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Daily Record
Daily Record
National
Stephen Temlett

Nearly 90 Dumfries and Galloway teacher jobs re-advertised after failing to be filled

A total of 86 teaching posts were re-advertised in Dumfries and Galloway.

The figures, obtained from a Freedom of Information request, outline the issues facing education bosses in the region.

A principal teacher pupil support post at Castle Douglas High School and a drama teacher post at Stranraer Academy were advertised four times in 2021/22.

The search for an English teacher for Lockerbie Academy and Primary School took three attempts and it was the same story for a French and/or Spanish teacher at Dumfries High School.

Willie Rennie, the education spokesperson for the Scottish Lib Dems, who submitted the freedom of information request, has criticised the Scottish Government for failing to match teachers looking for permanent positions with hundreds of re-advertised posts.

Mr Rennie said: “It will be impossible for young people to reach their potential if we can’t find them teachers.

“And teachers won’t reach their potential if they lurch from one short-term contract to the next.

“The cause is terrible workforce planning which has resulted in missed opportunities for so many young people and so many teachers too.

“Scottish Liberal Democrats have set out a series of proposals to give three-year packages to probationers who are willing to take on hard-to-fill roles, as well as offering “teacher premiums” to reward the best teachers in schools with the greatest need.

“We need a government that addresses these challenges rather than pretending they just don’t exist.”

Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said local authorities were responsible for teacher recruitment and have autonomy to provide incentives to attract teachers to their area.

Ms Somerville added: “We will continue to do everything we can to help them maximise the number of teaching jobs, including permanent posts.

“In 2022/23 we will provide councils with specific funding of £145.5 million per year to support the school workforce and help provide sustained employment to teachers.

“We provide bursaries of £20,000 to encourage more teachers into STEM subjects where the demand for teachers is greatest and, through the Teacher Induction Scheme, we provide incentives of up to £8,000 to encourage probationer teachers to move to more rural areas to help meet recruitment challenges.

“The Scottish Government will continue to work with local authorities to support them to address recruitment issues.”

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