Councils spent £77m on supply teachers

THE soaring cost of supply teachers in Scotland’s schools is revealed in “eye-watering” new figures obtained by the Scottish Conservatives.

- By Ben Borland

The stats, in response to a series of freedom of information requests, show that in 2024/25 alone, councils spent £76,653,429 on supply teachers — likely to be the highest on record.

Over the last three years, some £277.4m has been spent on supply teachers, with annual costs rising year on year since at least 2021.

Overall, the annual bill has soared by £13m in just four years.