Our Man in Holyrood: Extra teachers is the best way to support youngsters as Fergus Ewing says 'I am acutely aware how the last few years have been so terribly difficult for children, parents and teachers alike'
A very happy new year to all Courier readers and my best wishes to you and your family for the coming year. Let us hope it is a more peaceful one than previous and that we can finally see the effects of Covid-19 in our communities begin to lessen.
This week, I have returned back for parliamentary business and thinking ahead as to what wishes I seek to achieve as your MSP for the coming year. Education is a matter that remains firmly a priority in my mind.
I was therefore pleased to return back for the meeting of the Scottish Parliament’s education committee.
I am acutely aware how the last few years have been so terribly difficult for children, parents and teachers alike as we’ve all adapted to a new way of life and learning due to lockdown restrictions. We know that reforms affecting children in the early years of their life, particularly in those crucial early years of educations, are key to ensuring real progress on raising attainment in our education system and efforts to end decades of education inequality that has sadly existed in Scotland.
It was therefore welcome to see an allocation of £145.5 million from the Scottish Government Budget to ensure the sustained employment of additional teachers and classroom assistants – enough for around 2500 teachers and 500 support staff. This represents the biggest increase to support teacher recruitment since 2007 and I’m sure will be welcomed by many teachers, parents and pupils across the country.
Getting extra teachers into classrooms is the best way to support our children and young people who have been so badly affected by the pandemic, and to help the existing school staff who have gone to mighty efforts to continue for our young people to receive education. I am sure that we will see the benefit of this funding across the Highlands in the months to come.
n Many readers will be as pleased as I was to hear that residents in Scotland under 22 will be eligible for free bus travel from January 31.
Applications are now open for Scotland’s young persons’ free bus travel scheme. Information about it, including how to apply, is available online, or please do feel free to get in touch with my office and we can provide you with the details.
The legislative change will allow approximately 930,000 young people to join the third of Scotland’s population who already benefit from free bus travel through the older and disabled persons free bus scheme.
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