Trainee teachers 'still seeking schools'

Primary school trainees are to be told their destination

The Scottish Executive is still trying to fulfil its pledge to find a place for all trainee secondary school teachers.

But the executive said it had found a school for every probationary primary teacher in Scotland.

The promise that every teaching student in the country would receive a one-year placement was part of the McCrone deal, which was approved last year.

The Scottish Executive underestimated the places required

About £800m was set aside over three years by the Scottish Executive to pay for the agreement, which gave teachers a 21.5% pay rise and introduced revised working conditions.

Before the settlement was reached, probationary teachers took approximately three and a half years to gain enough experience to become fully qualified.

Most of them had to clock up experience through supply work or temporary contracts.

In order to boost teacher numbers, the probation period has now been cut to a year.

Every new "probationer" was promised a training post in a school.

Places required

However, the EIS union warned last December that some trainee teachers would find it difficult to secure a placement.

More than 2,000 will graduate this summer, and the Scottish Executive has underestimated the number of places required by about 500.

Some councils have said that they cannot afford to take on the probationer teachers.

The executive said that more than 1,000 primary school students will find out this week where they have been placed.

But it admitted that there was still some work to be done before secondary probationers would know where they are going.