‘Worrying’ fall in Scots school inspector visits with only one in 18 subject to spot checks

THE number of Scottish school inspections has halved over the last decade.

Just one in 18 schools are inspected in Scotland, compared to one in four in England, according to a Sunday Post Freedom of Information request.

Education Scotland has 2627 schools within its remit, but just 5% – 22 secondary, 102 primary and 19 special schools – were subject to spot checks last year.

Bosses at the under-fire inspectorate have now pledged to step up the number of inspections. They said Education Scotland has focused on helping teachers implement the Curriculum for Excellence.

But Scottish Labour’s education spokesman Iain Gray described the figures as “worrying”.

The MSP added: “We need much more regular inspections, especially to monitor the impact of SNP cuts to our schools. Instead it looks like the SNP is happy to turn a blind eye, despite slashing £1.5 billion from the budgets of local councils since 2011.

“That isn’t good enough. We have heard a lot of warm words from the SNP government about its commitment to education and cutting the attainment gap, but the actions of the government suggest otherwise.”

Questions are also being asked about the inspectorate’s workforce as there are only 44 full-time inspectors – each covering 59 schools.

The criticism comes after Scotland’s worst Programme for International Student Assessment performance.

Scores for maths, reading and science declined. It was the first time since the tests began in 2000 that all three subject areas were classed as average, with none above average.

But bosses rejected claims that fewer schools were being inspected than in England, claiming the systems were different.

An Education Scotland spokesman said: “In Scotland there’s a three-level approach to evaluating and improving education.

“Schools have a responsibility to evaluate their performance, local authorities have statutory duties around quality improvement and reporting, and the third level is inspection which reflects national education policy.

“Our HM Inspectors are also expected to adhere to a set of principles that have been shaped by the Scottish Government’s policy on scrutiny improvement.

“Education Scotland announced its commitment to increasing school inspections over the coming years and we are confident that we will deliver on this promise.”

A Scottish Government spokesman added: “It is not correct to compare inspections in England with those in Scotland, as inspections in Scotland have been tailored to our specific education system.”