Tes can reveal more details of the Scottish government’s plans to reduce teachers’ class-contact time.

Four and a half years after the manifesto promise was made and less than six months out from the next Scottish Parliament election, ministers tried to jumpstart the policy in an announcement last week.

However, critics said the announcement was thin on details and had emerged without any warning.

Today we can report further details included in a document prepared for a meeting of local authorities’ body Cosla this Friday, which includes the Scottish government contact-time reduction proposal in full - as opposed to the selected details shared last week.

In an address to primary school leaders’ body AHDS last Friday - and also in information published by the government that day - education secretary Jenny Gilruth indicated that delivering the contact time policy may involve a “flexible four-day teaching week model that could offer a dedicated day for professional activities”, as well as “nationally agreed minimum standards on pupil learning hours which could enable later start times, extended breaks or restructured school days”.

These proposals are also mentioned in the Cosla paper prepared for Friday’s meeting - as are other proposals that were not trailed last week.

‘Strategic’ assemblies and timetabling alternatives

These proposals include:

• “Morning assemblies could be used more strategically to support pastoral care and pupil engagement, freeing up time elsewhere in the school day.”
• “Exploring whether digital technology may enable more rapid progress to be made, especially in rural areas and islands, and other areas experiencing teacher recruitment challenges.”
• “Explore different approaches to timetabling, building on the work the National Timetabling Group has already undertaken to model solutions that balance teacher time, pupil learning and operational feasibility.”

The document also highlights that “the Scottish government expects that local pilots or tests of change should begin immediately”, to “explore a range of potential approaches” to reducing contact time by the proposed 90 minutes a week.

However, on Friday Cosla leaders will be asked to agree to say that the organisation has “significant concerns around the cost implications (estimated £250 million to £310 million per year) and the impact on children and young people”.

Cosla warns that “cost implications have not yet been fully acknowledged by Scottish government and that - in the absence of additional resource and the practical challenges of recruiting teachers - to deliver [the contact time policy] would require other local services to be deprioritised”, such as additional support for learning and teaching assistants in schools.

The Cosla paper points to “the knock-on impact locally for other services within education” and says that “the potential impact on children and young people of this ministerial commitment have yet to be set out clearly”.

Cosla is “concerned around the approach taken by [government] to consultation and engagement”. It is “still awaiting on a response” from the education secretary to confirm that the government has “decided not to carry out a full consultation with children and young people on this policy”.

Meanwhile, an EIS teaching union statutory ballot for industrial action on workload that opened on 19 November is due to close on 14 January 2026. This could lead to strike action or industrial action short of a strike between 2 February and 14 July - a period that encompasses the parliamentary election on 7 May. Other teaching unions are also considering industrial action.

Contrasting views over contact time

The Cosla paper says that the view of education directors’ body ADES and local authority chief executives’ body Solace “has been that use of the additional non-class contact time solely for preparation and correction would be unlikely to result in a significant improvement in educational outcomes”. This contrasts with the view of unions, which see reduced contact time primarily as a means to allow more time for preparation and correction.

A government appendix in the Cosla paper states: “On the use of time, we acknowledge the unions’ proposal to redefine non-class contact time as ‘professional time’. While this is a constructive step, further refinement is needed to ensure the time is used in ways that directly support the wider outcomes we are seeking to achieve. We propose exploring options for a revised framework that distinguishes between directed and undirected time, rather than relying solely on the current collegiate versus preparation and correction categories. Subject to successful negotiation, this may offer a more flexible and constructive basis for agreement.”

Last week the EIS union expressed its disappointment that government plans had been “shared with the media, and will be announced at a meeting of headteachers and depute headteachers, before they have been presented to the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers”.

The government also says in the appendix that reduced contact time “should be part of a broader National Deal for Scotland’s Teachers”, which might include:

• “Independent work to examine how reducing unnecessary bureaucracy can improve teacher workload...and guardrails on the use of AI so it can be effectively, safely and ethically adopted in education.”
• “An affordable, equitable and fair pay settlement.”
• “Enhanced terms and conditions of service, such as improved maternity leave arrangements, miscarriage leave, paid leave for fertility treatment and supply teachers’ pay.”
• “A new framework for career-long teacher education and development.”
• “Time for teachers to engage in the Curriculum Improvement Cycle.”
• Through the Centre for Teaching Excellence, “addressing a recognised gap in linking research and evidence”.

The government states: “This package would demonstrate our commitment to supporting teachers and improving education in Scotland, and we believe it would be well received by the profession.

“More than a policy shift, this is a statement of intent to empower Scotland’s teachers with the time, trust and tools they need to deliver transformative learning.”

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