Supporting career-long professional learning

Published 01/01/2017.  Last updated 06/07/2026

Education Scotland supports career-long professional learning for all practitioners across the education system. We work with national partners and practitioners to deliver effective professional learning. This ensures that development activities have a positive impact for practitioners and learners.

Early learning and childcare practitioners

Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) practitioners include:

  • teachers
  • practitioners registered with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) who provide daycare services
  • childminders registered with the Care Inspectorate

Teachers and lecturers

Professionalism and leadership are drivers for improvement in the National Improvement Framework (NIF). A coherent approach to career-long professional learning (CLPL) is essential. This involves teachers taking responsibility for their own learning and development.

Exercising increasing professional autonomy will enable teachers to embrace change and support learners. Professional development for teachers is most effective when it is well planned. This development should take place within, between and beyond schools.

Community learning and development practitioners

Community Learning and Development (CLD) takes place in diverse settings. Practitioners with a wide range of job titles, work with people of all ages. The workforce includes both paid staff and volunteers. Providing effective learning development will ensure positive outcomes for all.

Parental involvement, parental engagement, family learning and learning at home 

Improving outcomes for children, young people parents and families remains a key priority across Scotland’s political and educational landscape.

There has never been a more important time to ensure that the workforce has the appropriate values, competencies, skills, knowledge, experience and qualifications to work effectively with learners, parents and families. Responsibility for working with learners, parents and families can vary across local authorities, early learning and childcare settings, childminders, schools, community learning and development, colleges and the third sector.

Ensuring the workforce continues to be developed and equipped and is given the time and resources to work with learners, parents and families can be an ongoing challenge (Family Learning Review, 2016). This is particularly the case because practitioners who work with children, young people, parents and families, do so across different sectors and can have a range of experience.

Further information can be found in the Strategic Framework for Parental Involvement, Parental Engagement, Family Learning and Learning at Home.  The Framework will help equip the workforce and ensure they have access to, and are signposted towards resources, professional learning opportunities, case studies, podcasts, research and current examples of good practice. 

Education psychologists

Every Education Authority (EA) in Scotland has an Educational Psychology Service (EPS). The size of the EPS is dependent on the number of children and young people in the local authority aged 0 to 24 years. Services range in size from up to 40 educational psychologists in large services, to one EP in small island services. Training to become an EP takes up to seven years. Four years for an honours degree in psychology and a further three years for a Masters/Doctorate in Educational Psychology. 

Educational psychologists provide a range of services as laid out by Currie in the Review of Provision of Educational Psychology Services in Scotland. These are:

  1. Consultation
  2. Assessment
  3. Intervention
  4. Training
  5. Research and development

The above services are delivered to individual children, young people, families, schools, and education authorities. For example, an EP will work with children and young people with additional support needs such as dyslexia and autism. They also work with teachers to help develop their skills in additional support needs and with EAs to develop policy and practice. Their work is focused on changing systems by building capacity in others. to remove barriers that impact negatively on children, young people and communities. All of their work is underpinned by robust evidence-based practice.

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Supporting career-long professional learning

Published 01/01/2017.  Last updated 06/07/2026

Education Scotland supports career-long professional learning for all practitioners across the education system. We work with national partners and practitioners to deliver effective professional learning. This ensures that development activities have a positive impact for practitioners and learners.

Early learning and childcare practitioners

Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) practitioners include:

  • teachers
  • practitioners registered with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) who provide daycare services
  • childminders registered with the Care Inspectorate

Teachers and lecturers

Professionalism and leadership are drivers for improvement in the National Improvement Framework (NIF). A coherent approach to career-long professional learning (CLPL) is essential. This involves teachers taking responsibility for their own learning and development.

Exercising increasing professional autonomy will enable teachers to embrace change and support learners. Professional development for teachers is most effective when it is well planned. This development should take place within, between and beyond schools.

Community learning and development practitioners

Community Learning and Development (CLD) takes place in diverse settings. Practitioners with a wide range of job titles, work with people of all ages. The workforce includes both paid staff and volunteers. Providing effective learning development will ensure positive outcomes for all.

Parental involvement, parental engagement, family learning and learning at home 

Improving outcomes for children, young people parents and families remains a key priority across Scotland’s political and educational landscape.

There has never been a more important time to ensure that the workforce has the appropriate values, competencies, skills, knowledge, experience and qualifications to work effectively with learners, parents and families. Responsibility for working with learners, parents and families can vary across local authorities, early learning and childcare settings, childminders, schools, community learning and development, colleges and the third sector.

Ensuring the workforce continues to be developed and equipped and is given the time and resources to work with learners, parents and families can be an ongoing challenge (Family Learning Review, 2016). This is particularly the case because practitioners who work with children, young people, parents and families, do so across different sectors and can have a range of experience.

Further information can be found in the Strategic Framework for Parental Involvement, Parental Engagement, Family Learning and Learning at Home.  The Framework will help equip the workforce and ensure they have access to, and are signposted towards resources, professional learning opportunities, case studies, podcasts, research and current examples of good practice. 

Education psychologists

Every Education Authority (EA) in Scotland has an Educational Psychology Service (EPS). The size of the EPS is dependent on the number of children and young people in the local authority aged 0 to 24 years. Services range in size from up to 40 educational psychologists in large services, to one EP in small island services. Training to become an EP takes up to seven years. Four years for an honours degree in psychology and a further three years for a Masters/Doctorate in Educational Psychology. 

Educational psychologists provide a range of services as laid out by Currie in the Review of Provision of Educational Psychology Services in Scotland. These are:

  1. Consultation
  2. Assessment
  3. Intervention
  4. Training
  5. Research and development

The above services are delivered to individual children, young people, families, schools, and education authorities. For example, an EP will work with children and young people with additional support needs such as dyslexia and autism. They also work with teachers to help develop their skills in additional support needs and with EAs to develop policy and practice. Their work is focused on changing systems by building capacity in others. to remove barriers that impact negatively on children, young people and communities. All of their work is underpinned by robust evidence-based practice.

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