Private schools are more likely to query the marks their pupils receive in exams, fuelling fears that the policy of charging for reviews is disadvantaging state-schooled pupils. Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) figures received by Tes Scotland show that private schools made around a fifth of requests to check exam papers had been marked correctly, despite having only about 4 per cent of the country’s pupils.

Financial sweeteners should be part of a range of incentives to attract school staff to poorer areas, according to a University of Glasgow academic. Writing in The Herald, Professor Chris Chapman said that strong support networks for staff were even more important. Teaching union representatives said money would be better spent on more school resources - including teachers.

All secondary schools in Scotland should produce an annual report on what they are doing to tackle inequality and racism, according to a report on young people’s ideas for race equality. Creating a Fairer Future, written by young people from minority ethnic groups, with help from Young Scot, includes 40 ideas for the Scottish government and other organisations (see bit.ly/FairerFuture).

BT Group has become the first employer in Scotland to receive the highest-possible marks from education inspectors for its Modern Apprenticeship scheme. The company had “excellent” gradings in all five areas assessed by Education Scotland, as part of a review process covering IT and communications Modern Apprenticeships offered by colleges, training providers and employers.