Scottish teachers are hitting out at years of budget cuts they say have left their schools in a “desperate situation”.
In a recent poll of EIS union members in Fife, 84% of those surveyed said that their schools did not have enough staff to “support pupil safety”, while 78% said that there was not enough staff to ensure staff safety.
Similarly, 86% of respondents reported having to regularly spend their own money to buy resources for the classroom.
57% said they were unable to photocopy enough resources for learners, and 55% felt their school building was unsuitable for 21st century education.
Just 4.5% of teachers thought their school had enough trained staff to support pupils with mental health issues.
EIS’ Fife spokesperson, Graeme Keir, said that schools have dealt with “years of cuts dressed up in the language of reviews, re-organisation and even, this time round, as empowerment”.
He added: “Our results clearly show the desperate situation in many schools and that’s before the next round of cuts. Fife Council is consulting on a 3.2% real terms cut in next year’s devolved school management budgets and deeper cuts in subsequent years.”
One EIS member shared their experience: “One day management were all covering a class, and a pupil was very dysregulated injuring both teachers and pupils. There was no management available to call for support in order to take the pupil away (or watch the pupil in order for class to evacuate) for them to regulate themselves, and in doing so protect teacher and pupils from serious injuries.
“In that situation, if a classroom assistant had been an option, the situation could have been handled sooner with more support available to them and also to support the teacher.”
According to the union, Fife Council is considering £667,000 in cuts to school budgets in 2027–28 and £1 million the year after.
EIS claims the local authority would target Devolved School Management (DSM) budgets, which fund a range of essential services.
Donald Macleod, Fife Council’s executive director of education denied that Education savings proposals had been made.
He said: "There are currently no Education savings proposals under consideration for the 2026/27 budget.
“The budget for Education will increase for 2026/27 mainly due to making provision for the agreed pay awards, which are an additional 0.25% from 1 April 2026 and 3.25% from 1 August 2026."
Read more:
- 'You are not alone': Open letter welcomes asylum seekers to Scottish city
- Daily Record to be printed in England as 100 jobs face axe in shock plant closure
- Ex-Starmer adviser who campaigned for Scots paedophile has Labour whip removed
However, Keir remarked: “We’ve seen Fife Council officials say that no cuts are coming this year. But, people know, especially after the last few years, that if income stays the same but everything costs more then there has to be cutbacks.
“If the DSM budget doesn't go up but everything costs more, then headteachers will have to make cuts. This is what we mean by a real terms cut.”
EIS has called on parents, teachers, and support staff to attend a public meeting to protest the potential cuts.
The meeting will take place on Wednesday, February 18 at 7pm in Rothes Halls, Glenrothes.
Share