Questions and answers

Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for ��˿�� to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-18593

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 02 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 15 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met the Welsh Government to discuss the Taith programme.

Question reference: S6W-18599

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 02 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 15 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how it will support training providers facing potential closure as a result of any delays in confirming budgets for skills and employability programmes.

As outlined in the answer to question S6W-18598 on 15 June 2023, the 2023-24 budget for skills and employability programmes has been confirmed.

The Scottish Government continues to offer free and impartial advice to all employers and individuals affected by redundancy through Partnership Action for Continuing Employment, PACE, which has local teams ready to respond quickly when situations arise and assist businesses to try and minimise the risk of redundancy before it happens.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at /chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

Question reference: S6W-18581

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 02 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 13 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the implementation timetable for its four small-scale school swimming pilot projects.

Question reference: S6W-18549

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 02 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 9 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting the provision of indigenous minority languages in the education sector.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of supporting the provision of indigenous minority languages in the education sector. There are a range of measures in place to support the varied needs of Gaelic and Scots in our schools and the use and learning of both languages. These measures to promote the use and learning of both languages include initiatives that improve access, classroom delivery, teacher support and more. Good progress has been made recently with the Scottish Government’s published consultation report on Gaelic commitments and the report prepared by the Short Life Working Group on Economic and Social Opportunities for Gaelic. We also expect to make further progress with the forthcoming Scottish Languages Bill.

Question reference: S6W-18180

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 22 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 9 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress towards its commitment to increase teacher numbers by 3,500 by the end of the current parliamentary session.

We committed to support the recruitment of at least 3,500 teachers, in addition to the 1,400 recruited during the pandemic, over the course of this Parliament. The 2022 teacher census total was 54,193 teachers, which indicates an increase of 1,946 from the baseline, as measured by the 2019 census.

We are also providing £145.5m to local authorities in the 2023/24 budget to protect increased teacher numbers.

Question reference: S6W-18184

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 9 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported findings that the attainment gap among primary school children in South Lanarkshire has increased by a third during 2020-21.

Question reference: S6W-18178

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 9 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the reported comments from NASUWT that the Scottish Government has failed to tackle serious violence and abuse from pupils in schools.

As I highlighted in a recent parliamentary debate and at the NASUWT conference last month, I am determined that teachers and school staff are supported to deal with challenging behaviours in our schools.

Any incidents of violence or abuse towards anyone are completely unacceptable and the safety of our children, young people and staff at school is of paramount importance.

We have produced guidance for local authorities and schools to promote positive relationships and manage behaviour, including de-escalation of violent behaviour. We are also investing £2 million of funding to support violence prevention activities within schools and communities.

We are currently gathering evidence that will help us better understand the extent of behavioural issues at a national level through our Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research, which started in February.

We will use this research and engagement with stakeholders, including the Scottish Advisory Group for Relationships and Behaviour in Schools, to inform the development of further future policy, guidance and support for schools and school staff.

And as I recently announced, I will also convene a summit bringing together partners and stakeholders to discuss relationships and behaviour in schools and focussing on practical support at classroom, school and local level.

Question reference: S6W-18179

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 9 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has issued sanctions to any local authorities that have not achieved the pupil teacher ratio since it was established.

Question reference: S6W-18182

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 9 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that some local authorities are rolling out Maths Recovery training for teachers to address learning gaps caused by interrupted learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Education Scotland National Numeracy and Maths Team continue to support local authorities and schools in delivering Maths Recovery training for teachers.

Education Scotland has led the Early Career Teacher (ECT) maths programme for two years and will do so again in academic session 2023-24. The programme was originally aimed at those who were unable to participate in normal school placements due to the pandemic and is designed to build confidence in teaching maths and numeracy. ECT has been accessed by over 1,000 practitioners this academic year and has been expanded to include teachers returning to the profession and those wishing to refresh their skills. In addition, Education Scotland has supported local authorities in Renfrewshire, South Lanarkshire, and Aberdeenshire in response to COVID-19 through a Maths Recovery Pilot; the outcome of which has yet to be evaluated.

Scottish Government is aware that some local authorities offer extensive Maths Recovery training which is not specifically related to the impacts of COVID-19. For example, West Lothian and South Lanarkshire have been offering Maths Recovery for some considerable time.

Question reference: S6W-18551

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 02 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 9 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it last evaluated the pathway into educational psychology.

The Scottish Government and COSLA agreed a joint funding model in 2018 to support the training of new Educational Psychologists. This model was agreed and developed by the National Scottish Steering Group for Educational Psychologists (NSSGEP). The NSSGEP is chaired by the Scottish Government and includes representation from professional bodies, ADES, COSLA and EIS.

The training programme is evaluated by Dundee University in several ways. A six-yearly cycle of periodic programme review is undertaken and was last completed in September 2021. This review concluded with a very positive evaluation of the training programme. The British Psychological Society re-accredits the programme every three years, and provided a positive evaluation in September 2021. The University also conducts an annual programme evaluation to ensure the training programme is meeting the needs of students and to make small improvements as required.

The Scottish Government and COSLA engage and work closely with our training and delivery partners to ensure that the training programme remains robust and sustainable.