Welcome to Scotland: a guide for service personnel and their families in Scotland (updated 2021)

Education

Scotland's schools are welcoming places where we want all children to achieve their potential. Education in Scotland is organised differently to the rest of the UK. This section will help you understand you and your children's entitlements in Scotland's schools.

You can find further information regarding school education in Scotland on our Parentzone website.

'Forces Children's Education' includes lots of information about the Scottish education system and the geography and education resources available. More information can be found at Forces Children's Education.

Early Years Learning and Childcare

The Scottish Government and Local Authorities fund early learning and childcare. This means that it is free of charge for eligible children.

Currently, if your child is three or four years old, you can get up to 600 hours of funded early learning and childcare a year. This is equivalent to 16 hours a week if taken in term time or around 12 hours a week if taken all year round.

However, the Scottish Government is increasing the number of hours of funded early learning and childcare to 1,140 hours from August 2021. That's about 30 hours a week if taken over school term time or around 22 hours a week if taken all year round.

Local authorities are already beginning to phase in the increased hours so it's best to check with the local authority where you live to see what's happening at the moment.

Some two year olds can also get the same amount of funded early learning and childcare depending on whether you meet certain eligibility criteria, which you can find at: Help paying for childcare in Scotland - mygov.scot. Once your child qualifies for early learning and childcare, they will stay eligible.

You can get funded hours for different types of registered early learning and childcare, such as a nursery (local authority or privately run), childminder or playgroup. Contact your local authority to find out more about the sessions and providers available to you and to find out how to apply.

You can find out more information, including which local authority has phased in increased hours, at Parent Club.

School Age and Stages

There are differences in the ages children start school across the UK. A summary of the age ranges in Scottish Education can be found on the third page on Overview-of-Scottish-Education-System.pdf (forceschildrenseducation.org.uk)

Scotland provides free school education for all children from the age of around four and a half years old, up to the age of 18. Depending on when their birthday falls, some children can start before they are four and a half. Scotland has different enrolment and school entry dates than other parts of the UK.

Children start in Primary 1 and move up to the next class each year through to Primary 7. All children in Primaries 1-3 receive free school meals.

Children move up to secondary school automatically after primary school (aged 11 or 12 depending on when they started school).

Your local council is responsible for providing school education in the area you live. You can find full information on applying for all school places and placing requests in 'Choosing a school - a guide for parents'.

Term Time

Term dates will vary depending on your local authority area. You can find term dates at School term and holiday dates.

What Will My Child Learn?

All children aged 3 to 18 in Scotland learn through the Curriculum for Excellence. Scotland's curriculum seeks to educate the 'whole child' so that they achieve their potential through being successful learners, confident individuals and responsible citizens.

The secondary school curriculum has two phases - the broad general education (S1-S3) and the senior phase (S4-S6).

As part of the Developing the Young Workforce programme, children and young people have a variety of opportunities to learn and develop skills for the world of work.

Schools, in collaboration with colleges and employers, have the flexibility to offer a range of experiences to meet the needs of all learners. Young people can also study a range of national and vocational qualifications and awards, including Nationals, Highers, Advanced Highers, Foundation Apprenticeships and Skills for Work courses. Further information on qualifications can viewed at Qualifications can Cross Boundaries.

A parent-friendly guide to Curriculum for Excellence has been produced by the National Parent Forum for Scotland (NPFS) and can be found at - CfE in a Nutshell - National Parent Forum of Scotland (npfs.org.uk)

My Child Needs Extra Support

In the first instance, discuss your child's needs with the school, including any formal support plans (like a HCPC) previously in place. They will be best placed to provide information and support for your child. If you do not know which school your child will attend, you can check catchments based on your posting.

Additional Support for Learning (ASL) in Scotland is different to Special Educational Needs & Disability in England (SEND), but your child will still receive support if they need it.

Additional Support Needs (ASN) are broadly defined, including those which might impact on children from Armed Forces families, such as transitions, interrupted learning and dealing with separation and loss. They can be of short or long-term duration and occur for a variety of reasons. ASN in Scotland includes needs defined as SEND in England.

We also have a Scottish advice service for additional support for learning, where you will find useful information about when your child might be entitled to extra support. This can be found at Enquire.

The Children's Education Advisory Service (CEAS) also provide support and assistance to families moving schools for a child with additional needs. More information can be found at Children's Education Advisory Service (CEAS) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Independent Schools

As well as local authority education, parents may consider enrolling their child in an independent school. All independent schools in Scotland are registered, with their details available online at Independent schools in Scotland: register.

The independent sector includes boarding schools, where children and young people stay at the school, either full-time or perhaps only for part of the week. Where a school provides boarding, it is registered with, and inspected by, the Care Inspectorate. You can find out more about the Care Inspectorate.

Boarding schools in Scotland differ, and may offer the Curriculum for Excellence or another curriculum. However, all independent schools are inspected by Education Scotland in the same way that local authority schools are. If you are considering enrolling your child at an independent boarding school, you are encouraged to make contact with the schools you are interested in, seeking a copy of the school's prospectus in order that you can be better informed about what each school offers.

The Scottish Council of Independent Schools (SCIS) are a useful source for more general information on independent schools. SCIS is a charitable body which represents most of Scotland's independent schools. You can visit Scottish Council of Independent Schools for more information.

Further Education

Further education includes courses that are below the Higher National Certificate (HNC) level. These courses are taught in either secondary school or colleges and include:

• Academic courses below HNC level.
• Courses that do not lead to formal qualifications e.g. independent living skills.
• Courses on basic skills such as reading, writing and numeracy skills.
• Work-related courses, such as Scottish Vocational Qualifications.

Colleges are responsible for assessing an individual's criteria for funding, you should therefore enquire within your chosen college.

Higher Education

Higher Education in Scotland includes courses of study which are at a HNC level or above. Individuals can take these courses at college or university and there is no age limit. Higher education courses range from:

• HNC
• Higher National Diploma (HND)
• Certificate of Higher Education (Cert HE)
• Diploma of Higher Education (Dip HE)
• Undergraduate Ordinary Degree
• Undergraduate Honours Degree

If individuals are students in Higher Education, they may be entitled to financial support from our Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS).

You and your family are entitled to support from SAAS if you: were ordinarily resident in Scotland before you enlisted to the services; or meet the ordinary residency criteria.

If you are not entitled to support from SAAS you will still be able to access support from your home UK funding body.

You can find more information on Higher Education funding for members of the Armed Forces and their families at Funding for serving members of the Armed Forces, their families and veterans (saas.gov.uk)or by calling SAAS direct on: 0300 555 0505.

Community Learning and Development (CLD) and Adult Learning

CLD supports primarily disadvantaged or vulnerable groups and individuals of all ages to engage in learning, with a focus on bringing about change in their lives and communities. Community Learning and Development includes:

• youth work, family learning and other early intervention work with children, young people and families
• community-based adult learning, including adult literacies and English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)
• learning for vulnerable and disadvantaged groups in the community, for example, people with disabilities, care leavers or offenders
• community development (building the capacity of communities to meet their own needs, engaging with, and influencing decision-makers)
• volunteer development
• learning support and guidance in the community.

If you want to find out more about community learning and development activities, contact your local authority. More information on CLD can also be found at About Community Learning and Development - Community learning and development - Scottish education system - Education Scotland

National Transitions Officer for Children and Young People of Armed Forces Families

There is a National Transitions Officer for Children and Young People of Armed Forces families in Scottish Schools in Scotland who work with Scottish local authorities, their schools, Children's Services partners, Third Sector partners, and Armed Forces Services to enhance policy and practice which will take into account the unique features affecting the education of Service Children.