PUPILS in primary schools will be guaranteed at least 25 hours a week teaching time for the first time under new legislation.
The Scottish Government is to bring forward an amendment to the Education Bill which will require councils to deliver 950 hours teaching a year.
Local authorities must currently open schools for 190 days annually, but the length and structure of the day is not specified in legislation.
The move to amend the Bill, currently before the Scottish Parliament, follows concern form teachers and parents that some councils were intending to save money by cutting the length of the school day.
And a recent survey by right of centre think tank Reform Scotland showed a vast disparity between the number of hours pupils were being taught in primary and secondary schools across the country.
Angela Constance, the education secretary, said: "We are working with local authorities, parents and others to ensure our education system delivers both excellence and equity for every child.
"Scotland’s teachers are absolutely critical to these efforts. That’s why we will legislate to provide certainty for pupils, parents and teachers about the length of the school week – a guarantee that every one of our children and young people should expect and which they deserve.
"Decisions on the amount of time with teachers, in class and at school, should always be made based on the potential educational benefit for children, rather than on how much money can be saved.”
The Cabinet Secretary also announced plans to ensure a minimum school clothing grant for pupils.
She added: “A very real cost to parents struggling to make ends meet is school uniforms. While local authorities currently have a general duty to make provision, it is clear from our discussions with a number of organisations that there is inconsistency across Scotland."
The Educational Institute of Scotland teaching union welcomed the new minimum teaching time guarantee.
Larry Flanagan, general secretary of the EIS, said: "We warmly welcome the Scottish Government's announcement that it will legislate the length of the primary pupil week to ensure it will remain at 25 hours.
"We have always been vehemently opposed to any attempts to reduce the length of the pupil week which would serve only to dilute the quality of education in Scotland's primary schools. This important piece of legislation will help to ensure that teachers' jobs and pupils’ learning are protected."
The Reform Scotland survey found Aberdeenshire Council and West Dunbartonshire Council offered the most teaching time with 1,000 hours a year in primary.
In contrast, Moray offers the least primary school time at 851 hours – although the council said this was only for P1-3 pupils.
Earlier this year, Fife, Highland and West Dunbartonshire councils suggested cutting the primary school week from 25 hours to 22.5 hours to save money.
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