Schools in Scotland 2022: summary statistics

Headline statistics from the annual pupil and school staff censuses and early learning and childcare provision.


School teachers

Table 3 shows that the total number of school teachers (primary, secondary, special and centrally employed) decreased by 122 between 2021 and 2022. This represents the first decrease in teacher numbers after rises in each year from 2016 to 2021. (Statistics pre-2016 are available from the supplementary statistics and historical time series).

Although the number of teachers has decreased since 2021, this was not the case for each local authority. In 11 local authorities there were increases in teachers this year. The largest proportional increases were of 4% in Aberdeen City (70 FTE)  and Midlothian (42 FTE). However, in 21 local authorities the number of teachers decreased. The largest proportional decreases were of 5% in Argyll and Bute (45 FTE), followed by Dumfries and Galloway and West Dunbartonshire with decreases of 4% (51 and 34 FTE respectively).

Table 4 shows pupil teacher ratios (PTRs) which give a measure of the size of the teaching workforce relative to the pupil population. The national PTR did not change from 2021, remaining at 13.2. This remains the lowest national PTR since 2008. (Statistics pre-2016 are available from the supplementary statistics and historical time series).

Across Scotland, the PTR decreased or maintained in 13 local authorities compared to 2021. The biggest decrease was seen in Midlothian, which decreased by 0.4. Since 2016, Moray has had the largest decrease in PTR at 1.4. The largest increase in PTR since 2016 has been in Dumfries and Galloway at 0.8.

The average (mean) age of primary, secondary and special school teachers was 40 in 2022, compared to 42 in 2012, so the teacher workforce was, on average, younger in 2022 than in 2012. This is demonstrated in Chart 1 which shows that the age profile of teachers has changed much over the past 10 years. There is no longer a peak at age 50-60 and instead the age profile shows more teachers in their twenties, thirties and forties than previously. In 2022, teacher numbers were highest between the ages of 26 and 43.

Table 8 shows that there are many more female teachers than male, especially in the primary sector where 89% of teachers are female. Table 12 shows that whilst there are more female teachers than male across most sectors and grades, the difference was less pronounced in promoted posts (Deputy Head teacher or Head teachers). An exception to this is secondary schools where 65% of teachers at all grades were female compared to 43% of head teachers.

A new role of Lead Teacher was established in June 2021 by the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers. There were five FTE Lead Teachers that met the inclusion criteria at the time of this year’s school staff census in September.

Teaching posts were classified into three employment types for the purposes of the school staff census: Permanent, Temporary and Teacher Induction Scheme. Teachers may be employed on a permanent contract but be recorded in the staff census as temporary if they are working in a post classified as a temporary employment type, for example while covering a vacancy. The proportion of teachers in temporary posts was 13%, the same as in 2021. A decrease in the proportion of temporary posts was seen in primary and special school sectors while the proportion increased for centrally employed teachers. There was no change in the proportion of temporary secondary school teachers from last year. Further details on the recording of employment types is included in the background notes.

In 2022, the percentage of teachers working part-time, as a proportion of all FTE, was 18%. There was a higher rate amongst females (21%), than males (8%) (data not shown).

Teachers provisionally registered with the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) (for example those that have recently completed their initial teacher education) are required to complete a period of probation before becoming eligible for full registration. Probation can be completed through either the one year full-time Teacher Induction Scheme (TIS) or a flexible route.

Table 14 shows the percentage of previous TIS probationers who were in teaching posts in a publicly funded school in Scotland in the year following their probation. The percentage of teachers in such employment in the first year following probation has decreased to 70% for the most recent TIS cohort (2021/22) from 80% for the 2020/21 cohort. This is the lowest rate since the 2010/11 cohort but remains higher than the three cohorts from 2007/08 to 2009/10 when less than 60% of teachers found such employment in the first year following their probation (see the supplementary statistics for information on cohorts pre 2015/16). Teachers not in a post in a publicly funded school may be teaching elsewhere (including abroad or in the independent sector), in non-teaching employment, or they may be unemployed.

For the 2021/22 cohort, the proportion of TIS probationers in a full-time permanent post at the time of the following year’s census was 33%, up from 31% for the previous cohort. This was the first increase in five years following a decrease from a high of 57% for the 2016/17 cohort. The proportion of the TIS probationer cohort that were in a full-time temporary post at the time of the following year’s census was lower than the previous cohort, having dropped from 42% to 30%.

Statistics on pre 2015/16 cohorts are available from the supplementary statistics. Further breakdowns of post-probationer data, by sector, local authority and secondary subject can be found on the post probationer teacher employment dashboard.

Table 15 shows that, in general, there is a small decrease in the percentage of TIS probationers in teaching posts as time elapses from their probation.

Table 5: Teachers by local authority, 2022 (FTE)

Local Authority

Primary School

Secondary School

Special School

Centrally employed

Total

Aberdeen City

887

831

40

57

1,815

Aberdeenshire

1,377

1,258

49

39

2,724

Angus

569

551

0

25

1,145

Argyll and Bute

402

403

7

2

815

City of Edinburgh

1,651

1,752

176

92

3,672

Clackmannanshire

299

220

32

2

553

Dumfries and Galloway

640

646

18

66

1,370

Dundee City

647

618

58

30

1,353

East Ayrshire

572

547

87

24

1,230

East Dunbartonshire

590

675

57

39

1,360

East Lothian

489

499

0

37

1,026

East Renfrewshire

613

701

37

4

1,356

Falkirk

761

800

77

8

1,647

Fife

1,815

1,653

99

89

3,656

Glasgow City

2,830

2,436

369

90

5,725

Highland

1,043

1,197

48

35

2,322

Inverclyde

354

362

48

5

768

Midlothian

526

480

30

31

1,067

Moray

478

448

0

35

960

Na h-Eileanan Siar

158

147

0

10

315

North Ayrshire

658

663

47

54

1,422

North Lanarkshire

1,700

1,665

237

103

3,705

Orkney Islands

116

130

0

7

253

Perth and Kinross

669

654

16

35

1,374

Renfrewshire

808

840

88

27

1,764

Scottish Borders

486

512

44

3

1,045

Shetland Islands

156

157

0

15

328

South Ayrshire

521

537

30

42

1,129

South Lanarkshire

1,680

1,649

159

0

3,487

Stirling

446

482

21

19

969

West Dunbartonshire

434

426

54

11

926

West Lothian

1,054

881

123

0

2,058

All local authorities

25,427

24,822

2,050

1,037

53,337

Grant-aided

24

52

48

0

123

Scotland

25,451

24,874

2,097

1,037

53,459

Table 6: Teachers in schools by local authority (FTE, all sectors excluding ELC)

Local Authority

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

Aberdeen City

1,603

1,624

1,636

1,675

1,725

1,745

1,815

Aberdeenshire

2,655

2,675

2,650

2,696

2,720

2,731

2,724

Angus

1,125

1,133

1,160

1,172

1,197

1,172

1,145

Argyll and Bute

841

825

861

834

846

860

815

City of Edinburgh

3,213

3,281

3,346

3,452

3,518

3,615

3,672

Clackmannanshire

528

513

512

520

554

556

553

Dumfries and Galloway

1,466

1,470

1,436

1,436

1,413

1,421

1,370

Dundee City

1,367

1,330

1,321

1,316

1,340

1,375

1,353

East Ayrshire

1,149

1,189

1,185

1,205

1,233

1,263

1,230

East Dunbartonshire

1,217

1,245

1,248

1,269

1,366

1,374

1,360

East Lothian

913

935

960

973

1,008

1,031

1,026

East Renfrewshire

1,227

1,265

1,277

1,306

1,322

1,341

1,356

Falkirk

1,605

1,620

1,634

1,629

1,688

1,663

1,647

Fife

3,494

3,498

3,503

3,530

3,627

3,636

3,656

Glasgow City

4,869

5,020

5,263

5,352

5,446

5,621

5,725

Highland

2,355

2,365

2,388

2,300

2,284

2,352

2,322

Inverclyde

735

738

745

730

751

795

768

Midlothian

873

892

930

941

985

1,024

1,067

Moray

848

856

868

866

873

952

960

Na h-Eileanan Siar

321

327

327

313

312

317

315

North Ayrshire

1,371

1,396

1,393

1,376

1,412

1,462

1,422

North Lanarkshire

3,474

3,502

3,545

3,590

3,742

3,778

3,705

Orkney Islands

260

253

250

251

247

257

253

Perth and Kinross

1,329

1,329

1,346

1,329

1,346

1,386

1,374

Renfrewshire

1,633

1,656

1,676

1,674

1,778

1,793

1,764

Scottish Borders

1,052

1,055

1,070

1,038

1,065

1,054

1,045

Shetland Islands

318

323

322

320

329

329

328

South Ayrshire

1,043

1,056

1,048

1,065

1,101

1,128

1,129

South Lanarkshire

3,202

3,282

3,298

3,341

3,438

3,480

3,487

Stirling

942

925

934

938

954

963

969

West Dunbartonshire

928

961

956

980

964

959

926

West Lothian

1,899

1,924

1,924

1,909

1,971

2,029

2,058

All local authorities

49,858

50,464

51,012

51,327

52,555

53,461

53,337

Grant-aided

127

127

126

122

117

120

123

Scotland

49,985

50,592

51,138

51,449

52,672

53,581

53,459

Note 1: Includes centrally employed teachers.

Table 7: Pupil teacher ratio (PTR) by local authority (all sectors excluding ELC)

Local Authority

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

Aberdeen City

14.0

14.0

14.1

13.8

13.7

13.9

13.9

Aberdeenshire

13.4

13.3

13.5

13.3

13.4

13.4

13.5

Angus

13.3

13.3

13.1

13.0

12.8

12.9

13.1

Argyll and Bute

12.3

12.5

12.0

12.2

12.0

11.7

12.3

City of Edinburgh

15.1

15.1

15.1

14.9

14.8

14.5

14.6

Clackmannanshire

12.5

12.9

13.0

12.8

12.0

12.1

12.1

Dumfries and Galloway

12.7

12.8

13.1

13.1

13.2

13.2

13.5

Dundee City

13.2

13.7

13.8

13.9

13.7

13.4

13.7

East Ayrshire

13.9

13.3

13.5

13.4

13.2

12.9

13.1

East Dunbartonshire

13.5

13.4

13.6

13.5

12.7

12.7

12.8

East Lothian

15.4

15.2

15.1

15.1

14.8

14.6

14.7

East Renfrewshire

13.7

13.5

13.5

13.2

13.2

13.1

13.0

Falkirk

13.5

13.5

13.4

13.5

13.0

13.1

13.2

Fife

14.1

14.1

14.2

14.2

13.9

13.8

13.6

Glasgow City

13.8

13.5

13.1

13.0

12.9

12.6

12.5

Highland

13.1

13.0

12.9

13.5

13.5

13.1

13.2

Inverclyde

13.5

13.4

13.2

13.6

13.1

12.3

12.6

Midlothian

14.2

14.2

13.8

14.0

13.7

13.5

13.1

Moray

14.1

13.9

13.7

13.8

13.9

12.8

12.7

Na h-Eileanan Siar

10.5

10.3

10.2

10.6

10.7

10.4

10.4

North Ayrshire

13.3

13.1

13.1

13.1

12.8

12.2

12.4

North Lanarkshire

14.1

14.0

13.8

13.7

13.2

13.0

13.2

Orkney Islands

10.4

10.8

11.1

11.1

11.3

10.9

11.1

Perth and Kinross

13.6

13.5

13.3

13.6

13.5

13.1

13.2

Renfrewshire

14.3

14.2

14.1

14.2

13.4

13.3

13.6

Scottish Borders

13.8

13.8

13.6

14.0

13.6

13.7

13.7

Shetland Islands

10.2

10.0

10.1

10.2

10.0

10.1

10.0

South Ayrshire

13.4

13.3

13.3

13.2

13.0

12.7

12.6

South Lanarkshire

13.7

13.4

13.4

13.4

13.1

13.0

13.2

Stirling

13.2

13.5

13.5

13.5

13.4

13.3

13.2

West Dunbartonshire

13.4

13.1

13.1

12.8

13.0

13.0

13.2

West Lothian

14.1

14.0

14.1

14.3

13.9

13.6

13.5

All local authorities

13.7

13.6

13.6

13.6

13.3

13.2

13.2

Grant-aided

9.2

9.3

9.4

9.6

10.0

9.7

9.6

Scotland

13.7

13.6

13.6

13.6

13.3

13.2

13.2

Note 1: Includes centrally employed teachers.

Note 2: The pupil teacher ratio for grant-aided schools in 2011-2016 was amended in October 2017. See background notes for details.

Chart 1: Age profile of school based teachers

Age profile of school teachers in 2012 and 2022. Profile is flatter in 2022.

Table 8: Teacher sex by sector (percentage of FTE)

 

Primary

Secondary

Special

Centrally Employed

Total

Female

89

65

78

83

77

Male

11

35

22

17

23

Table 9: Teacher age by sector (percentage of FTE)

 

Primary

Secondary

Special

Centrally Employed

Total

Under 25

6

5

2

2

5

25 to 34

31

29

19

10

30

35 to 44

29

29

32

27

29

45 to 54

23

23

31

34

24

55 or over

10

13

16

27

12

Average Age

40

41

44

47

40

Table 10: Teacher ethnicity by sector (percentage of FTE)

 

Primary

Secondary

Special

Centrally Employed

Total

White - Scottish

71

64

67

55

67

White - other British

20

23

21

25

22

White - other

2

4

6

5

3

Minority ethnic group

1

2

2

5

2

Not known

2

3

2

7

3

Not disclosed

3

3

3

3

3

Note 1: More information on the ethnicity categories can be found in the Ethnicity section in the background notes.

Table 11: Teacher post employment type by sector (percentage of FTE)

 

Primary

Secondary

Special

Centrally Employed

Total

Permanent

79

84

85

84

81

Temporary

15

11

15

16

13

Teacher Induction Scheme

6

5

0

0

5

Table 12: Teacher grade by sector (percentage of FTE)

 

Primary

Secondary

Special

Centrally Employed

Total

Head teacher

6

1

5

3

4

Percentage female

84

43

79

84

77

Depute head teacher

6

5

6

3

5

Percentage female

87

58

77

75

74

Principal or lead teacher

7

22

11

11

14

Percentage female

86

64

74

78

69

Teacher or chartered

81

72

79

83

77

Percentage female

90

67

78

83

79

All - percentage female

89

65

78

83

77

Table 13: Teacher mode of working by sector (percentage of FTE)

 

Primary

Secondary

Special

Centrally Employed

Total

Full-time

77

87

81

72

82

Percentage female

88

63

75

80

75

Part-time

23

13

19

28

18

Percentage female

95

83

89

90

90

Note 1: The mode of working is the percentage of FTE by working pattern in a school sector at a particular grade. See background notes for more details.

Table 14: Teacher Induction Scheme (TIS) post-probationers teaching in the year following their probation

 

TIS probationer cohort

 

 

 

 

 

 

2015/16

2016/17

2017/18

2018/19

2019/20

2020/21

2021/22

Full-time permanent

55

57

55

48

38

31

33

Full-time temporary

27

28

27

30

42

42

30

Part-time permanent

2

1

2

2

1

1

1

Part-time temporary

2

2

3

5

3

6

6

Other

13

12

13

16

15

20

30

All teaching post types

87

88

87

84

85

80

70

Headcount of
teachers in cohort

2,524

2,630

2,852

2,836

3,076

3,123

3,218

Note 1: The “Other” category includes those teaching elsewhere, including in the independent sector, those who have found supply work, and those who are unemployed or who have left teaching, although this detail is not included in the census data.

Table 15: Long-term employment of Teacher Induction Scheme probationers (percentage of headcount)

 

Sep-16

Sep-17

Sep-18

Sep-19

Sep-20

Sep-21

Sep-22

2015/16 cohort

87

84

83

81

80

79

78

2016/17 cohort

 

88

85

83

83

82

80

2017/18 cohort

 

 

87

84

84

84

81

2018/19 cohort

 

 

 

84

85

85

82

2019/20 cohort

 

 

 

 

85

84

82

2020/21 cohort

 

 

 

 

 

80

81

2021/22 cohort

 

 

 

 

 

 

70

Contact

Email: school.stats@gov.scot

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