Budget will cut into teacher numbers and education

Classrooms are to feel the impact of Thursday’s budget as Angus Council battles an unprecedented funding deficit.

A reduction in teacher numbers and cuts to music instruction are among the measures being proposed by education chiefs as part of a plan to save more than £1.6 million over the next three years.

A special meeting of the children and learning committee will be held before the afternoon budget talks in an effort to try to win approval for the package.

Members will be told that Angus Council is operating slightly above the Scottish Government’s national pupil-teacher ratio of 13.7-1.

Angus head of schools and learning Pauline Stephen says the authority’s total full-time equivalent teachers complement of 1,140 was delivering a ratio of 13.3-1 at September 2017.

Staff vacancies in Angus schools have been a thorny issue in the debating chamber and the official has admitted that some secondary sector subject posts have proved especially hard to fill.

Ms Stephen’s budget report states: “It is recognised that the intention to maintain teacher numbers is valued.

“However, it is also necessary to recognise that national teacher workforce planning is not an exact science.

“As local authorities are required to maintain teacher numbers even where pupil rolls decline, this has arguably contributed to the lack of available teachers moving between local authorities, compounding teacher recruitment issues.”

The schools boss says targeted over-recruitment at certain points of the year, so-called golden handshake incentives and the development of a “grow your own” approach to boosting numbers have all been attempted by the council.

“Despite this focused recruitment issue, it is recognised that there is scope to reduce teacher numbers in Angus while contributing to the maintenance of the national teacher-pupil ratio,” she added.

Three vacant music instructor posts in the £722,000-per-year schools’ music service could also go unfilled, according to the budget report.

In 2016-17, 932 youngsters – just 6% of Angus pupils – accessed the subsidised service.

A further saving could be achieved by axing a full-time coordinator’s post and transferring the role to a senior instructor within the existing staff.

gbrown@thecourier.co.uk

Picture: Kim Cessford. Stracathro Primary School. Many staff vacancies in Angus schools have gone unfilled.