Council’s £1.3m bill for extra teachers

Perth and Kinross sets out cost of Covid-19 on local education services ahead of schools return

Almost £1.3 million is being spent on extra teachers and supply staff as schools in Perth and Kinross get ready to reopen full-time.

Sixty-nine teachers have told education bosses they will not return to school when lessons restart next month because they are either shielding or have underlying health issues.

They are expected to remain off school until at least October.

Head teachers are being asked to help soften the blow of absences by using existing part-time staff and supply teachers, while some employees will be redeployed from other areas.

Retired teachers will return to offer extra support.

Details of emergency staffing arrangements are contained in a new report which reveals how coronavirus has had a £6.4m impact on local education services.

Perth and Kinross Council expects to spend £1.28m on extra teachers and supply staff, plus around £500,000 on PPE and cleaning products.

More than £846,000 has been spent buying devices, such as laptops and tablets, to tackle digital poverty among youngsters learning at home.

The local authority has also lost nearly £1.6m of income from the likes of school meals, music tuition and children’s clubs.

Extra funding from the Scottish Government and other sources will help bring the total expenditure down to just over £5m.

Councillors will be briefed on plans to return to schools this week.

Interim head of education Sharon Johnston said: “There is a need to ensure that additional staffing can be deployed so that the local education delivery plan can be fully implemented.

“Additional teaching staffing has been secured through the engagement of one-year contracts of 10 probationer teachers who have just finished their induction year and who had not yet secured a post.

“It is estimated that five additional teachers are required to support online learning.”

She said the total number of teachers required is the equivalent of 84 full-time posts.

“Further contracts may be offered to support recovery.

“The number of supply teaching staff has expanded, with applications from teachers returning to the profession after a break, for example following retirement.

“The numbers of support staff required is still currently being assessed.”

She said steps were being taken to ensure that extra pupil support assistants are also available.

“These plans will evolve as the return to school progresses,” she added.

Councillors will be told plans will be put in place to continue critical childcare, if Deputy First Minister John Swinney announces only a part-time return to schools on Thursday.