Commenting on the recent statement on school behaviour by Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth in the Scottish Parliament, EIS General Secretary Andrea Bradley said, “This statement did not contain a great deal of detail on the practical steps to be taken and the increased support to be delivered to schools to tackle pupil behaviour, aggression and violence.

“The Cabinet Secretary did announce an additional £900k for training, to be split between Scotland’s 32 local authorities. This amounts to less than £30,000 per local authority or worse still, £360 per school. It won’t nearly touch the sides.

“We look forward to learning what further resource will follow to fund the employment of additional teachers and support for teachers, as they endeavour to meet the needs of children and young people amidst environments that are putting their health and safety directly at risk at the same time as undermining the quality of pupils’ learning.”