Improving relationships and behaviour in schools: ensuring safe and consistent environments for all. Joint action plan 2024 - 2027: 2nd Annual Progress Report

Theme 4: Supporting the workforce

Action 12: Support all education settings to have a planned and ongoing programme to promote staff wellbeing.

During phase 2, the Scottish Government continued provide annual funding of £120,000 to Know You More to offer free wellbeing coaching to teaching staff and educational professionals across Scottish schools CLD and early learning facilities. This coaching aims to help provide a safe and confidential place for them to focus on their own wellbeing and we know from their feedback how helpful it can be.

Further work to consider the Education workforce – health and wellbeing support: report, published by ADES and the Scottish Government in November 2024, will be taken forward during phase 3.

Action 13: Empower staff through provision of relevant professional learning to support relationships and behaviour approaches and practice and to respond to emerging trends in behaviour.

Education Scotland has expanded its professional learning offer to support relationships and behaviour. Professional Learning ‘informed’ level modules are now available online for all four themes of Relationships (12 modules), Rights and Equalities (7 modules), Wellbeing and Care (3 modules), and Inclusion (6 modules). Further ‘skilled’ level modules are being developed, with the first on Hate Crime and Prejudice Based Behaviours available online. There continues to be strong demand for this professional learning. All the modules are freely available for self-directed learning.

The relationships professional learning is also being delivered bi-annually as part of two national Webinar series called ‘Relationships Matter’ and Keeping Trauma in Mind. Both professional learning programmes were delivered during August and September 2025 to complement and support the launch and implementation of the Fostering positive, inclusive and safe environments guidance and the Violent, aggressive and dangerous behaviour risk assessment guidance. See Theme 2 for participation and reach of these national professional learning sessions. Beyond national delivery several local authorities have requested smaller inputs around the new national guidance and related professional learning for their Learning Festivals or for targeted groups of staff such as probationers.

As outlined in action 5, Education Scotland delivered bespoke professional learning sessions in support of the publication of new guidance, including Fostering a positive, inclusive and safe school environment, Risk Assessments for violent, aggressive and dangerous behaviour, Addressing racism and racist incidents in schools, and A Whole school approach to racism and racist incidents. Overall, 747 practitioners attended the launch events.

A national webinar, Relational and Restorative Approaches in action: Insight from Scottish Education, was delivered to 130 participants in partnership with the Scottish Centre for Conflict Resolution, Scottish Mediation and Mentors in Violence Prevention. This webinar, along with others in the Relationships Matter series, is now freely available on the Education Scotland Relationships and Behaviour Playlist.

As outlined in Action 14 below, work is ongoing to develop professional learning for the additional support needs (ASN) workforce.

Education Scotland, in partnership with YouthLink Scotland, respectme and the SG Hate Crime Strategic Partnership group, developed and published two professional learning (PL) resources on Prejudice Based Behaviour and Hate Crime. Education Scotland ran a webinar in September 2025 to launch the resources. Both resources are hosted within the Rights and Equalities theme of the Inclusion, Wellbeing and Equalities Professional Learning Framework. The Inclusion, Wellbeing and Equalities Professional Learning Framework supports anyone working with children and young people in an educational context. It can also support those who work with adult learners, parents, carers, families and in community learning contexts. The skilled level and informed level resources aim to:

• raise awareness of prejudice-based behaviours and hate crime in education settings
• increase confidence in identifying early signs of prejudice-based behaviours and hate crime
• develop an understanding of what to do when prejudice-based behaviours and hate crime occur, including how to report them and support those affected

During phase 1, Time for Inclusive Education launched the new ‘Digital Discourse Initiative’ created with ISD Global. This is a bespoke professional learning course which helps schools teach students to assess sources, fact-check, and spot false or prejudicial conspiracy theories. As part of the 2025/26 Programme for Government, the Scottish Government provided support to TIE to expand its Digital Discourse Initiative (DDI). Since the initiative was launched in January 2025, more than 1500 teachers have registered on the platform and gone through the CPD and nearly 5000 teachers and educators have participated in showcase professional development sessions, highlighting key tools from the Digital Discourse Initiative.

As outlined in Action 10, the Mental Health in Schools Working Group has been reviewing and refreshing the existing professional learning resources, originally developed in 2021 to ensure they remain relevant and aligned with the current context and evidence. This includes the professional learning resource on supporting children and young people’s mental health which is expected to be updated in 2026.

Action 14: Identify and promote the approaches to curriculum design, pedagogy, and assessment to facilitate learner engagement of all children and young people.

The Scottish Government funded Education Scotland to develop the first free, national, certificated Additional Support Needs (ASN) Teachers’ Professional Learning Programme. The programme is being developed in collaboration with a pilot group of experienced ASN teachers from 30 local authorities, with a strong focus on the five roles of an ASN teacher and working effectively with others supporting learners across the learning establishments

The national launch session was held in December 2025, and involves teachers from 30 local authorities. An action plan to support the work has been developed by Education Scotland’s ASN Education Support Associates, which identifies focus areas including professional learning.