A NEW recruitment drive has been launched in Scotland to attract more teachers to the profession.

The campaign will focus on particular shortages in key subjects such as science, technology, engineering and maths - the so called Stem subjects.

The Scottish Government has come under fire for a decline in the number of Stem teachers in recent years.

The Scottish Conservatives called for action to reverse the fall earlier this year, citing a nine per cent drop in Stem teachers since the SNP took power 2007.

The number of pupils sitting maths and core science subjects at Higher in 2015 also suffered a decline after several years of progress.

Education Secretary Angela Constance said the recruitment drive was aimed at finding "high-quality, passionate teachers" in subjects where there is demand.

The minister said the Inspiring Teachers campaign would focus on attracting new graduates into the teaching profession as well as those working in industry who wanted a career change.

The campaign will feature people from Scottish business, industry, media and science, sharing their memories of the teachers that inspired them and helped them get where they are today.

Ms Constance said: "Teaching is a vital, highly-valued and rewarding profession, an opportunity to use your skills to shape the lives of the next generation.

"We all remember a teacher who inspired us, who brought their subject to life, and we want everyone to share their stories to help attract the best talent into educating young people today.

"This is alongside action we are already taking to maintain teacher numbers, encourage and support extra graduates into hard-to-recruit subjects and rural areas."

The Education Secretary also announced £1.5 million of funding for projects to boost resources for schools in disadvantaged areas.

She added: "I am determined that no child or young person should have to miss out for financial reasons. That's why I'm announcing schools in every council area in Scotland will share in further Access to Education funding to tackle inequalities and narrow the attainment gap."

Scottish Labour's opportunity spokesman Iain Gray said: "Addressing the shortages of teachers in Stem subjects is critical for Scotland's future.

"Inspiring teachers is a welcome idea. But the hard fact is that if you are a graduate and choose to enter physics teacher training in England, you will get a bursary of up to £25,000 tax free.

"Launching a video does not really cut it. Anecdotally I have heard from those involved in teacher training that any would-be physics teachers who are mobile are heading for training in England. They will almost certainly go on to teach there, and be lost to our schools for ever."

In August, six Scottish councils announced an emergency summit to address crippling teacher shortages.

Local authorities covering Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Moray, the Highlands, the Orkney Islands and the Shetland Islands have joined forces to try and find a solution to the long-running problem.

The councils want to see a national plan developed by the Scottish Government to increase the number of teachers available to schools.

The six local authorities combined have recently spent about £1million on advertising and have launched a number of initiatives which have included innovative financial incentive packages and housing support.

Among the potential solutions to be discussed at the summit will be the formation of a national task force to draw up an action plan to address the problem. Consideration could also be given to a north ‘weighting allowance’ for public sector workers, similar to that which has been introduced in London.