SNCT Update

Imposed changes to conditions of service and the payment of supply staff take effect from 1 September 2011. The changes are likely to cause confusion and uncertainty for supply staff and simply confuse payroll departments. The SNCT document relating to these conditions of service is available from http://www.snct.org.uk/ and the most important changes are listed below in bullet points: • There are now 3 categories of teacher employment. These are permanent, short term contract and supply. • The changes have…

Members Update

Dear Colleague Hopefully you start the new session in a stress-free and positive mood after a relaxing holiday. I apologise if anything in this update reduces the positive effect of the holidays, and assure you that is not my intention. Regrettably teachers are returning to a changed working environment with the imposed changes to conditions of service now a reality. It's interesting that, despite holiday s and other commitments, time was found to produce the wording for these new conditions…

Pre-Retirement Courses

These courses are offered exclusively by the SSTA every year. The Courses are designed for members who are approaching retirement. This course covers; investment, state benefits, superannuation, the need for planning, taxation in retirement. The courses are normally held between April and June in various locations across Scotland. Details of the events will be posted on-line and in the Bulletin when details are finalised.

Faculty Arrangements in Edinburgh City

TO PROMOTED POSTHOLDERS IN EDINBURGH CITY Dear Colleague FACULTY ARRANGEMENTS IN EDINBURGH CITY The current move in Edinburgh City towards faculty arrangements appears to have been left very substantially in the hands of headteachers rather than involve senior officials of the authority who might have experience in employment matters. As a result, a significant amount of misinformation may be circulating. It is not clear whether headteachers themselves have been inaccurately advised. The Association offers the following advice to promoted postholders.…

Congress 2011 Videos

Video of the Guest Speech and a selection of the debate at Congress 2011 Peter Wright giving the Presidential address to Congress 2011 Mike Jennings, IFUT General Secretary speech at SSTA Congress 2011 - Part 1 Mike Jennings, IFUT General Secretary speech at SSTA Congress 2011 - Part 2 Janine McCullough speaking in favour of the Salaries & Conditions of Service Committee Report. John Gray speaking in favour of the Salaries & Conditions of Service Committee report. Alan Taylor and…

Update for members

Colleagues, There has been a flurry of press speculation in recent weeks concerning proposed changes to pensions, information contained in submissions to the McCormac review and responses to the imposed changes to conditions of service.     This Association only circulates leaflets and advice notes when we know the outcome of any consultation and the final decisions have been made.   In the meantime I will attempt to keep members updated via emails and the website. Pensions The Government has…

Bulletin No 422/11 - May 2011

The May 2011 edition of the SSTA Bulletin can be downloaded from here. Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to open the Bulletin. If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader it can be downloaded from http://get.adobe.com/uk/reader/.

Feedback on SQA Exam Diet

The SQA are seeking feedback on the exam diet.   They particularly welcome your views on the questions and on any issues you believe will have affected pupil performance. They are also delighted to receive suggestions for improvements to future exam papers.     If you have any comments to make (positive, negative or a combination of both) please send them by email to info@ssta.org.uk adding SQA feedback to the subject line.   We will collate these and forward them…

COSLA Document

Colleagues, You may be aware of a report circulating about a document produced by Cosla.   This document is their submission to the McCormac review into Teachers’ pay and conditions and clearly indicates their preferences for the future of our profession.   The document makes very interesting reading and I have highlighted only a few of the points it makes: the primary role of a teacher should not be to teach children!!!! extension of the teacher year but not the…

Research project on post induction teacher employment

The Association has been asked to invite appropriate members to take part in a Glasgow University Research Project dealing with the career trajectories of post induction teachers. This research should provide an accurate picture of what paths teachers actually take on completion of their probationary period and will be a valuable marker for all those involved in teacher planning. Additionally the project may focus on transition from university to employment; induction experiences; support during first year of teaching; support following…