17,305.00Transcription of Gaelic audio recordings, which will be added to a free online archive of Gaelic folklore and historical materials.
Ionad Thròndairnis (The Trotternish Centre)£75,000.00Extension of a Gaelic cultural centre in Skye.
Co-Chomann Dualchas Shrath Naruinn (Strathnairn Heritage Association£40,000.00Establishment of a Gaelic heritage centre in the former Dunlichity Church building.
Fèis Ghasaigh£36,469.00Delivery of a two-day Gaelic music event in South Uist.

Glasgow is home to the third largest number of children and young people in Gaelic Medium Education in Scotland with 740 primary pupils in 2023. Census statistics show that 17,380 people in Glasgow had some Gaelic skills 2022, an increase of 7,911 people from 2011.

Glasgow City Council has provided £17.6 million towards works at Bun-sgoil Ghàidhlig a’ Challtainn, within an overall project budget of £23.8 million. The works are supported by the Scottish Government’s £2 billion Learning Estate Investment Programme which is delivered in partnership with local authorities. Nine school projects included in the programme will open in 2025-26.

National Survey reveals the scale of workload pressures on Scotland’s Teachers

The excessive workload demands that continue to be placed on Scotland’s teachers have been highlighted in the results of a national survey carried out by the teaching trade union EIS.

Almost 11,000 teachers took part in the survey, providing a clear picture of the issues facing teachers in schools across Scotland. Yesterday, in the first of a series of themed papers based on the survey results, the EIS published its Workload Briefing.

Commenting on the results, EIS General Secretary Andrea Bradley said, “The results of the EIS national survey paint a stark picture on the matter of teacher workload. It is a story of persistent, excessive workload demands being placed on teachers at all grades and at all stages of their careers.

“This has serious health, safety and wellbeing implications for teachers, and is contributing to a worrying upward trend in stress-related illness throughout the teaching profession. Having teachers who are overworked and stressed is in no-one’s interest, neither teachers themselves or their families, nor the young people learning in our schools.”

Ms Bradley continued, “Our survey returns indicate that almost half of all teachers (44%) work more than 7 hours extra, unpaid, each week just so they can keep on top of their workload. That’s the equivalent of an extra working day, each and every week.

“Even more shocking, more than one teacher in ten (11.5%) is working 15 or more extra hours per week – essentially an additional two working days, unpaid, every week. Of teachers who are considering leaving the profession within the next 5 years, the most commonly cited reason for this is excessive workload, with 48% of teachers considering leaving the profession identifying workload as the main reason.”

Ms Bradley added, “Tackling excessive teacher workload is one of the key aims of the EIS Stand Up for Quality Education campaign, and the EIS will continue to press local authority employers and the Scottish Government on this vital issue.

“73% of survey respondents indicate that their preparation and correction requirements are unachievable within their normal working week, and this was something that the Scottish Government in its last election manifesto pledged to address by reducing teachers’ class contact time by 1.5 hours per week. 

“Four years on from that pledge being made, there has been absolutely no tangible progress towards delivering it, and no proposals as to how it will be delivered.

“It is the failure to deliver on this vital promise on class contact time that will lead to the EIS opening a Consultative Industrial Action Ballot over Workload at our Annual General Meeting later this week.”

Should schools record and report on the use of restraint and seclusion?

Should schools be recording and reporting on the use of restraint and seclusion? This is just one of the questions a Scottish Parliament committee is asking as it considers a new Bill.

The Education, Children and Young People Committee will be considering the Restraint and Seclusion in Schools (Scotland) Bill, which has been introduced by Daniel Johnson MSP.

The Bill aims to minimise the use of restraint and seclusion in schools, as well as stating that schools would need to inform the parent of a child or young person subjected to restraint or seclusion about the incident and annually report on the use of either approach.

Restraint and seclusion have been used in schools to manage children’s behaviours, but there have been serious concerns about both practices for several years, with campaigners calling for change.

If the Bill is passed, schools would need to be issued with detailed guidance about the use of restraint and seclusion. Schools would also need to inform parents of when restraint and seclusion have been used and maintain a report on the use of these approaches.

The Committee would like to understand whether the measures outlined in the Bill are appropriate.

The Committee’s call for views is open to responses until 11 July 2025. It is then due to take evidence on the proposals in the Bill in the autumn.

Douglas Ross, Convener of the Education, Children and Young People Committee, (who knows a fair bit about bad behaviour! – Ed.) said: “The use of restraint and seclusion has been controversial for many years.

“This Bill aims to minimise the use of restraint and seclusion and we want to understand the implications of adopting this approach on children and young people, parents and professionals.

“The Committee is keen to hear from people who have views on the use of restraint and seclusion in schools. We’re also interested in hearing from teachers, school leaders and specialists to give us a broad perspective of views on the proposals in this Bill.”

The call for views will be available here: 

https://yourviews.parliament.scot/ecyp/restraint-and-seclusion-in-schools-scotland-bill

More information about the Bill can be found here: 

https://www.parliament.scot/bills-and-laws/bills/s6/restraint-and-seclusion-in-schools-scotland-bill

Scottish education charity launches campaign to raise £50k for children’s rural learning

The Royal Highland Education Trust (RHET) has launched its ambitious fundraising campaign KEEP RHET FREE, aiming to raise £50,000 by December to ensure that children across Scotland continue to access free, unbiased, high-quality rural and food education.

The campaign was launched at a food and farming day at Bonnington Farm near Peebles last week (15 May), where close to 100 school children, farmers, teachers, and RHET supporters gathered to celebrate the hands-on learning that RHET has delivered for over 25 years.

The campaign was developed to support RHET to evolve and focus on securing a new rigorous, long-term fundraising stream alongside Scottish Government funding.

“RHET is free for schools — but it’s not free to run,” said Katrina Barclay, RHET’s Executive Officer. “With rising costs and increasing demand, RHET needs to find new and robust funding streams to continue its important work.”

Each year, RHET engages children through farm visits, classroom talks, and food education activities, helping young people understand where their food comes from and how the countryside works.

RHET Chairman, Hugh McClymont, says: “Every year, over 80,000 young people across Scotland experience something they’ll never forget thanks to the Royal Highland Education Trust.

“But without new avenues of support, these important experiences for children to learn about food, farming and the countryside could be at risk.

“I’m asking for individuals and businesses to dig deep and support a charity that makes a real and lasting difference in the lives of young people and supports vital storytelling for the agricultural industry.”

RHET’s goal is to give every child in Scotland the chance to learn about food, farming, and the countryside, to create a wider understanding of the environmental, economic, and social aspects of rural Scotland.

“This is so much more than a school trip,” said Nicki Istephan, a local teacher from Peebles. “RHET brings the curriculum to life. It helps children see the real world beyond the textbooks. It is important that our curriculum reflects our local community and provides the children with life-long skills”

Every pound raised via the KEEP RHET FREE campaign goes directly to delivering rural learning experiences across Scotland’s 12 RHET Countryside Initiatives.

To find out more, donate, or get involved, visit www.rhet.org.uk/keep-rhet-free.

Benedetti Foundation: Making sweet music in Edinburgh

🎻✨ 1600+ young people. 50 schools. 1 incredible week of music-making in Edinburgh

From 12–15 May, we were thrilled to bring our Strings Day Residency to the City of Edinburgh, reaching over 1600 children and young people across 50 schools!

We kicked off the week with live workshops in 9 primary schools – bringing music directly into classrooms and inspiring over 1200 learners. Then, in partnership with the amazing team at the City of Edinburgh Council Instrumental Music Service, we welcomed over 400 string players (including 122 cellists!) to an unforgettable Play Day for P5–P7 and S1 students.

With support from 25 local instructors, our incredible Foundation tutors, and a brilliant team of student ambassadors, young musicians explored two vibrant pieces – Bubble Pop and Enchanted Carousel written by the brilliant Joelle Broad– and ended the day with a joyful performance for their families. 💛🎶

We’re beyond proud to have shared this experience with so many budding musicians – and deeply grateful to our partners in Edinburgh for making it all possible.

📸 Micaela Karina

Supported by The National Lottery through Creative Scotland.

#BenedettiFoundation

#MusicEducation

#StringsDay

#Edinburgh

#MusicMatters

#YoungMusicians

#OrchestraKids

#MusicForAll

#InspiringTheNextGeneration

Cyber attack on Edinburgh’s schools and early years network

COUNCIL STATEMENT ISSUED LAST NIGHT:

This afternoon (Friday) we noticed some unusual e-mail activity on our schools and early years IT network.

As a precautionary measure we have reset passwords across our schools and early years network – including those of our learners and students. 

We have issued communications to all parents/carers and schools to advise of the phishing attempt and explain the action that we have had to take to make sure our IT networks remain secure and protected.

Schools and early years staff will be prompted to reset their own password on their return to school.

Students currently sitting exams will be given priority support to reset their password. They can access their personal revision materials by going to their school tomorrow (Saturday 10 May) between 10.15am -12 noon and a member of staff will issue them with a new password.

Study resources are also available on the information for parents/carers webpage on the Council’s website.

Education, Children and Families Convener Councillor James Dalgleish said yesterday: “This afternoon vigilant colleagues noticed some unusual and suspicious activity on our schools and early years IT network.

“As a result, we took the precautionary decision to immediately reset passwords for all users across our education service.

“We have contacted all parents, carers and schools to update them and explain the situation.

“I fully appreciate the impact this will have, particularly on those students preparing for their exams next week – but, unfortunately, we had no choice. This was a difficult but necessary decision to ensure our networks remain secure and protected.

“I want to reassure our students that they are our priority and that we are doing everything we can to make sure they can get back online as soon as possible. In the meantime, we are signposting them study support materials available elsewhere and individual schools will be uploading these to their websites too.

“We have created a dedicated webpage on the council website and will update this with further information as and when we get it.

“I’d like to thank colleagues for their vigilance and quick thinking today – and for their ongoing work over the weekend to minimise the impact on our students and their families.”

No data has been compromised. The council has have been in touch with SQA and EIS to make them aware of this attempted phishing incident. CEC is re also keeping Scottish Government’s cyber co-ordination centre updated.

Edinburgh Science on the road again

Generation Science brings exciting hands-on workshops to Edinburgh schools

Edinburgh Science is on the road again, bringing hands-on workshops and events to 18,000 primary school pupils across Scotland, including visits across Edinburgh from now until June via Generation Science.

Although most famous for their annual Science Festival, Edinburgh Science Charity also delivers a fantastic programme of educational events and workshops each year for children and young people, including Generation Science.

This fantastic programme sees science educators tour Scottish schools delivering a range of engaging workshops and shows which are all linked to the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) – helping to inspire a new generation to explore the world of STEM. Running for over 30 years, Generation Science has delivered hands-on learning to over 1 million children!

From February to June, the team will bring science to life across Scotland in a fun and high-energy environment. Using a mix of theatre, live demonstrations, audience participation and hands-on experiments every pupil is involved, including those who don’t typically engage with traditional in-classroom STEM education.

Fettes College begins search for new head teacher

A recruitment process has begun for a new head teacher at Fettes College in Edinburgh, with the current Head Helen Harrison announcing her retirement from the role next year. The school has commissioned a specialist firm to help identify candidates, with applications due by 15 May.

Named after its founder, Sir William Fettes, the school opened in 1870 and has around 720 students with over 300 staff. It is the only school in Scotland to offer the option of A-Levels or International Baccalaureate in the Sixth Form and a top ten IB School in the UK. Although it currently serves young people aged 7 – 18, from next academic year it will also open a Pre-Prep and offer places to children from age five.

The Rt Hon Lady Morag Wise, Chair of the Governors, said: “Helen has selflessly devoted herself to Fettes for over 30 years – 19 in a senior leadership role and latterly seven as Head.

“She has made a significant contribution to the success of this place and her vision for Fettes has steered a path that ensures our students leave Fettes knowing themselves, looking out for others and ready to make a positive mark on their rapidly changing world.

“We are now beginning the work of securing a new Head in partnership with Perrett Laver to ensure we have someone worthy of leading this great school. The Governing Body is seeking a visionary educationalist who will bring energy and experience to the role of Head from September 2026. 

“This is a rare and career-defining opportunity for an outstanding leader.”

Helen Harrison said: “This place; the students and our staff mean the world to me, and it will always be the honour of my life to have led Fettes College and this community.

“I am immensely proud of our achievements, of seeing my vision for Fettes come to life, ground-breaking facilities under construction; and most importantly our students fulfilling their potential.

“However, by Founder’s Day next year it will be the right time to pass on this privilege to the next Head. Until that time it is business as usual and I will continue to give this job my absolute all.”

Free breakfast clubs roll out in England

Thousands of children to attend free breakfast clubs today, as UK government delivers its manifesto commitment and promise to working families

School mornings just got easier for families across England as 750 schools open breakfast clubs today, offering 30 minutes of free childcare, a healthy start for kids and a little more breathing room before the school bell rings.

Parents will be supported with additional time at the start of the day to attend appointments, get to work on time and run errands. In total, this means parents will be able to save up to 95 additional hours and £450 per year if their child attends free breakfast clubs every day. 

This amount rises to a saving of up to £8,000 every year when combining the free breakfast clubs with further support through the expansion of government-funded childcare and new school uniform cap on branded items.

With the cost of everyday essentials stretching budgets, these clubs will be a lifeline for working families simply trying to get by. When you’re raising a family, every penny counts and that’s why the government is stepping in to ease the pressure and put money back in parents’ pockets.

No matter the postcode or the pay packet, every child deserves the same chance to thrive. That’s the principle behind this rollout — real support for families in every corner of the country, so no one is left behind.

These clubs sit alongside action to tackle the cost of living, with inflation falling for two months in a row, wages growing faster than prices and fuel duty frozen. The Labour government says that, together, they show the Plan for Change is delivering for working families.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: “As a parent, I know that the combined pressures of family life and work can often feel impossible to juggle. That is why our manifesto promised to make parents lives easier and put more money in their pockets with free breakfast clubs. Under a year since we came into office, this government is delivering that through our Plan for Change.

“The rollout of free breakfast clubs is a truly game-changing moment for families in this country. They mean parents will no longer be hamstrung by rigid school hours and have the breathing space they need to beat the morning rush, attend work meetings and doctors’ appointments, or run errands. And crucially, it means better life chances for children.

“By making these clubs free and universal, we’re doing something that previous governments have never done. We’re going further and faster to deliver the change working families deserve. That’s the change this government was elected to deliver.”

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “Free breakfast clubs are a central part of our Plan for Change. At a time when there is so much pressure on families, they provide real help with the cost of living and ensure children start the day with a nutritious meal. 

“On top of the hectic school run, parents should not have to worry about how to balance work and getting their children fed and ready for school. These clubs will break down barriers and help children settle in, focus and get the most out of their learning.

“We are delivering on our promises and giving every child the best start in life while making sure families get the support they need, wherever they live.”

According to new government data, parents are also motivated to take up free breakfast clubs because of the improvements they can have on their wellbeing.

Many see them as is an opportunity to socialise with other children before school (30%) and spend more time doing the activities they enjoy (28%) – offering a supportive start to the day that leads to better behaviour, and better life chances.

The rollout delivers on the government’s manifesto promise to ensure state schools offer free breakfast clubs to all pupils; while supporting its Plan for Change milestone to ensure tens of thousands more children start school ready to learn.

Victoria Taylor, mum of two children aged 5 and 7, said: “For me, free breakfast clubs provide vital support, meaning I can get into work a little easier and ensure my two kids are settled and ready to learn.

“I’m a primary school teacher, so early mornings are a must however I try to not let my busy schedule dictate the pace of mornings.

“Taking my children to breakfast clubs means I know they are fed, ready to start the day and emotionally regulated – the commitment to rollout nationally will make the world of difference for working families.”

Trade unions argue that the funding allocated to breakfast clubs just isn’t enough, while charities and campaigners say that scrapping the current two child benefit cap would make a far greater difference in tackling poverty for the poorest families.