The annual teacher census is a valid staffing snapshot but not a whole-year employment-security measure.
09Documented evidence
Statistics · Employment security · Definitions
What the teacher figures do — and do not — show
Which aspects of employment security are visible in official teacher statistics, and which require different measures?
What the reviewed evidence establishes
What we know.
Post type and a person’s broader experience of secure hours, continuity and income are not identical concepts.
The paid-workforce collection and on-roll census have different coverage and should not be subtracted to infer unemployment.
Evidence boundary
What this does not establish.
- A campaign survey can add experience evidence but is not automatically nationally representative.
- Some apparent blind spots concern the headline measure rather than every government dataset.
Original evidence
Check the sources.
Source notes state what was reviewed and the qualification that should remain attached when the material is cited.
Pupil and teacher characteristics 2025: Background notes
Scottish Government
Teacher definitions, headcount, mode of working and employment type
What this source can and cannot establish
The annual staffing snapshot does not measure every aspect of whole-year employment security.
Pupil and teacher characteristics 2025: School teachers
Scottish Government
Figures 10, 12, 13 and 14
What this source can and cannot establish
Post FTE, cohort headcount and other categories answer different questions and should not be treated as interchangeable.
Teacher workforce statistics: FOI/202600501742
Scottish Government
Coverage of the 2025 Teaching Staff FTE Pay Data Collection
What this source can and cannot establish
The paid-workforce collection differs from the on-roll census. Subtracting one from the other does not produce an unemployment estimate.
Next investigation
10From proposal to decision to outcome