Aberdeenshire Council recruits teachers from overseas

The council is recruiting highly quality teachers from Ireland and Canada, countries it says have surplus newly qualified and ‘first year teachers’.

This month, Aberdeenshire Council interviewed more than 30 candidates from Dublin in Ireland and Toronto in Canada.

According to the council, in Ireland there are around 600 graduate teachers each year failing to secure a teaching position.

Similarly, a study by the Ontario College of Teachers in 2011 revealed that almost one in three newly qualified teachers were unable to secure employment.

Under Aberdeenshire council’s recruitment drive, successful candidates will be allocated a teaching role in a primary school or academy across Aberdeenshire, starting in the new school term.

They will receive a full induction and conversion to Scottish education standards, as well as a temporary work visa, accommodation and travel costs.

After their first year, the teachers will have the opportunity to seek full-time employment in Aberdeenshire.

The Council has estimated that the scheme will cost between £4,000-5,000 per teacher and provide a short-term solution to its recruitment difficulties.

Wilfred Weir, Aberdeenshire Council’s head of education, policy and resources, said, ‘Countries like Canada and Ireland have generated a surplus of teachers. They are well qualified and keen to secure their first job.

‘This presents us with an opportunity to attract quality probationer teachers to a teaching role in one of our schools, helping us to fill much-needed vacancies and ensure that our schools have the appropriate levels of teachers to continue to meet our high standards.

‘We are working with an agency which is supporting us with this campaign, identifying potential candidates, reviewing CVs and selling the benefits of relocating to Aberdeenshire.

‘This overseas campaign will supplement our on-going and significant efforts to attract candidates to the area using more traditional methods of recruitment.’