Teachers Scotland: 'Invaluable' experience of older teachers being lost from Scottish schools as more turn to early retirement

Data shows surge in number of ‘worn-down’ teachers accessing pensions early

Scottish schools are suffering from the loss of invaluable experience as more “worn-down” teachers take early retirement.

The head of a leading teaching union said it used to be “unusual” for staff to leave the profession early, but it is now “increasingly common” in an era of rising pupil violence and high workloads.

Figures, obtained by Conservative MSP Liam Kerr, also show the number of teachers accessing their pensions before normal pension age has soared in Scotland in the past few years.

A school teacher looking stressed next to piles of classroom books. PA/PA Wire

In 2019, a total of 677 members of the Scottish Teachers' Superannuation Scheme (STSS) and Scottish Teachers' Pension Scheme 2015 (STPS 2015) “opted to retire” before normal pension age.

By 2022, the number had more than doubled to 1,481, before falling slightly last year to 1,338 teachers.

The figures may double-count some staff who took pension benefits from both schemes before normal pension age. The Scottish Government also said the statistics do not represent the number of teachers retiring early, but the number claiming their pension early, with the increase coming at a time when the state pension age has risen to 66.

The data has emerged just weeks after figures showed a huge increase in the number of teachers quitting the profession within five years of starting their careers.

Andrea Bradley, general secretary of the Educational Institute of Scotland teaching union, said: “We know that teachers are increasingly leaving the profession early, often as a result of being worn-down by a combination of excessive workload, rising pupil violence and aggression, and the huge increase in the number of young people with unsupported additional support needs in classrooms.

"In the past, it was unusual for teachers to leave the profession early. Now it is becoming increasingly common, denying schools and young people of the invaluable experience that these teachers offer.

"The underfunding of the education system for many years, unmet Scottish Government promises on the recruitment of additional teachers and reductions in teacher class-contact time, coupled with the long-term erosion in the real-terms value of teacher pay, are all contributing to more teachers choosing to leave early in order to preserve both their physical and mental wellbeing.”

Under the STPS 2015, which replaced older schemes in 2015, the normal pension age is 65 or the current state pension age, whichever is later. For the STSS, it is age 60 for those who joined the scheme before 2007, and 65 for those who joined after.

Mr Kerr, Conservative education spokesman, said: “Resources in schools are already under severe pressure. The fact hundreds of teachers are retiring early every year is only making that worse.“We talk about how crucial it is to attract new people into teaching to ensure sufficient staffing numbers for the future.

“But it’s also essential that we retain as many experienced teachers as possible. They are absolutely vital to the system.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: "Pupil teacher ratios across the country remain at near record levels. Scotland also has the most teachers per pupil and the highest paid teachers in the UK, showing how much the Scottish Government values the profession.

"The 2024/25 Budget further supports teachers, with an investment of £145 million to protect teacher numbers.”