Scottish school leavers going to college or university hits record high

The number of school leavers going on to either college or university has reached the highest level on record, education secretary John Swinney has said.

School leave numbers heading to university or college in Scotland have hit a record high. Picture: Chris Radburn/PA Wire

The latest figures on school leaver destinations showed more than three out of five continued their education, with 38 per cent last year going on to higher education and 23 per cent opting for further education.

However, the figures also showed that one in ten youngsters from Scotland’s most deprived areas were unemployed after leaving school, with the proportion of school leavers joining the dole queue almost four times higher than it is for teenagers from better-off communities.

Scottish Government statistics showed that in April this year 92.9 per cent of youngsters who left school in 2018/19 were classed as being in a “positive destination” – such as having gone on to college, university, work or training – down slightly from 93.3 per cent the previous year.

The report stressed the figures were from early April 2020 “and therefore will not reflect the full impact of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic”. While the proportion going to university fell slightly from the 39 per cent of leavers in 2017/18, the number opting for further education increased from the 22.6 per cent recorded that year.

More than a quarter (28 per cent) of the most recent group of school leavers went on to find a job – down slightly from the 28.3 per cent who went into work after finishing school in 2017/18.

A further 2.3 per cent of those who left school in 2018/19 went into training, according to the data, while 5.8 per cent were unemployed.

But in the most deprived areas, 9.9 per cent of school leavers were out of work, compared with 2.6 per cent from the least-deprived communities. Overall the “depriviation gap” fell, with 88.3 per cent of youngsters from the poorest areas classed as being in a positive destination, compared with 96.7 per cent for those from the most affluent communities.

The gap in achievement has now more than halved since 2009/10, the Scottish Government said.

Mr Swinney, who is also the deputy first minister, said: “While the proportion of young people studying, training or working within nine months of leaving school has fallen slightly since last year, it is still historically high and testament to the Curriculum for Excellence that gives young people the necessary skills and experiences to progress in life.”