Summary statistics for schools in Scotland no. 9: 2018 edition

Chapter 5: Early Learning and Childcare

99% of 3 & 4 year olds are registered for funded ELC (99% in 2017)

10% of 2 year olds are registered for funded ELC (10% in 2017)

Table 5.1 shows that there were 96,549 registrations for funded ELC places in September 2018, an increase of 0.7% since September 2017 when there were 95,893 registrations. This suggests around 99% of eligible 3 and 4 year olds were registered (99% in 2017). Children registered to receive funded ELC at more than one centre may be counted more than once, and so this will slightly overestimate true uptake.

Table 5.1: Registrations⁽¹⁾ for funded early learning and childcare at local authority and partnership centres, September 2018

(1) This is a snapshot of registrations at census week (17-21 September 2018). It does not include children who were registered between census week and the end of December.

(2) Refers to academic year - 3 and 4 year olds were previously referred to as ‘ante pre-school’ and ‘pre-school’ respectively.

(3) Eligible children are estimated from National Records of Scotland population projections. For 3 year olds, only around half of children are eligible at the time of the census (17-21 September 2018).

(4) Refers to children who are eligible to attend primary school but have deferred entry and remain in funded ELC.

The number of 2 year olds registered has increased from 5,363 in 2017 to 5,701 in 2018. This represents an uptake of approximately ten per cent of all 2 year olds, with uptake remaining around the same level as in 2017. Around a quarter of 2 year olds are now eligible for funded ELC through the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 and through subsequent secondary legislation which commenced in August 2015.

Prior to 2011, the graduate workforce working in ELC was only formed of teachers. However, since 2011 they have only made up part of this workforce as a Bachelor’s degree (SCQF level 9) in Childhood Practice was introduced. From 2017, the census data collection was expanded to reflect this change in the workforce. The FTE and job type of graduate staff (with a SCQF level 9 qualification relevant to early years) working in ELC, other than teachers are now collected. Data has also been collected on ELC staff that do not hold a graduate level qualification (SCQF level 9) relevant to early years that were working towards the benchmark degree level qualifications required for registration with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) as a manager/lead practitioner. See the background notes for a list of the SSSC benchmark qualifications.

Table 5.2 shows that the FTE of graduates working in ELC with degrees relevant to early years, other than teachers, was 2,302, an increase of 229 compared with 2,074 recorded in 2017. The FTE of ELC staff working towards the SSSC benchmark degree level qualifications has increased by 87 to 1,098 in 2018, compared with 1,011 in 2017. Finally, there were 821 FTE teachers working in ELC at the time of the census, compared with 921 in 2017.

Table 5.2: FTE of teachers, graduate staff, and staff working towards graduate qualifications at centres providing funded early learning and childcare, by local authority

(1) GTCS registered teachers. Includes teachers in ELC centres, centrally employed teachers, and home visiting teachers.

(2) Includes staff that hold: a degree level benchmark qualification required by the SSSC for registration as a manager/lead practitioner (see background notes for list of benchmark qualifications); a degree level (SCQF level 9) qualification relevant to early years and are working towards a degree level benchmark qualification required by the SSSC for registration as a manager/lead practitioner; or a degree level qualification sufficient to meet the registration standards of another regulatory body (e.g. Nursing and Midwifery Council, General Medical Council).

(3) Staff that do not hold degrees (SCQF level 9) relevant to early years, but are working towards a SSSC benchmark degree level qualification for registration as a manager/lead practitioner.

Table 5.3 shows the characteristics of teachers in ELC. The vast majority of teachers (94%) are female, although since 2015 the proportion of male teachers has doubled from 3% to 6%. Since 2012, the average age of teachers has remained around age 45. Data on age and gender is only available for teachers, although they only form part of the graduate workforce in ELC.

Table 5.3: ELC Teacher characteristics percentages⁽¹⁾, 2018

(1) Figures are based on headcount

Chart 2 shows the age profile of GTCS registered ELC teachers, as at September 2018.  The number of teachers generally increases with age, with peaks at ages 35 and 48, before decreasing sharply after age 57.

Chart 2: Age profile of GTCS registered early learning and childcare teachers