Education

School spending per pupil highest in Scotland, lowest in Northern Ireland

Stephen Richard — Tue, 26 Oct 2021 21:24:13 +0000

School spending per pupil highest in Scotland, lowest in Northern Ireland

Primary Author or Creator

Luke Sibieta

Stephen Richard Tue, 10/26/2021 - 22:24

Additional Author(s) / Creators

Institute for Fiscal Studies

Date Published

Fri, 10/22/2021 - 12:00

Category

Education

Fast Facts

In the current year (2021–22), core school spending per pupil is expected to be highest in Scotland (over £7,500) compared to England (£6,700) and Wales (£6,600), and lowest in Northern Ireland (£6,400).

More details

Scotland: Spending per pupil fell by 7% in real terms between 2009–10 and 2014–15. In contrast to the rest of the UK, there has since been a big recovery in spending per pupil. This was partially driven by the large increases in teacher pay in Scotland in 2018 and 2019, as well as extra COVID spending (not included in figures for other nations). However, even after making plausible adjustments, core spending per pupil in Scotland in 2021–22 is still likely to be over 6% higher than in 2009–10 and over £800 higher than in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Luke Sibieta, IFS Research Fellow and author, said:

‘Over the last decade, there were cuts to school spending per pupil right across the UK. In Scotland, large recent increases mean that spending has more than recovered and core spending per pupil is now likely to be over £800 higher than in the rest of the UK. Despite recent increases, spending per pupil in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is still close to or just below levels seen a decade earlier.

‘However, it is important to remember higher spending need not automatically translate into better educational outcomes. Indeed, international comparisons of test scores suggest numeracy and science scores were declining in high-spending Scotland relative to the OECD average up to 2018. It remains to be seen whether extra spending in Scotland since 2018 will arrest this trend.’

Josh Hillman, Director of Education at the Nuffield Foundation, said:

‘This IFS analysis shows that the increasing divergence in education policy between the four nations of the UK extends to school spending per pupil, where funding to support Scottish pupils has held up better than for their counterparts in the other nations. A major cause for concern is that funding for education recovery programmes in response to the pandemic is much lower across all four nations than those being implemented in comparable countries.’

Resource Address (URL)

https://ifs.org.uk/publications/15764

Keywords

Education

Scottish educational expenditure

Language English

Class Rules: the truth about Scottish schools: review

Stephen Richard — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 10:33:52 +0000

Class Rules: the truth about Scottish schools: review

Primary Author or Creator

Sue Palmer

Stephen Richard Tue, 10/12/2021 - 11:33

Additional Author(s) / Creators

Bella Caledonia

Date Published

Tue, 10/12/2021 - 12:00

Category

Education

Type of Resource

News Item

Fast Facts

A supportive review of the book "Class Rules: the truth about Scottish schools"

Resource Address (URL)

https://bellacaledonia.org.uk/2021/10/12/class-rules-the-truth-about-scottish-s…

Keywords

Education

Educational attainment gap

Schools

Language English

Class Rules: the Truth about Scottish Schools

Stephen Richard — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 10:28:19 +0000

Class Rules: the Truth about Scottish Schools

Primary Author or Creator

James McEnaney

Stephen Richard Tue, 10/12/2021 - 11:28

Alternative Published Date

2021

Category

Education

Length (Pages, words, minutes etc...)

238pp

Fast Facts

James McEnaney tells the truth about Scottish schools. Class Rules makes the key issues about Scotland's education system accessible to all. He delves into the successes and failures of the Curriculum for Excellence. He interrogates the rhetoric around closing the 'attainment gap' between the richest and poorest pupils. And he considers the impact of the global Covid-19 pandemic. This book looks to the future to ask what changes can be made to improve the system for young people across the country. It is a must-read for anyone interested in the future of schools in Scotland.

Resource Address (URL)

https://uk.bookshop.org/books/class-rules-the-truth-about-scottish-schools/9781…

Keywords

Education

Schools

Curriculum for Excellence

Educational attainment gap

Language English

Scottish economic statistics

Stephen Richard — Sat, 02 Oct 2021 18:26:51 +0000

Scottish economic statistics

Primary Author or Creator

Scottish Enterprise

Stephen Richard Sat, 10/02/2021 - 19:26

Alternative Published Date

2021

Category

Economy

Type of Resource

government report

Fast Facts

This paper gives key statistics in graphic form showing such things as: Population 5.4 million, GDP as £166.8 billion or £30,530 per person, employment as 74.8%, unemployment as 4.2%, average weekly full time wage as £595, and many more.

Resource Address (URL)

https://www.scottish-enterprise.com/learning-zone/research-and-publications/com…

Keywords

Language English

Scotland has got what it takes to be an independent country

Stephen Richard — Wed, 29 Sep 2021 10:25:07 +0000

Scotland has got what it takes to be an independent country

Primary Author or Creator

Olaf Stando

Stephen Richard Wed, 09/29/2021 - 11:25

Additional Author(s) / Creators

Scottish National Party

Date Published

Sat, 11/28/2020 - 12:00

Alternative Published Date

2020

Category

Independence

Type of Resource

Political Party Paper

Fast Facts

Independence is about the right of people in Scotland to decide their own future

We’re the ideal size

Scotland is a wealthy nation with a big economy

We’re educated and talented

We have extraordinary energy resources

We export high quality produce and goods

We are at the cutting edge of the industries of the future

We’re big enough, rich enough and smart enough – even opponents of independence believe so

Resource Address (URL)

https://www.snp.org/scotland-has-got-what-it-takes/

Keywords

Language English

Renew: Six policies that can refresh the Scottish Government’s domestic agenda

Stephen Richard — Sat, 04 Sep 2021 09:26:21 +0000

Renew: Six policies that can refresh the Scottish Government’s domestic agenda

Primary Author or Creator

Common Weal

Stephen Richard Sat, 09/04/2021 - 10:26

Date Published

Fri, 05/26/2017 - 12:00

Category

Democracy

Scottish government

Type of Resource

Policy Paper

Fast Facts

This paper proposes six policy ways to renew the Scottish Government’s domestic agenda through fresh and eye-catching policy transformation after 10 years in power at Holyrood.

More details

The Scottish Government has been in power for ten years. It has also just faced an election in which there were some clear signs of discontent about the risk of stagnation and a perceived lack of ambition.

All governments must renew themselves if they wish to remain relevant; the Scottish Government is no exception. It swept to power in a swell of optimism and has, until now, strengthened and consolidated its position by continuing to talk the language of hope and progress.

However, people may be beginning to question whether there has been sufficient progress to sustain their hope. The Scottish Government requires an eye-catching refreshed agenda to persuade them that their hope remains well placed. Common Weal has been publishing policy papers on domestic policy throughout this parliament and has built up a suite of well researched and popular proposals.

This short paper proposes six ‘collections’ of policies that the Scottish Government should embrace and pursue as a way to let Scotland know its ambition has not dimmed and its radicalism remains in place.

1: Create a Scottish National Investment Bank and use it to finance an era of green reindustrialisation.

2: Build the homes and infrastructure that people need and rebuild the town centres they deserve.

3: Create a world-class childcare system.

4: Take democracy seriously and give more power to citizens.

5: Send out the right signals.

Resource Address (URL)

https://commonweal.scot/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Renew-Six-policies-that-can-…

Keywords

Scottish National Investment Bank

House building

Child care

Democracy