Thanks to Brenda Robb for this:

In the Guardian today:

The number of teachers working in England’s state schools has shrunk for the second year in a row, even as the government said it was meeting its promises to increase recruitment where needed.

The annual school workforce census shows there are 466,300 teachers in state schools this year, a fall of more than 1,900 since last year due to declining numbers in mainstream primary and secondary schools.

But the Department for Education said the government was meeting its manifesto pledge to employ 6,500 additional teachers over the current parliament, with more special needs and pupil referral unit teachers, as well as further education teachers for students up to 18 years old.

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2026/jun/04/teachers-englands-state-schools-drops-second-year-in-row?CMP=share_btn_url

So, with a tenth of the population, to keep up with England, Scotland would need around 46 600 teachers.

BUT

As of 2025, there were 53,475 full-time equivalent (FTE) teachers in Scotland. This represents a small increase of 63 FTE from 2024.

https://www.gov.scot/news/pupil-and-teacher-characteristics-2025-published/

So, SNP-led Scotland has around 6 900 more teachers, 14.8%.

As a result, are Scotland’s schools doing better?

You bet they are. See:

Scotland’s schools surging ahead of those in England in literacy and numeracy attainment

Literacy and Numeracy at record highs in Scotland’s schools

English schools excluding pupils at twice the rate and expelling infinitely more often than in Scotland with consequent surges in youth crime

95% of Scotland’s schools in good condition up from only 62% under Labour and they struggle to do anything about it in England after 19 months in government