Meeting of the Parliament 09 September 2025
I thank Ms Duncan-Glancy for welcoming the guidance. However, I put on the record that I think that that was an unfair characterisation of the Government’s actions since the publication of the BISSR report. I will therefore recount some of the actions that we have taken since the publication of that research.
One of the issues that BISSR highlighted was the role of school inspections in gathering data. Now, the chief inspector is taking direct action to ensure that we have enhanced evidence on relationships and behaviour from every school inspection. I announced that change in November 2023. We also provided funding to support staff and, for example, those who work with challenging behaviour directly in our schools. That was a direct response to the BISSR report’s findings, which I also announced in 2023. We also provided support to improve attendance, including guidance on professional learning, networking and exemplification.
Today, I have given a statement on consequences and risk assessments that relate to the national action plan, which I launched last year. It is therefore an unfair characterisation to suggest that no action has been taken in the interim period. In that period, there has also been the publication of the gender-based violence in schools framework, which has been important in challenging issues around misogyny, which is currently a toxic issue in our schools and, of course, in our political discourse. There was also the interim guidance on racism and racist incidents and the mobile phone guidance that was issued last year.
Therefore, I do not accept that the examples that I provided today in relation to risk assessments and consequences sit in a silo. They are part of a package of responses and funding from this Government, which I have spoken to.
I am conscious of the time, Presiding Officer. The member also made a number of points in relation to staff workload and workforce planning. I hope that it will give her some comfort to know that I will meet representatives of the General Teaching Council for Scotland later this week in relation to those very issues.
Staff workload is a matter for the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers, but I am absolutely committed to our manifesto commitment to reduce class contact. Only by creating the time for teachers will we get the conditions that are necessary to drive education reform.
Ms Duncan-Glancy’s final point related to ASN. She and I, and other members from across the chamber, met to discuss the ASN review last week. I look forward to working with the member on that point and, I hope, arriving at a cross-party consensus on how we can drive a review that meets the aspirations that she rightly set out.