The Department told us that staff-pupil ratios had stayed relatively stable, as had the number of teaching assistants across the school system. We note, however, that while the ratio of pupils to teachers remained relatively stable in nursery and primary schools from 2014 to 2020, varying between 20.3:1 and 20.9:1, ratios in secondary schools rose from 15.0:1 in 2014 to 16.6:1 in 2020.40