Ethnic Minority Pupils, 2012-2022
As shown below, the proportion of ethnic minority pupils across Scotland has been steadily increasing over the past decade. The cities of Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen have seen broadly similar trends: by 2022, more than a third of pupils came from an ethnic minority background (including ‘white’ ethnic minorities like Polish and Gypsy/Traveller). In more rural areas like Aberdeenshire, Moray and Highland, the proportion has been much lower: between 9-13% in 2022. The average for Scotland as a whole is between these two clusters, reaching 17% in 2022.
Data Table: Proportion of Ethnic Minority* Pupils, 2012-2022
Local Authorities in Grampian, with other areas for comparison
*including ‘White Other’ and Ethnic Minority pupils
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | |
| Aberdeen City | 19% | 22% | 24% | 26% | 27% | 28% | 30% | 31% | 31% | 33% | 35% |
| Aberdeenshire | 6% | 7% | 8% | 9% | 9% | 9% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 11% | 12% |
| Moray | 5% | 6% | 7% | 7% | 8% | 8% | 8% | 8% | 8% | 9% | 9% |
| Glasgow | 21% | 23% | 24% | 25% | 27% | 28% | 29% | 30% | 31% | 32% | 33% |
| Edinburgh | 20% | 21% | 23% | 24% | 26% | 28% | 29% | 30% | 31% | 33% | 35% |
| Highland | 6% | 6% | 7% | 8% | 9% | 9% | 10% | 11% | 11% | 11% | 12% |
| All of Scotland | 9% | 10% | 10% | 11% | 12% | 13% | 13% | 14% | 15% | 15% | 17% |
Pupils by SIMD Deciles, 2022
As shown below, the socioeconomic backgrounds of pupils vary widely between different local authorities. For example, in Glasgow, more than a third of pupils live in the most deprived decile (tenth) of Scottish households, while in each of Grampian’s local authorities, the figure is 2%. At the same time, a much higher proportion of pupils than average live in the more affluent deciles of Aberdeenshire and Aberdeen City – though the latter also has higher proportions living in more deprived areas. In Moray, the majority of pupils come from middle, neither extremely deprived nor extremely affluent.
Note: SIMD 1 (at the bottom, dark blue) is the most deprived, and SIMD 10 (at the top, light blue) is the most affluent.
Data Source: 2022, Scottish Government, Pupil Census Supplementary Statistics. Link.