Strategic Performance Framework - latest Performance Results for Education
North Lanarkshire Council · 28 February 2023
Back to Education, Children and Families Committee — 28 February 2023 and its agenda
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Education, Children, and Families Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☒ Yes ☐ No Ref JO’N/GMcL Date 28/02/23 Strategic Performance Framework - latest performance results for Education From Janie O’Neill, Chief Officer (Education - South) Gerard McLaughlin, Chief Officer (Education - North) E-mail ONeillJa@northlan.gov.uk McLaughlinG@northlan.gov.uk Telephone Executive Summary Members will recall considering the latest results for the Local Government Benchmarking Framework (LGBF) indicators at the Panel meeting in September 2019 and thereafter establishing a programme of scrutiny based on key areas of performance. Notably, several of the identified measures relate to performance information collected through external HMIE inspection processes. However, the emergence of the coronavirus pandemic in November 2019 had a significant impact on the Service’s internal and external (HMIE) scrutiny processes with routine HMIe inspections being paused from March 2020 to till August 2022. During this period, inspectors only engaged with establishments who were awaiting further engagement. This had a significant impact on data collected in relation to the performance data identified in this report. Furthermore, the terminology used in relation to some of the key indicators has changed. Updates are noted in explanatory notes on the datasheets. The Covid pandemic also had a significant impact on National and Local exam processes, with new processes being introduced. There were also changes to Achievement of a Level data (ACEL) collection processes across Scotland. Therefore, data should be interpreted in this context. Notwithstanding this, the performance benchmarking indicators are a useful tool to inform improvements to services and outcomes and in this respect the LGBF indicators are designed to provide initial information about a service. It is by reviewing and investigating this information further, and entering into discussions with other councils, that lessons can be learned, and improvements identified. Using the latest dataset, this report provides the Education, Children and Families committee with a summary of the analysis to identify which indicators and service areas show improved performance over time and are favourable when compared to the national average. This is intended to assist committee members to identify and prioritise which service areas they wish to review and scrutinise further as part of their 2022-23 programme of scrutiny.
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1. Background 1.1 There are six inter-related strategic frameworks which are key to assessing the success of The Plan for North Lanarkshire and monitoring delivery towards achieving the overall vision by ensuring each stage is appropriately planned, guided, implemented, and governed. 1.2 The six frameworks focus on ensuring a corporate one council approach in respect of Policy, Governance, Performance, Self-Evaluation, Project Management, and Demonstrating Improved Outcomes for Communities. 1.3 The Strategic Performance Framework comprises performance measurement at three levels (as per the diagram on the right). This aims to collectively provide an overview of performance to help understand the impact of council activities on improving services and outcomes for the people and communities of North Lanarkshire. The measures in this Framework allow for day to day activities, and progress towards achieving the long- term vision set out in The Plan for North Lanarkshire, to be regularly monitored, reported, assessed, and scrutinised. 1.4 The Strategic Performance Framework is aligned to the Accounts Commission statutory direction which places a requirement on councils to report a range of information in terms of (1) improving local services and outcomes, and (2) demonstrating Best Value. Key points of note in this respect are that the Accounts Commission also expect to see: (a) A balance in reporting areas of improvement that have been achieved and not achieved. (b) Reporting that is undertaken in a timely manner. (c) Easy access to performance information for all citizens and communities. Recommendations It is recommended that the Education, Children, and Families Committee: (1) Review the high-level performance overview presented in Appendix 1, and the supporting data contained within the linked Excel spreadsheet, and identify where further information is required to understand or investigate performance further. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Support all children and young people to realise their full potential Ambition statement (6) Raise attainment and skills for learning, life, and work to enhance opportunities and choices (7) Enhance collaborative working to maximise support and ensure all our children and young people are included, supported, and safe (8) Engage children and families in early learning and childcare programmes and making positive transitions to school (9) Invest in early interventions, positive transitions, and preventative approaches to improve outcomes for children and young people (10) Engage with children, young people, parents, carers, and families to help all children and young people reach their full potential
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1.5 A Performance Reporting Schedule supports the timely submission of a range of performance information that facilitates Elected Members and senior management to undertake regular performance reviews that inform scrutiny, challenge, and decision making processes. This Schedule, endorsed by the Audit and Scrutiny Panel in February 2023, includes Chief Officer’s individual six monthly Performance Reviews at Service Committees in line with the Strategic Performance Framework. 1.6 This report therefore presents the Education, Children, and Families Committee with the latest performance results for Education for Members’ further review and scrutiny. 2. Strategic Performance Framework Education, Children, and Families Committee responsibilities 2.1 In line with the terms of reference outlined in the Scheme of Administration, the Education, Children, and Families Committee is responsible for monitoring and reviewing performance information for the following Ambition Statements from The Plan for North Lanarkshire: 6. Raise attainment and skills for learning, life, and work to enhance opportunities and choices 7. Enhance collaborative working to maximise support and ensure all our children and young people are included, supported, and safe 8. Engage children and families in early learning and childcare programmes and making positive transitions to school 9. Invest in early interventions, positive transitions, and preventative approaches to improve outcomes for children and young people 10. Engage with children, young people, parents, carers, and families to help all children and young people reach their full potential 2.2 The high-level performance overview in Appendix 1 presents Members with a summary of the latest results for each performance indicator within the remit of the Chief Officer (Education). 2.3 The information in Appendix 1 comprises the following: • An ideal direction arrow - this indicates whether a higher or lower figure is the preferred direction of travel. • Measurement unit - for example whether the result is a %, a number, a unit cost (in £), or a ratio. • Performance results for the last four financial years (depending on availability of data) along with the latest year’s target and corresponding RAG status (for indicators where it is appropriate to set targets). • The most recent monthly or quarterly results, along with the corresponding target and RAG status. Note the inclusion of this information is dependent on the measurement frequency of the indicator and availability of data as at the time of reporting. A higher figure is better A lower figure is better Key to RAG status Performance is on target and/or within acceptable thresholds Performance does not meet target and is outwith acceptable thresholds Performance surpasses the target and exceeds expectations
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• A trend graph - this captures the direction of travel achieved over the four financial years and includes the most recent monthly or quarterly results where available. • Comments - narrative summarising the current position and providing an explanation for any significant variations in performance. Where applicable, this narrative also highlights the effect of the pandemic on service delivery, e.g. any increase or decrease in the volume of transactions or enquiries processed. 2.4 A large volume of data supports the high-level performance overview in Appendix 1. This is outlined in the latest performance results for Education Excel spreadsheet which is available through the following link for Members to carry out a deep dive and review and scrutinise each performance indicator further. The Menu on the second tab of the spreadsheet contains built in hyperlinks that automatically take the user to a tab for each performance indicator and therefore provides a useful navigation aid to review the contents of the file. • Latest performance results for Education.xlsx Current context 2.5 The programme of routine HMIe inspections was paused in March 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to cessation, 13 establishment inspections were inspected. 4 establishments were identified as requiring a re-inspection visit. Notably, 1 of these identified establishment only required a revisit in relation to its Early Years/Early Level provision, although this is not reflected in the performance indicator. The primary provision within this establishment was graded as Good across all 4 quality indicators in the school. When inspection activity resumed in September 2021, inspections focused on engagement with schools awaiting further inspection or thematic engagement designed to collect and share good practice. Therefore, inspections noted during academic session 2020/21 and 2021/2022 only include establishments who were awaiting re-inspection. This skews the data as it is not a proportionate representation of all establishments. Of the 10 inspections, noted in 2021/2022, 6 have now been completely signed off, 2 have partial sign off with the recommendation that the authority provide a progress update and 2 are still engaging with inspectors. Disruption to the HMIE inspection process, as a result of the Covid 19 pandemic, has clearly impacted on the scope of our inspection performance data and as such we ask that it is interpreted and understood in this context. This includes indicators in relation to HMIe grades and parental satisfaction data which is derived from HMIe questionnaire results. Since inspections resumed in August 2022, 7 establishments have been inspected with 100% receiving positive reports, using current criteria which categorises a grading of satisfactory or above as positive. Only 4 inspections reports have been published to date but overall trends indicate positive impact of strategies employed by the Service to support continuous improvement. Notably, from session 2022-23, we will further challenge ourselves by adapting the criteria underpinning the performance indicator- % positive HMIE reports and only categorise establishments graded good or above as positive. This will have obvious implications on comparing trends over time but reflects our increased expectations and drive to improve outcomes for children and families. Using this new measure, over the 26 quality indicators considered during inspections for session 2022-23, 89% have
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achieved good or above gradings. (Using the previous measure – 100% achieved positive inspection gradings.) In summary, analysis of all inspection gradings awarded to NLC schools over the 5- year improvement cycle shows the following high level profile and conveys the urgency of recent improvement against statutory measures: • Pre-covid: 61% good+ inspection gradings (106 grades awarded) • 2022 – 2023: 89% good+ inspection gradings (26 grades awarded). Recent performance highlights 2.6 Despite challenges presented in collating robust data against the identified performance benchmarks, the data evidences improvements including those highlighted below. The number of pupils (%) achieving 5 or more awards at SCQF Level 5 or higher has risen from 65% in 2020/21 to 67% in 2021/22. The percentage of P1, P4, P7 pupils combined, achieving expected Curriculum for Excellence level in literacy continues to improve – rising from 68.6% in session 2020/21 to 72.2% in 2021/22. We have also noted an increase in the percentage of P1, P4, P7 pupils combined, achieving expected Curriculum for Excellence level in numeracy increasing from 76.1% in 2020/21 to 79.4% in 2021/22. At the Broad General Education stage (BGE), the data also shows a reduction in the attainment gap in literacy reducing from 22.4 in 20/21 to 19.0 in 21/22. The attainment gap in numeracy has also decreased, reducing from 20.7 in 20/21 to 16.6 in 21/22. We are also making progress towards closing the poverty related attainment gap at the Senior Phase recording an increase in the % of pupils living in the 20% most deprived areas gaining 5 or more awards at SCQF Level 5 or higher, with attainment increasing by 1% to 52%. This is the highest level recorded to date. The percentage of funded early years provisions graded good or better has also continued to rise increasing from 90.1% in 2020/21 to 91.8% in 2021-22. The quality rating of Early Years establishments has remained positive, above 90%. Attendance for looked after children has increased from 78.6 in 2018-19 to 83.0 in 2020-21. Areas of performance requiring improvement 2.7 As explained above, changes to the HMIe Inspection process impacted on our ability to gather a full dataset in relation to identified performance indicators. However, Education, Children and Families recognise that this was only a contributing factor and have identified the need to forensically monitor the indicators identified below and to implement refreshed quality assurance procedures, to secure immediate improvements.
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Three of the identified areas focus on levels of parental satisfaction for 2020/21; • Percentage of parents agree or strongly agree that they receive helpful, regular feedback about how their child is learning and developing (71.4 %) • Percentage of parents agree or strongly agree that overall they are satisfied with the school (60.4%) • Percentage of parents who agree or strongly agree that the school is well led and managed (67.5%). Whilst local data indicates that these figures do not represent the view of the wider parental body, and that there is likely to be a direct correlation with the increased number of negative inspection results, the Service will track and monitor internal and external parental feedback to support improvement. Implementation of the refreshed quality assurance processes will facilitate monitoring at individual establishment level. Work to develop a new parental engagement strategy will also allow for focused feedback from parents/carers. Data and internal self-evaluation processes highlight the need to improve pupil attendance rates. The rate for session 2020-21 is 89.8%. This area has been identified as a key priority across the Service. An integrated cluster approach has been established wherein attendance data is monitored and shared regularly with key stakeholders to allow early identification and support for individuals whose attendance is causing concerns. This early identification and intervention will support improved attendance levels. The upcoming deployment of family engagement workers will further strengthen this approach. Next steps 2.8 As noted in paragraph 1.5, the Strategic Performance Framework is supported by a Performance Reporting Schedule. This sets out the arrangements for service, statutory, and Strategic Performance Framework reporting to committee. In this respect the Education, Children, and Families Committee can expect to receive the following in respect of insert Education during 2023/24. Report Description Committee cycle Annual Standards and Quality report This annual report serves 3 purposes: (i) To provide all stakeholders and the public with the performance information across the 6 NIF drivers and against improvement priorities to measure performance in improving educational outcomes for young people. (ii) To meet the statutory requirement under the Standards in Schools etc. Act 2000 (as amended by the Education (Scotland) Act 2016). (iii) To provide the information required to contribute to the Scottish Government’s annual report on the 6 NIF drivers for improvement. Cycle 3 in 2023 Scottish Attainment Challenge (SAC) This report updates on progress made in the Attainment Challenge during the latest session, and gives detail on areas of improvement within literacy, numeracy, and health and wellbeing and presents the end of academic year report as submitted to the Cycle 3 in 2023
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Scottish Government. Moving forward, the SAC report will now be referred to as the SEF (Strategic Equity Fund). 3. Measures of success 3.1 Measures of success include: • Regular oversight and monitoring of performance across the organisation to gain assurances in terms of governance and accountability. • Regular review and challenge processes to scrutinise the performance of the council to ensure effective use of resources and that resources are directed in accordance with agreed policy and according to priorities, while ensuring sound decision making and clear accountability for the use of resources in achieving improved outcomes for service users and the local community. • Performance monitoring, management, and reporting arrangements that support the demonstration of improved performance in local services and outcomes, and the delivery of Best Value. 4. Supporting documentation 4.1 Appendix 1 - High-level performance overview Janie O’Neill Gerard McLaughlin Chief Officers (Education - North and South)
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5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality- and-fairer-scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts have been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts have been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts have been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact?
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Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services.
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Appendix 1 Education High-level performance overview - as at January 2023
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Indicator id ideal direction unit of measurem ent 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 2021/22 target 2021/22 RAG status 2022/23 ytd 2022/23 target 2022/23 RAG status trend comments Attendance at school - % attendance for all pupils, primary and secondary school CHN19a higher figure is better % 91.2 89.8 only measured bienially Attendance in NL schools have shown a small gradual decrease over recent years which is at a slightly greater rate than the similar decline in national and family group average. The latest results show attendance in NL schools of 89.8% compared to the national average of 92% and the family group average of 91.2%. Attendance at school - % attendance for looked after children CHN19b higher figure is better % 78.6 83.0 only measured bienially The latest results for attendance in NL schools for looked after children has shown an improvement to 83%. This trend has followed the national and family groups averages, although NL figures remain lower than the national average of 87.9% and the family group average of 86.6%. Attendance at school - % attendance for disabled children Pi045 higher figure is better % 87.5 89.2 only measured bienially The council has also recently started to measure attendance for disabled children; this shows an improvement in attendance from 87.5 to 89.2 over the period of the data collected. National comaprison are not available for this indicator. Exclusions from school, all pupils - exclusion rate per 1,000 pupils CHN20a lower figure is better number 35.0 15.3 only measured bienially Exclusion rates in NLs schools have shown significant improvement in recent years, with the latest results (15.3 per 1,000 pupils) closing the gap with the national average (11.9) and the family group average (13.7). A range of service interventions have improved supports for NLs pupils in recent years, this has ensured that resources and decision making are devolved to where needs arise. Exclusions from school, looked after children - exclusion rate per 1,000 pupils CHN20b lower figure is better number 293.3 95.7 only measured bienially Exclusion rates in NLs schools for looked after children have also shown significant improvement in recent years, with the latest results (95.7 per 1,000 pupils) closing the gap with the national average (77.8) and being considerably lower than the family group average (127.2). A range of service interventions have improved supports for NLs pupils in recent years, this has ensured that resources and decision making are devolved to where needs arise. Exclusions from school for children from Additional Support Needs (ASN) schools - exclusion rate per 1,000 pupils Pi054 lower figure is better number 104.7 192.0 only measured bienially The council has also recently started to measure exclusion rates for disabled children; this shows an increase from 104.7 to 192 over the period of the data collected. National comaprison are not available for this indicator. HMIe inspection reports, early years - % of positive reports i034 higher figure is better % 80.0 71.4 33.3 100.0 100.0 Green only measured annually Inspections of early years establishments remained at 100% in 2021/22 with 5 being inspected and all 5 receiving a positive report. The national inspection programme was impacted on by the pandemic in 2019/20 and 2020/21. HMIe inspection reports, schools - % of positive reports i030 higher figure is better % 92.3 69.2 33.3 80.0 100.0 Red only measured annually Inspections of schools achieved 80% in 2021/22 with 10 being inspected and 8 receiving a positive report. The national inspection programme was impacted on by the pandemic in 2019/20 and 2020/21. Quality ratings of early year privision - % funded early years provision which is graded good or better CHN18 higher figure is better % 89.5 90.4 90.1 91.8 only measured annually The latest results for the quality of early years provision following inspections by the Care Inspectorate found that 91.8% of funded early years provision in NL was graded good or better in 2021/22. This is an improvement on previous years and is higher than national average gradings (90.9%) and family group average gradings (89.5%). 0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 2018/19 2020/21 0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 2018/19 2020/21 0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 2018/19 2020/21 0.0 100.0 200.0 300.0 2018/19 2020/21 0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 2018/19 2020/21 0.0 100.0 200.0 300.0 2018/19 2019/20 0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22