Independent School Census, September 2007

This document contains the results of the annual census of independent schools in Scotland. The results relate to September 2007.

The main findings are:

There were 30,981 pupils in independent schools in Scotland, 462 more than in 2006. This difference consists of an increase of 182 in primary schools, 239 in secondary schools and 41 in special schools from 2006.
This increase is relatively large compared with the fairly stable numbers over the past decade. With the fall in the number of pupils in the population there has therefore been an increase in the percentage of school pupils who are in independent schools. In 1997, when there were more pupils in independent schools than now, 3.9 per cent of school pupils were in the independent sector, compared with 4.5 per cent in 2007 ( Chart 1).
There were a total of 3,396 teachers, an increase of 62 over the 2006 figure. This equates to 9.1 pupils per teacher in 2007. The average (mean) age of teachers was 43. The age profile shows a slight peak in the early fifties, with 17 per cent of teachers aged 55 or over ( Chart 2). Eighty-six per cent of teachers were registered with the General Teaching Council - Scotland.

Schools

There were 107 independent schools open in September 2007, however 50 of these schools had both a primary and secondary department ('through' schools). In the majority of tables (with the exception of table 1.3) primary and secondary departments are counted separately, producing a total of 157 school departments.

Primary pupils

There were 60 independent primary schools in 2007 compared with 61 in 2006 and 63 in 2004 ( table 2.1).
There were 11,758 pupils in independent primary schools in 2007, an increase of 1.6 per cent from 2006. Numbers have fluctuated between 11,559 and 11,844 in recent years ( table 2.1).

Secondary pupils

There were 55 secondary schools in 2007, compared to 57 in 2005. The number of independent secondary schools had previously decreased from 63 in 1999 ( table 3.1).
There were 18,079 pupils in independent secondary schools in 2007, an increase of 1.3 per cent from 2006. The number of pupils has remained fairly steady in recent years ( table 3.1).

Special school pupils

There were 42 independent special schools in 2007, compared to 33 schools in 2005, and 34 in 2006 ( table 4.1).
There were 1,144 pupils in independent special schools in 2007, an increase of 41 from 2006 (table 4.1). Ninety-nine per cent of pupils in independent special schools are funded by local authorities ( table 4.4).

Additional Support Needs

In mainstream independent schools there were 574 pupils (1.9 per cent of all mainstream pupils) with a Coordinated Support Plan ( CSP), an Individualised Educational Programme ( IEP) and/or with provision levels set by a Record of Needs ( RoN) pre-dating the implementation of the Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004. There were also 2,314 (7.8 per cent) non-recorded pupils with additional support needs in independent mainstream schools (tables 2.10 and 3.8).
For 2007 information on pupils' additional support needs may be recorded under the old categories (of main difficulty of learning) or new categories (of reason for support). Although the two systems do not directly map onto each other and there is some risk of double counting (where schools may have reported under both systems) it is possible to get an approximate value for the total level of additional support needs by combining the two sets of data.
Among pupils in mainstream independent schools the most commonly recorded support needs across the two systems were learning difficulties in language and mathematics (including dyslexia) (11.2 per 1,000 pupils) and learning difficulties (4.2 per 1,000 pupils) (tables 2.7, 2.9, 3.5 and 3.7).
In special schools the most prevalent categories were social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (732 per 1,000 pupils) and autistic spectrum disorder (166 per 1,000 pupils) (tables 4.5 and 4.7).

Teachers

There were 895 teachers ( FTE) in independent primary schools (13.1 pupils per teacher) and 2,142 teachers ( FTE) in independent secondary schools (8.4 pupils per teacher). This gives a pupil teacher ratio in mainstream schools of 9.8, the same as in 2006.
There were 358 teachers ( FTE) in independent special schools. This equates to 3.2 pupils per teacher ( table 5.1).
Eleven per cent of independent school teachers present in the 2006 census where not in the independent sector in 2007. A further one per cent had moved schools ( chart 3).

The Scottish Government