ED Psychs June 24

Page 1

Renfrewshire Joint Negotiating Committee for Teachers
To: Renfrewshire Joint Negotiating for Teachers 
On: 11th June, 2024
Renfrewshire Educational Psychology Service (REPS)
Report by
Joint Secretary (Teachers’ Side)
Background
The importance and the role of Educational Psychologists in supporting the education
improvement agenda cannot be overstated. The Educational Psychology team has an expansive
remit: post-Covid recovery, embedding attainment challenge initiatives, the increase in the
uptake of referrals as part of the 1140 hours early years extension, the increase in ASN amongst
the school population, supporting the revised Violence and Aggression policy, Non-Violent
Resistance training, work with LAC priorities and leading on The Promise etc 
There are serious doubts being expressed amongst the Renfrewshire psychologists’ team
regarding their ability to deliver the above initiatives due to the proposed termination of
temporary contracts announced recently and around the staffing complement within the
service.   
All classroom teachers have already been impacted by a reduction in support from REPS where
their workload has fallen to schools and school management teams; the recent cascading of
Dyslexia Assessments is only one example of a responsibility being shifted onto classroom
teachers to assess and administer, with a clear deficit in training for teachers to cope with this
additional responsibility and an added workload. 
Any reduction in the service at this time will have a consequential impact on teachers and
crucially on the level of support being provided to pupils and young people at a time when all
evidence indicates that the need for Psychological  Services has increased, not decreased. 
Action
The Teachers’ Side, in conjunction with a representative from Educational Psychologist team,
is requesting an urgent meeting with the Management Side to discuss the concerns being
expressed by the Educational Psychologist Service relating to staffing complements and the
ongoing delivery of priorities as well as statutory redundancies of two temporary psychologists.