SCOTLAND desperately needs to recruit more early-years teachers and speech specialists to tackle learning inequality linked to poverty, Save the Children said yesterday.

The charity spoke out after a survey of Primary 1 teachers found 88 per cent believe pupils with speech and language problems fall behind others, while 59 per cent said they were less likely to enjoy school.

Children in poorer communities are twice as likely to have problems when compared to those from richer areas.

Save the Children Scotland policy manager Vicky Crichton said: “Teachers tell us that speech and language delay among children in Primary 1 has an impact on both their experience of school and their future learning, putting them at an unfair disadvantage.

“Poverty is damaging too many children’s learning before they have even set foot in a classroom. We want to see bold and ambitious plans to close this gap in the early years.”

A spokesperson for Scottish education union EIS said that quality nursery education “brings a whole host of benefits to young children, many of which continue long-term.” The best way to do that is by having qualified teachers, the spokesperson said.

“Investing in quality prefive education gives all children a good start and is effective” in giving children from poorer backgrounds a better chance at school and after.

A Scottish government spokeswoman insisted: “Closing the attainment gap between young people from our most and least deprived communities will be the defining mission of this government, which is why we are allocating £750 million during the course of this parliament … targeting resources at the children, schools and communities which most need them.”