Agenda Document Pack - Education, Children's and Leisure Services Committee - 18/02/2025
Moray Council · 18 February 2025
Back to Education, Children's and Leisure Services Committee — 18 February 2025 and its agenda
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Education, Children's and Leisure Services Committee Tuesday, 18 February 2025 NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a Meeting of the Education, Children's and Leisure Services Committee is to be held at Council Chambers, Council Office, High Street, Elgin, IV30 1BX on Tuesday, 18 February 2025 at 09:30. BUSINESS 1. Sederunt 2. Declaration of Group Decisions and Members Interests * 3. Minutes of meeting of 26 November 2024 7 - 16 4. Written Questions ** 5.* Quarter 2 (July to September 2024) Performance Report for Children and Families and Justice Services Report by Interim Chief Social Work Officer/Head of Service 17 - 44 6.* Education Revenue Budget Monitoring to 31 December 2024 Report by Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) 45 - 50 7.* Early Learning and Childcare - Primary 1 Admissions Report by Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) 51 - 62 Page 1
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8.* Education Scotland Inspection of St Gerardine Nursery Lossiemouth Report by Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) 63 - 68 9.* Education Scotland Inspection of Findochty Primary School Report by Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) 69 - 76 10.* Initial Analysis of Achievement of Curriculum for Excellence Levels 2024 Report by Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) 77 - 100 11.* Additional Support Needs Allocations Report by Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) 101 - 116 12.* Education Resources and Communities Revenue Budget Monitoring to 31 December 2024 Report by Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) 117 - 120 13.* Education Resources and Communities and Education Capital Budget Monitoring to 31 December 2024 Report by Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) 121 - 134 14.* Learning Estate Working Group Report by Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) 135 - 140 15.* Education Digital Infrastructure Readiness Update Report by Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) 141 - 146 Only items marked * can be considered and determined by all members of the Committee Page 2
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Information Reports - Not for Discussion at this Meeting Any member wishing to call in a noting or information report from one meeting shall give notice to Committee Services at least 48 hours before the meeting for which the report is published. The Notice shall be countersigned by one other elected member and shall explain the reason for call in including any action sought. Information Report - Primary and Secondary School Capacity and Occupancy 2024-25 Report by Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) 147 - 158 Summary of Education, Children's and Leisure Services Committee To exercise all the functions of the Council as Education Authority within the terms of relevant legislation with regard to school education, nurseries and child care, Gaelic, children’s services, leisure, libraries and museums, sport and the arts, CLD, life long learning, youth justice and child protection. Watching the Meeting You can watch the webcast live by going to: http://www.moray.gov.uk/moray_standard/page_43661.html Webcasts are available to view for 1 year following the meeting. You can also attend the meeting in person, if you wish to do so, please come to the High Street entrance door and a member of staff will be let into the building. Page 3
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GUIDANCE NOTES * Declaration of Group Decisions and Members Interests - The Chair of the meeting shall seek declarations from any individual or political group at the beginning of a meeting whether any prior decision has been reached on how the individual or members of the group will vote on any item(s) of business on the Agenda, and if so on which item(s). A prior decision shall be one that the individual or the group deems to be mandatory on the individual or the group members such that the individual or the group members will be subject to sanctions should they not vote in accordance with the prior decision. Any such prior decisions will be recorded in the Minute of the meeting. ** Written Questions - Any Member can put one written question about any relevant and competent business within the specified remits not already on the agenda, to the Chair provided it is received by the Proper Officer or Committee Services by 12 noon two working days prior to the day of the meeting. A copy of any written answer provided by the Chair will be published on the Council’s committee management system by 4pm the day before the meeting. The Member who has put the question may, after the answer has been published, ask one supplementary question directly related to the subject matter at the meeting, but no discussion will be allowed. No supplementary question can be put or answered more than 10 minutes after the Council has started on the relevant item of business, except with the consent of the Chair. If a Member does not have the opportunity to put a supplementary question because no time remains, then he or she can submit it in writing to the Proper Officer who will arrange for a written answer to be provided within 7 working days. Page 4
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MORAY COUNCIL Education, Children's and Leisure Services Committee SEDERUNT Councillor Kathleen Robertson (Chair) Councillor Bridget Mustard (Depute Chair) Councillor James Allan (Member) Councillor John Cowe (Member) Councillor John Divers (Member) Councillor Juli Harris (Member) Councillor Sandy Keith (Member) Councillor Elaine Kirby (Member) Councillor Scott Lawrence (Member) Councillor Marc Macrae (Member) Councillor Paul McBain (Member) Councillor Shona Morrison (Member) Councillor Derek Ross (Member) Councillor Sonya Warren (Member) Mrs Sheila Brumby (Non-Voting Member) Mrs Anne Currie (Non-Voting Member) Ms Jillian MacKellar (Non-Voting Member) Mr Ruaridh Murray (Non-Voting Member) Reverend Tembu Rongong (Non-Voting Member) Mrs Susan Slater (Non-Voting Member) Mrs Emma Tunnard (Non-Voting Member) Clerk Name: Caroline O'Connor Clerk Telephone: 07779 999296 Clerk Email: committee.services@moray.gov.uk Page 5
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MORAY COUNCIL Minute of Meeting of the Education, Children's and Leisure Services Committee Tuesday, 26 November 2024 Council Chambers, Council Office, High Street, Elgin, IV30 1BX PRESENT Councillor James Allan, Mrs Sheila Brumby, Councillor John Cowe, Mrs Anne Currie, Councillor John Divers, Councillor Juli Harris, Councillor Sandy Keith, Councillor Elaine Kirby, Councillor Scott Lawrence, Ms Jillian MacKellar, Councillor Marc Macrae, Councillor Paul McBain, Councillor Shona Morrison, Councillor Bridget Mustard, Councillor Kathleen Robertson, Reverend Tembu Rongong, Councillor Derek Ross, Mrs Susan Slater, Mrs Emma Tunnard, Councillor Sonya Warren APOLOGIES Mr Ruaridh Murray IN ATTENDANCE Interim Chief Social Work Officer and Head of Service; Annie Hunter, Social Work Service Manager; Early Years Service Manager; Quality Improvement Manager; Head of Education; Programme Manager (Learning Estate); Sport and Culture Service Manager; Eily Webster, Principal Planning Officer; Legal Services Manager; Senior Solicitor (Litigation and Social Care) and Caroline O'Connor, Committee Services Officer. 1. Chair The meeting was chaired by Councillor Kathleen Robertson. 2. Welcome The Committee joined the Chair in welcoming Councillor Elaine Kirby to her first meeting since being elected and Sheekha Saha, Senior Solicitor (Litigation and Social Care) to her first meeting as legal adviser. 3. Declaration of Group Decisions and Members Interests * In terms of Standing Orders 21 and 23 and the Councillors' Code of Conduct, there were no declarations from Group Leaders or Spokespersons in regard to any prior decisions taken on how Members will vote on any item on the agenda or any declarations of Member's interests in respect of any item on the agenda. With regard to Item 16 "Education Scotland Inspection of Elgin Academy" , Reverend Rongong stated, for transparency, that he was the parent of children who attend the school and would be taking part in the debate. 4. Resolution Item 3. Page 7
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The meeting resolved that in terms of Section 50A (4) and (5) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, as amended, the public and media representatives be excluded from the meeting for Items 23, 24 and 25 of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information of the class described in the relevant Paragraphs of Part 1 of Schedule 7A of the Act. Para Number of the Minute Para Number of Schedule 7a 25 Para 1 Information relating to staffing matters 26 Para 8 and 9 Information on proposed terms and/or expenditure to be incurred by the Authority 27 Para 4 Information relating to any applicant or recipient of any financial assistance provided by the Authority 5. Minutes of meeting of 17 September 2024 The minutes of the meeting of the Education, Children's and Leisure Services Committee dated 17 September 2024 were submitted and approved. 6. Order of Business In terms of Standing Order 29, the meeting agreed to vary the order of business set down on the agenda to take Item 5 "Written Questions" after the interval to allow printed copies of the Written Question to be shared with those members of the Committee who had not received copies. . 7. Quarter 1 Performance Report for Children, Families and Justice Services The meeting had before it a report by the Chief Social Work Officer informing the Committee on Children and Families and Justice Social Work performance as at Quarter 1. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to:- (i) note the performance of local indicators for Quarter 1 as presented in the Performance Report at Appendix 1; and (ii) note the analysis of the local indicators as detailed in Appendix 1. 8. Performance Report (Education) - Period to September 2024 The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the performance of the service for the period to 30 September 2024. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to:- (i) note the performance in the areas of Service Planning, Service Performance and other related data to the end of September 2024; and Page 8
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(ii) note the actions being taken to improve performance where required. 9. Education Revenue Budget Monitoring to 30 September 2024 The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the revenue budget position for Education as at 30 September 2024. In response to a question from Councillor Harris relating to the out of area placement budget and whether there had been any progress to reduce the budget by the creation of new facilities which had been mentioned at a previous committee, the Head of Education advised generally the overspend was outwith the control of the Council in terms of decisions made by the Children's Reporter or through court proceedings. She confirmed she was working closely with the Interim Chief Social Work Officer to scrutinise assessments and decisions taken regarding young people out of area to evidence whether they are still valid and whether the out of area placement is the best place for individual young people. She further advised a confidential report was being prepared for the next meeting of the Committee with specific details. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to note the budget position as at 30 September 2024. 10. Education Scotland Inspection of Hopeman Nursery The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the outcomes of the recently published report on a Moray Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) setting following inspection by Education Scotland. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to note the contents of the report and findings of Education Scotland following their inspection. 11. Education Scotland Inspection of Rothes Nursery The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the outcomes of the recently published report on a Moray Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) setting following inspection by Education Scotland. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to note the contents of the report and findings of Education Scotland following their inspection. 12. Education Scotland Inspection of Bishopmill Primary School The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the outcomes of the recently published report on a Moray school following inspection by Education Scotland His Majesty's Inspectors of Education (HMIE). Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to note the contents of the report and findings of Education Scotland HMIE following their inspection visit. 13. Education Scotland Inspection of Greenwards Primary School Page 9
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The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the outcomes of the recently published report on a Moray school following inspection by Education Scotland His Majesty's Inspectors of Education (HMIE). Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to note the contents of the report and findings of Education Scotland HMIE following their inspection visit. 14. Education Scotland Inspection of Rothes Primary School The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the outcomes of the recently published report on a Moray school following inspection by Education Scotland His Majesty's Inspectors of Education (HMIE). Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to note the contents of the report and findings of Education Scotland HMIE following their inspection visit. 15. Education Scotland Inspection of Hopeman Primary School The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the outcomes of the recently published report on a Moray school following inspection by Education Scotland His Majesty's Inspectors of Education (HMIE). Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to note the contents of the report and findings of Education Scotland HMIE following their inspection visit. 16. Education Scotland Further Inspection (Continuing Engagement) of Portgordon Primary School The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the outcomes of the recently published report on a Moray school following inspection revisit by Education Scotland His Majesty's Inspectors of Education (HMIE). Whilst noting improvements require to made which would take time to be realised, members of the Committee acknowledged the work of staff both within the school and from the central support staff to action the further improvements identified in the action plan. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to:- (i) note the contents of the report and findings of Education Scotland HMIE following their inspection visit; (ii) note that a clear and revised action plan is in place to acknowledge areas where progress has been made and in order to focus on areas for improvement requiring further attention; (iii) note that support will continue from the Quality Improvement Team in order to realise further improvements required following change in school leadership; and Page 10
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(iv) note that following future revisit from Education Scotland HMIE (anticipated by September 2025), a further paper will then be brought to this Committee in order to provide an update on school progress with improvements. 17. Education Scotland Inspection of Elgin Academy The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the outcomes of the recently published report on a Moray school following inspection by Education Scotland His Majesty's Inspectors of Education (HMIE). In response to a question from Councillor Keith asking where Councillors sit in terms of stakeholders for school inspection reports, the Head of Education advised inspection reports are shared with Elected Members before being published. She confirmed in the past, where less positive inspection reports have been received, Elected Members briefings have been held to highlight any specific issues which may have impacted on the findings from Education Scotland and such briefings could be considered in those instances if thought to be beneficial. Councillor Keith thanked the Head of Education and agreed such briefings would be helpful to enable Elected Members to understand the issues and improvement work being undertaken so they are able to respond to queries from constituents. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to:- (i) note the contents of the report and findings of Education Scotland HMIE following their inspection visit; and (ii) note that following future revisit from Education Scotland (anticipated April 2025), a further paper will be brought to this Committee in order to provide update on school progress with improvements required. 18. Initial Analysis of Secondary School Attainment - Session 2023-2024 The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) reporting on the attainment of secondary schools in Moray for session 2023/2024 further to National Insight benchmarking toolkit update in September 2024 and central attainment data analysis and review. Councillor Mustard, following on from the request from Councillor Keith for more in depth understanding of inspection reports, asked whether there was correlation between inspection reports and attainment. In response, the Head of Education confirmed there was a link evidenced by the Elgin Academy inspection report. As a follow-up question, Councillor Mustard if information could be gathered to provide analysis and understanding of the impacts of external tutors and whether there were unintentional consequences for those who could not afford tutors. In response, the Head of Education advised the main issues of concern which were having a huge impact on attainment related to the inability to recruit teaching specialists for core subjects. The lack of teaching specialists also has a huge impact on the workload of principal teachers who arrange cover for classes along with senior leaders working through the absence management process because of the stress impacting on staff within schools. Councillor Mustard thanked the Head of Education for the full explanation and reiterated that it would be of assistance if engagement could take place with Elected Members to ensure they fully Page 11
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understand the impacts and the work being undertaken to raise attainment to allow better strategic discussion at Committee. The Head of Education confirmed a briefing on attainment had previously been done for Members and she would discuss with the Depute Chief Executive the most appropriate method of engagement to provide detailed information. Mrs Slater noted in the past briefings on the staffing situation had been provided at the end of Committees and suggested it may be worth reintroducing the briefings given how many vacancies were outstanding. In response, the Head of Education confirmed she was happy to provide confidential briefings on staffing in schools at the end of future Committees. In respect of Moray College courses referenced at 3.51 and 3.52 in the report, Mrs Slater asked which of the courses were running in the 2023/24 session given the concerns raised regarding areas of the curriculum that schools are unable to offer. In response, the Quality Improvement Manager advised the college offer remains largely unchanged with some normal adjustments however he would provide an update to members of the Committee. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to:- (i) note the position in respect of attainment of the young people in Moray for session 2023/2024; (ii) note that initial performance discussions with Head Teachers too place during August and September 2024 involving review of attainment position for each secondary school and identification of actions for improvement required; (iii) note that a future meeting of this Committee, a follow-up insight report will be presented in consideration of school leaver data including post-school destinations following data publication in February 2025; and (iv) review and agree key interventions now planned an/or underway in support of raising attainment and achievement for young people across all secondary schools through identified actions and secondary Stretch Aims set and previously reported to Committee. 19. Federation Policy for Schools The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) seeking Committee approval to further review and update the Policy which was adopted by Committee in March 2024. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to:- (i) the proposed change in one of the principles as laid out in para 3.6; and (ii) adopt this updated policy for any future vacancies across schools from 1 January 2025. 20. Performance Report (Education Resources and Communities) - Period to September 2024 Page 12
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The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the performance of the service for the period to 30 September 2024. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to: (i) note performance in the areas of Service Planning, Service Performance and other related data to the end of September 2024; and (ii) note the actions being taken to improve performance where required. 21. Education Resources and Communities Revenue Budget Monitoring to 30 September 2024 The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the budget position for Education, Resources and Communities as at 30 September 2024. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to note the budget position as at 30 September 2024. 22. Education Resources and Communities Capital Budget Monitoring Report to 30 September 2024 The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing Committee of the capital budget position for Education, Resources and Communities and Education as at 30 September 2024. In response to a question from Councillor Mustard relating to the expected carry forward of £493,000 in respect of Universal Free School Meals, and whether it would be the subject of a separate report on the expansion of the project, the Programme Manager (Learning Estate) confirmed a separate report on that subject would be provided to Committee. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to note the capital budget position as at 30 September 2024. 23. Information Reports - if called in The Committee noted that no Information Reports had been called in. 24. Written Questions ** Under reference to Standing Order 36 a written question from Council Fernandes was submitted in the following terms: Fit Life Direct Debits After reconciling the records between the Fit Life membership software and the finance system, users whose direct debits were not set up correctly are being invoiced for the full Fit Life membership fee for the period owed. Page 13
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Could you provide a breakdown of the following: • The total amount due • The number of users who have been invoiced • The highest amount owed by a single user • Whether any payment plans or instalment options have been arranged? RESPONSE • The total amount due equates to £32,621 over the 5yr period • The total number of users who have been invoiced is 41 • The highest total amount owed by a single user is £2,904 • All individuals that have been invoiced have the option to set up a payment plan with finance to pay these invoices. The press were asked to leave the meeting. 25. Additional Support Needs Review - Update on Progress [Para 1] The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisation Development) informing the Committee of updates with regards to the ongoing Additional Support Needs (ASN) Review within the Education service. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to:- (i) endorse progress to date and emerging impact on the roll out of mandatory training; (ii) agree the proposed change management plans for review of the English as an Additional Language (EAL) Service and the Sensory Education Service; and (iii) endorse the progress made on other aspects of the review and seek a further update before the end of the academic year. 26. Learning Estate Programme - Elgin High School Capacity Expansion Project Update [Paras 8 and 9] The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) informing the Committee of the current status and progress on the Elgin High School capacity extension project. The Programme Manager (Learning Estate) advised further information had been received since the report was drafted and asked recommendation (iv) be amended to remove the text "and instruct officers to write to the Scottish Government requesting a formal extension to the Learning Estate Investment Programme Phase 2 agreed operational completion date for the new build of up to 12 months (Para 5.6)". Following consideration and there being no one otherwise minded, the Committee unanimously agreed to:- (i) note the progress made on the Elgin High School capacity expansion project (Paras 4.2-4.3); Page 14
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(ii) note the estimated associated costs for the current stage of the project through to project completion (Para 6(c)); (iii) note the impact of the current school roll forecast figures for the Elgin High School Associated School Group (ASG) area (Paras 4.4-4.12); (iv) approve a 12 month project delay before the commencement of Hub Stage 2 (Detailed Design) while the accuracy of the new census school roll forecast information is fully assessed and confirmed (Para 5.4); (v) the repurposing design assessment work to the existing main school building continue during the review period (Para 5.7); and (vi) a further report being submitted to Committee on or before November 2025 with recommendations on how to proceed (Para 5.5). 27. Moray and Nairn Educational Trust - Disbursement 2024-2025 [Para 4] The meeting had before it a report by the Depute Chief Executive (Education, Communities and Organisational Development) providing information and seeking approval for the payment plan to be used to assess applications to the Moray and Nairn Educational Trust and considering applications to the trust. Following consideration the Committee unanimously agreed to approve grants at the rates provided in the payment plan. Page 15
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REPORT TO: EDUCATION, CHILDREN’S AND LEISURE SERVICES COMMITTEE ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025 SUBJECT: QUARTER 2 (JULY TO SEPTEMBER 2024) PERFORMANCE REPORT FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES AND JUSTICE SERVICES BY: INTERIM CHIEF SOCIAL WORK OFFICER/HEAD OF SERVICE 1. REASON FOR REPORT 1.1 To inform the Committee on Children and Families and Justice Social Work performance as at Quarter 2. 2. RECOMMENDATION 2.1 It is recommended that Committee:- i) scrutinise and note the performance of local indicators for Quarter 2 as presented in the Performance Report at Appendix 1; and ii) note the analysis of the local indicators as detailed in Appendix 1. 3. BACKGROUND 3.1 The purpose of this report is to inform the Education, Children and Leisure Services (ECLS) Committee of the quarterly performance data which provides the analysis of the delivery of Children and Families and Justice Social Work services. 3.2 Appendix 1 identifies local indicators for the Council and the functions delegated by NHS Grampian and Moray Council of Children and Families and Justice Social Work services to allow wider scrutiny by the Committee. 4. SUMMARY 4.1 Work is underway to develop and agree the refresh of Moray’s key performance indicators to enable local data to be recorded and measured against the national performance indicators. 4.2 Appendix 1 provides a summary and the historical trends. • Child Protection activity Item 5.* Page 17
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• Looked after Children • Justice and Youth Justice 4.3 Statistics for Child Protection activity are provided against the academic calendar which runs from August to July annually. This is because this data is gathered and analysed by the Children Services Partnership and reported to the Child Protection Committee (CPC) through the Child Protection Minimum Data Set. Appendix 1 begins with Child Protection Q4 from page 1 to 10, Financial Q2 data is from page 11 to 24. Any trends or anomalies in this data are considered through the CPC Data subgroup and reported accordingly. 4.4 Statistics for Looked After Children, Justice and Youth Justice are reflected across the financial calendar which runs from April to March which is the reporting calendar for this data. A summary of performance for each of the reporting categories is provided below. Child Protection activity 4.5 At the end of this Child Protection (CP) Quarter 4, 66 children were registered on the Northeast Child Protection Register (NECPR) at a rate of 3.7 per 1,000 of 0–17-year-olds within the population. The national and comparator data will be available at the end of the CP year (after August 2025) which will enable the data to be benchmark at that point. Looked After Children 4.6 At the end of Financial (Fin) Quarter 2, the number of looked after children (175) was 9.9 per 1,000 of 0–17-year-olds within the population (total: 17,668). This is lower than the national average which is 12.3 based on the most recent comparator statistics which date from 2022-23. This figure includes 9 Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC) and 6 children who are cared for on a part time basis (Short Breaks). 4.7 90% (47/54) of children in foster care are cared for by Moray Council foster carers. The Carer Recruitment Campaign continues to focus on recruitment of foster carers and supported lodgings carers. Resultantly, there has been an improved ability to have children and young people cared for by Moray Council foster carers. Thus, reducing the need to purchase external agency care. The Carer Recruitment Campaign is continuing where it is anticipated that the use of in-house carers will increase. 4.8 The target for children living with kinship carers is adjusted annually to the median of comparator authorities which was 25.1% for 2021/22 (this is a more than target based on the assumption Kinship care is preferable, where it is safe and appropriate, to non-family care). Currently 24% of looked after children in Moray are in approved Kinship care with family members. Moray is currently 0.1% below this median. 4.9 16% of Moray’s Looked After Children are cared for in residential care. The target for this indicator (this is a less than target based on the assumption foster care and kinship care is the preferred option, when it is safe and appropriate, where possible) is adjusted annually to the median of comparator authorities (17.5% 2022/23). This figure includes 6 young people who are cared for on a part time (Short Breaks) basis. For illustrative purposes on Page 18
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performance, excluding those who have Short Breaks, (children and young people who are in the care of their families) the figure is 13% which is 5.5% lower than the National comparator median. Overall, Moray are 1.5% lower than the National comparator. 4.10 90% of brothers and sisters remain together in care settings. The Maintaining Relationships Project is developing an approach and policy to ensure that brothers and sisters are able to remain together as far as possible and where this is their assessed needs. 4.11 For Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children, Moray has not adopted the model used by other local authorities of using residential homes. The Moray model comprises of a combination of local authority housing and supported lodgings care settings. As such, the uncertainty regarding the future numbers of Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children should not have an impact on residential care capacity for Moray. 4.12 Statistically it is difficult to ascertain how other authorities record their numbers as the level of detail is not readily available. While nationally significant, the numbers of looked after children are comparatively small which can provide significant percentage variance. An example of this is that in Moray, all Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC) and Short-term breaks are included within our Looked After numbers. The service is aware not all comparator authorities do this and is currently undertaking an exercise to consider what our comparator authorities record. Justice and Youth Justice 4.13 At the end of Financial (Fin) Quarter 2, there were 502 people open to Justice Services of whom 36 are care experienced young people (CEYP) (Youth Justice 12 and Justice 24). 4.14 Overall, the number of CEYP in both Justice Social Work and Youth Justice has been on a reducing trend from 13% at the end of March 2021 to 7.2% at the end of Fin Quarter 2. Work continues to identify and support care experienced young people within these services, to offer early support where possible and reduce the risk of re-offending. 4.15 The majority of individuals supported by Youth Justice and Justice Social Work are male (87% Justice Social Work, 93% Youth Justice). Gender responsive support is offered to females taking account of research and data indicating women in the justice system are more likely to have experienced trauma and more likely to be a sole carer for a child or family member. 4.16 The Justice Social Work Service submitted 100% of reports to Court by their due date. This includes requests from Moray’s local Court and nationally. 5. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS (a) Corporate Plan and 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP) and Moray Integration Joint Board Strategic Plan “Partners in Care 2022 – 2032” Page 19
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This report notes a review of key performance indicators is currently being developed in respect of the wider service functions which will align with key priority areas across the Children’s Services partnership. (b) Policy and Legal None arising as a direct result of this report. (c) Financial implications None arising as a direct result of this report. (d) Risk Implications and Mitigation None arising as a direct result of this report. (e) Staffing Implications There are no proposed changes to the staffing or reporting arrangements. (f) Property None arising as a direct result of this report. (g) Equalities/Socio Economic Impact None arising as a direct result of this report. (h) Climate Change and Biodiversity Impacts None arising as a direct result of this report. (i) Directions None arising as a direct result of this report. (j) Consultations Children and Families and Justice Social Work Senior Management Team, Chief Officer and Caroline O’Connor, Committee Services Officer have been consulted and their comments have been incorporated into the report. 6. CONCLUSION 6.1 This report provides Committee with an overview of the performance of specified local and National indicators. Author of Report: Jim Lyon, Interim Chief Social Work Officer/Head of Service Background Papers: Appendix 1 Ref: SPMAN-305227695-161 SPMAN-305227695-162 Page 20
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APPENDIX 1 1 | P a g e CHILDREN AND FAMILIES AND JUSTICE SOCIAL WORK - QUARTER 2 (JULY-SEPT 2024) PERFORMANCE REPORT PLEASE NOTE THIS REPORT IS SPLIT INTO TWO SECTIONS. THE FOLLOWING SECTION USES THE ACADEMIC CALENDAR (1 AUG – 31 JULY). THE INFORMATION PRESENTED REPRESENTS CP QUARTER 4 WHICH IS LATEST AVAILABLE DATA (MAY TO JULY 24). At the end of the CP Quarter 4, 621 referrals were made into the Access Team for 478 children (as per graph 1). Graph 1: CP Quarter 4 - Referrals received by Access Team The potential referral routes are Social Work, SCRA, Police, Courts, Education, Health, 3rd Sector, community, family and young person. When a referral has been received it can be categorised as: IRD – immediate child protection concerns. Enquiry – information gathering to determine next steps (if any). Assessment – team will conduct an initial assessment of needs. Pie chart 1: Sources of referral 224 182 215 174 149 155 0 50 100 150 200 250 May-24 Jun-24 Jul-24 Referrals No of referrals in last month No of children Item 5.* Page 21
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APPENDIX 1 2 | P a g e In CP Quarter 4, 47.3% of the referrals were made by the Police (294), followed by Education 11.1% (69), Health and Social Work 16.6% (103), Family and or Anonymous 14.5% (90), and 10.5% coming from other professionals (65) (as per pie chart 1). Where the number of referrals are higher than the number of children, this can be attributed to the fact there can be multiple sources of referrals about a child (e.g. Health, Education and Police). This potentially reflects consistent thresholds across the partnership. Initial Referral Discussions (IRDs) are a multi-agency decision making forum where information is shared and considered between partnership representatives regarding potential or actual risk of harm to children and young people. We have been working with our partner agencies to more robustly apply the criteria for IRDs, for example, where families are supported by a Social Worker, then we hold a relevant meeting which involves the family and young person, rather than professionals only. This is a likely explanation for a reduction in IRD numbers from CP Quarter 1 to CP Quarter 4. Graph 2: IRDs and number of children subject to an IRD Graph 2 shows the quarterly trend in IRDs (between 1 Aug 2023 and 31 July 2024). In CP Quarter 4, 84 children were involved in 47 IRDs. Of the 84 children, 21 had been subject to two or more IRDs in the past (25%). For each quarter, the number of children is greater than the number of IRDs as each IRD can consider multiple children within a family. Most referrals for IRDs in CP Quarter 4 came from the Police (46.4% [39]), closely followed by Social Work (39.3% [33]). The IRD process determines the most suitable pathway for the child to ensure their safety and any support required. An IRD can consider initiating a Child Protection Planning Meeting, which deliberates the child’s name being placed on the North-East Child Protection Register (NECPR/CPR/Register). 66 65 63 47 125 105 89 84 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 IRDs No. of IRDs since 1 Aug No. of children since 1 Aug Page 22
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APPENDIX 1 3 | P a g e Pie chart 2: Main reasons for IRD As per chart above, throughout CP Quarter 4, physical assault remains a consistent reason for an IRD being held (26, 55%), followed by sexual assault (24, 51%) domestic abuse (11, 23%) and other reason (this includes cumulative neglect) (12, 25%). We are interested to consider over a period whether there is any impact for the reasons an IRD is convened in relation to the delivery of the following training, Safe and Together and Graded Care Profile, which is still being delivered. Pie chart 3: Child protection concerns During CP Quarter 4, Domestic Abuse, Child affected by parent/carer mental ill health and Parental Drug Use remain the main child protection concerns. *Note there may be more than one concern documented for each child* Joint consideration with adult mental health services is required to see if there can be any further support and developments in this area for reporting next quarter. Page 23
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APPENDIX 1 4 | P a g e Following the IRDs, 31 Child Protection Investigations were carried out, 7 Initial Child Protection Planning Meetings were convened, and 26 Joint Investigative Interviews were requested. From 31 Child Protection Investigations (31 children) this resulted in only 7 Initial Child Protection Planning Meetings and the families that did not progress to this had actions closed following support from social work, or social work requested a commissioned service. We have been working with the child protection lead in education to support more robust child planning processes and understanding of significant harm, e.g. a Senior Social Worker will attend future Education Child Protection Coordinator Network meetings. Graph 3: Joint Investigative Interviewing Graph 3 shows the trend across the year 2023/24 for joint investigative interviews and Scottish Child Investigative Interviews. 16 26 9 12 12 9 13 7 7 13 10 413 22 8 11 9 6 13 7 7 13 9 4 3 4 1 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 Aug-23 Sep-23 Oct-23 Nov-23 Dec-23 Jan-24 Feb-24 Mar-24 Apr-24 May-24 Jun-24 Jul-24 JII and Scottish Child Interview Model No. of children subject to a JII as decision of IRD No. of JII - SCIM No. of JII - 5 - day No. of children who declined/or did not complete JII No. of SCIM JIIs undertaken Page 24
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APPENDIX 1 5 | P a g e Graph 4 – JII & SCIM Graph 4 shows the activity of Joint Investigative Interviewing across CP Quarter 4, during which 27 children were recommended for Joint Investigative Interview (JII); 22 interviews were completed and five children either declined or a different form of interview was carried out. The Social Work Data Group, chaired by a Service Manager, will track physical assaults across CP Quarter 4, from IRD to JII considering intervention and support, safety planning and outcomes for the children and young people. Graph 5: Initial Child Protection Planning Meetings Graph 5 shows the trend across the last three reporting years (2021-2024) for the number of Initial and Pre-birth Child Protection Planning Meetings, and the number of children. The number of children subject to CPPMs is higher than the number of meetings held, due to some meetings considering sibling groups. 13 10 4 13 9 4 0 1 02 2 1 11 8 3 13 9 4 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 May-24 Jun-24 Jul-24 JIIs using SCIM No. of children subject to a JII as decision of IRD No. of JII - SCIM No. of JII - 5 - day No. of children who declined/or did not complete JII No. of SCIM JIIs undertaken How many JIIs used SCIM Page 25
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APPENDIX 1 6 | P a g e The high numbers in CP Quarter 1 and CP Quarter 2 can be attributed to large numbers of children within a small number of families. At the end of CP Quarter 4, 7 Initial and Pre-birth Child Protection Planning Meetings were held for 12 children of these, 9 children’s names were place on the register. Graph 6: Conversions from IRD to ICCPM Graph 6 above shows the trend from 2020 through to 2024 and specifically CP Quarter 4, where the conversion rate from ICPPM to Child Protection Registration was 75%. 13 20 28 30 8 18 16 25 8 10 22 18 25 39 19 14 75 78 100 76 100 77 94 91 75 73 45 78 78 83 94 75 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Aug- Oct Nov- Jan Feb- Apr May- Jul Aug- Oct Nov- Jan Feb- Apr May- Jul Aug- Oct Nov- Jan Feb- Apr May- Jul Aug- Oct Nov- Jan Feb- Apr May- Jul 2020/21 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 Conversion Rates % IRD to Initial and Pre-Birth CPPMs % Initial and Pre-Birth CPPMs to Registration The conversion rate from referral to IRD is 7.6% The conversion rate from IRD to CPI is 65% Conversion rate from CPI to ICPPM is 38.7% Page 26
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APPENDIX 1 7 | P a g e During CP Quarter 4, there were 20 Review Child Protection Planning Meetings (RCPPM) held for 44 children, where their circumstances were reviewed with their families, lead professionals and advocates, to assess if the identified risks had been sufficiently reduced to consider removing the child’s name from the register. Graph 7: Child Protection Registration Trends The trend is depicted across Graph 7 from 2021-2024 and shows in CP Quarter 4, that 13 children were de-registered and 9 new children were registered. This meant at the end of CP Quarter 4, the number of children who were on the Child Protection Register (CPR) had reduced by 4 (from 70 to 66). 5 10 15 21 6 8 9 14 25 34 16 9 31 35 44 50 42 37 27 32 50 79 70 66 9 6 6 15 14 13 20 9 9 5 25 13 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Aug-Oct Nov-Jan Feb-Apr May-Jul Aug-Oct Nov-Jan Feb-Apr May-Jul Aug-Oct Nov-Jan Feb-Apr May-Jul 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 Child Protection Register Number of Registrations Number on Register Number of De-Registrations Page 27
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APPENDIX 1 8 | P a g e Pie chart 4: CP Quarter 4 registration reasons Graph 8: Registration Categories Graph 8 above indicates the trend in registration categories across the reporting period (from August 2023 to July 2024). There has been a significant reduction in new registrations for the category Child affected by parental mental ill-health, with figures showing a reduction from 8 new registrations in CP Quarter 3 (Feb 2024 – Apr 2024) to 0 in CP Quarter 4 (May 2024 – July 2024). New Reg Concern: Domestic Abuse, 4, 23% New Reg Parental Alcohol Use, 3, 18% New Reg Concern: Parental Drug Use, 2, 12% New Reg Concern: Physical Abuse, 1, 6% New Reg Concern: Emotional Abuse, 4, 23% New Reg Concern: Other Concern, 3, 18% CP Q4 REGISTRATION REASONS 3 1 8 6 8 1 7 11 4 43 5 3 33 16 1 23 1 1 5 5 4 1 8 9 2 4 2 3 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Registration Categories Services find it hard to engage Child Affected by Parent/Carer Mental Ill-Health Child experiencing mental health problems Domestic Abuse Parental Alcohol Use Parental Drug Use Physical Abuse Emotional Abuse Criminal Exploitation Neglect Other Concern Page 28
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APPENDIX 1 9 | P a g e 37% of IRDs was for the category sexual abuse which does not follow through to registration reasons because the majority were not familial and were more due to experiences of sexual abuse from a peer, where the family are supportive and assessed as able to protect the young people. 45% of IRDs was for physical abuse which does not follow through to registration reasons as most physical assaults were from parents struggling with their parenting role, and with appropriate support to families, child protection plans were not necessary. Graph 9: Family Groups As shown in Graph 9, at the end of CP Quarter 4, there were 13 family groups consisting of one child, 8 family groups with 2 children and 10 family groups of 3 or more children on the register. Graph 10: Previous Registrations 25 8 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 Jul-24 Previous Registrations No. of children with 1 previous registration No. of children with more than 2 previous registration Page 29
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APPENDIX 1 10 | P a g e At the end of the CP Quarter 4, there were 25 children on the register who had 1 previous registration and 8 with 2 or more previous registrations. No child or young person’s name was placed back on the register within 24 months of de-registration (as indicated in Graph 10). Graph 11: Time on NECPR Graph 12: Age of children on the register Graph 12 shows the trend for 2023/24 against CP Quarter 4 data where all age categories have remained consistent with only a slight fluctuation throughout the Quarter. The number of young people aged 16 years old has remained static since December 2023. 42 15 10 1 0 34 21 5 6 0 22 32 6 5 1 <6 months 6 mths < 1 year 1 year < 18 mths 18 mths < 2 years > 2 years Time on the NECPR Jul-24 Jun-24 May-24 Page 30
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APPENDIX 1 11 | P a g e THE FOLLOWING SECTIONS REPORT AGAINST THE FINANCIAL QUARTER (JULY-SEPT 2024) Graph 13: Number of children looked after away from home and at home Graph 13 identifies that at the end of Financial (Fin) Quarter 2, there were 175 children who were looked after by Moray. This figure has remained relatively stable throughout the reporting period. Pie chart 5: Care setting categories At the end of Fin Quarter 2, 47% of children were in family settings at home or in kinship care with 53% in other settings such as foster care or residential homes. This is a positive indication that many looked after children can remain within their network of family and friends. Alongside this, 90% of siblings remain together in a care setting. Siblings who are not together are because of family circumstances or assessed needs. There is planned work via the Maintaining Relationships Project to sustain and increase the percentage of siblings remaining together in care settings in line with the Children’s Service Plan. Foster care (54) and kinship care (44) are the highest categories followed by children looked after at home (38). Our residential houses (10) remain at approximately the same level as the Out of Area residential category (11). The carer recruitment campaign has seen new 176 178 185 187 183 180 182 172 172 177 179 175 173 175 160 165 170 175 180 185 190 Aug-23 Sep-23 Oct-23 Nov-23 Dec-23 Jan-24 Feb-24 Mar-24 Apr-24 May-24 Jun-24 Jul-24 Aug-24 Sep-24 No. of Looked After Children Page 31
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APPENDIX 1 12 | P a g e foster carers approved to support young people remaining in Moray in family care settings. A significant majority of young people are in family-based care rather than residential care. At the end of Fin Quarter 2, 12% of our looked after children were cared for on a full-time basis in residential accommodation. If short breaks are included the figure increases to 14.8%. The indicator (to be kept within or lower) is adjusted annually to the median of comparator authorities (17.5% 2022/23). As such, Moray is below the median indicator when considering full-time care on its own and including short breaks. This highlights in Moray there is a priority to support young people in family-based care, where possible, to provide a positive model of family life. One young person was placed in secure care from November 2023 on remand at the direction of the Court. This aligns with the recent changes in Justice legislation for children under 18 where they are remanded into the care of local authorities rather than Young Offenders Institutions. Moray hosts a group of 10 young people who are Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking children and young people via the National Transfer Scheme. These children and young people are allocated to the Throughcare and Aftercare Team by the Home Office and are counted as looked after children to ensure they receive full support. Initially, these young people are in Supported Lodgings care settings or Supported Accommodation. The team continues to successfully support them to move into their own independent housing once they have been granted asylum. The approach adopted by Moray is seen by COSLA as a model of good practice as it offers flexibility and has an ability to respond to the differing needs of young people. Graph 14: Moray foster care households At end of Fin Quarter 2 there were 54 children living in foster care, with 48 (89%) children living with foster carers employed by Moray Council and six (11%) living with independent 28 36 37 37 36 35 27 25 25 28 31 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 36 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q1 2023/24 2023/24 2023/24 2024/25 2024/25 Moray Foster Care Number of Moray Council Fostering households Number of Moray Council Foster Carers with “Active” placements at the end of the period Page 32
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APPENDIX 1 13 | P a g e foster carers. Those young people living with independent foster carers are all in long-term care with Permanence Orders. Not all fostering households have children living in their care. At the end of Fin Quarter 2 this comprises four in total. This is a small number due to family circumstances or matching considerations of their registration approval where foster carers are inactive for a short period of time. Graph 15: Children who live in foster care Graph 16 identifies the number of children cared for by Moray foster carers, 48 which is an increase from Fin Quarter 2 in 2023 which was 43. However, this includes some quarterly fluctuations where the pattern is relatively stable. The number of approved Moray foster carer households available for children has seen a small decrease. Although the carer recruitment campaign is resulting in new fostering households, this is balanced by other foster households ceasing or changing the type of fostering they provide. The challenge in recruiting and retaining foster carers is both a local and national issue. The carer recruitment campaign is significant in recruiting foster carers where this is also accompanied by work in relation to retention. This is focused on the support provided to foster carers including supervision, training and finances. Foster carers are graded by the level of skills learned and developed, ranging from Level 1 to Level 4 being the highest. 44 43 45 47 45 48 46 45 47 46 51 51 50 48 11 11 7 7 7 7 7 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 Children in Foster Care Local Authority Foster Care Foster with other orgs paid for by Local Authority Page 33
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APPENDIX 1 14 | P a g e Graph 16: Kinship carers Kinship care is split into two groups: pre-approved kinship homes awaiting presentation at the Kinship Panel for approval and kinship households already approved at Panel. Graph 17: Residential care Residential care is divided into those in residential care within Moray and those out with Moray. Children cared for within Moray live in the authority's own children’s houses, Cala and Action for Children’s two houses in Buckie and Elgin. The figure for this category is 10. 30 32 29 31 32 30 29 30 31 29 29 29 29 28 30 29 26 26 32 34 32 31 30 32 33 32 32 31 10 14 14 16 11 7 9 10 12 9 7 8 8 8 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 Aug-23 Sep-23 Oct-23 Nov-23 Dec-23 Jan-24 Feb-24 Mar-24 Apr-24 May-24 Jun-24 Jul-24 Aug-24 Sep-24 Kinship Care Settings No. of households providing Kinship Placements No. of Children in Approved Placements No. of Children in Pre-Approved Placements 13 14 14 14 13 12 13 12 12 13 13 12 11 10 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 10 10 11 11 9 9 11 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 Aug-23 Sep-23 Oct-23 Nov-23 Dec-23 Jan-24 Feb-24 Mar-24 Apr-24 May-24 Jun-24 Jul-24 Aug-24 Sep-24 Residential Care Placement: Residential in Moray Placement: Out of Area Page 34
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APPENDIX 1 15 | P a g e Out of area care tends to be specialist residential houses or residential schools. There has been a consistent focus on providing this care in Moray where possible, so children remain close to their families and support network. The figure for this category is 11. There is work in place to reduce the number of young people in Out of Area care. These are expensive care options but also do not support young people in maintaining their various links in Moray including health, education, family and friends. Graph 18: Through care after care data As illustrated in Graph 18, from 30 September 2024, there were 75 young people receiving care from the Through Care After Care (TCAC) Team including nine receiving continuing care support. The team is divided into three sections: • Through Care: Young people receiving support to plan and prepare for independence. • After Care: Young people who have left care but are receiving continuing support. • Continuing Care: Young people who choose to remain where they live beyond their 18th birthday until they are 21 although it can be in place from 16. These young people cease to be formally looked after by Moray but are legally entitled to continue living where they are. This provides stability in a familiar and nurturing setting. There is a focus on continuing care to ensure young people in different care settings are all provided the opportunity to remain where they are living potentially up until the age of 21. This is a key responsibility for the organisation and partners as corporate parents. The team is responsible for supported unaccompanied asylum-seeking children and young people via the National Transfer Scheme. This is an increasing workload for the team, which is dependent, in part, on the numbers of young people arriving in Kent, making future forecasting a significant challenge. 35 33 28 8 9 9 37 40 38 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 Jul-24 Aug-24 Sep-24 Through Care, After Care and Continuing Care Through Care Continuing Care Aftercare Page 35
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APPENDIX 1 16 | P a g e Justice and Youth Justice. Graph 19: Care experienced young people open to Justice Services Nationally, care experienced young people (CEYP) are overrepresented in the Scottish Justice Systems. At the end of Fin Quarter 2, 7.2% (36 of 502) were CEYP (up to age 26) within the Justice System (Youth Justice 12, Justice Social Work 24) depicted in graph 19, showing an increase from 4.5% at end of Fin Quarter 1. An error in reporting resulted in the figures for the Youth Justice team not being included in this data and the Fin Quarter 1 figure should have been 6.4%. This figure has consistently remained below 12% throughout 2023/24. Work continues to identify and offer early intervention and support where possible to identify CEYP and offer early help where possible to reduce the amount of time in which they are involved with justice services. The aim is to reduce the risk of re-offending to prevent CEYP requiring these services in the future. 435 424 421 424 403 415 422 450 440 449 443 466 472 44 46 46 41 38 39 45 38 40 36 37 32 30 9.18 8.93 8.99 9.46 9.52 9.47 8.35 7.58 7.29 6.39 7.23 6.82 7.17 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 Sep-23 Oct-23 Nov-23 Dec-23 Jan-24 Feb-24 Mar-24 Apr-24 May-24 Jun-24 Jul-24 Aug-24 Sep-24 Care Experienced People in the Justice System Open to Justice Team No. open to Youth Justice % CEYP open to both MYJ and JS Page 36
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APPENDIX 1 17 | P a g e Graph 20: Ages of young people in Youth Justice The average age of a young person receiving Youth Justice services is 15 years old which is predominately males accounting for 93% of young people supported by the service. Pie chart 6: Gender of young people in Youth Justice Pie chart 7: Justice Report Types At the end of Fin Quarter 2, 13% of individuals in Justice Social Work were women, which has remained relatively static over the past year. It is recognised women in the justice process 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 33 29 31 30 24 22 22 27 21 22 21 21 21 21 14 15 14 15 15 14 15 14 13 16 13 15 10 7 2 0 0 0 1 1 1 3 4 2 2 1 0 1 49 44 46 46 41 38 39 45 38 40 36 37 32 30 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 Aug-23 Sep-23 Oct-23 Nov-23 Dec-23 Jan-24 Feb-24 Mar-24 Apr-24 May-24 Jun-24 Jul-24 Aug-24 Sep-24 Youth Justice Age Bands Age Band: 5-10 Age Band: 11-15 Age Band: 16-17 Age Band: 18+ No. open to Youth Justice 87% 13% JSW Gender Male Female 28 2 Youth Justice Gender Male Female Page 37
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APPENDIX 1 18 | P a g e are more likely to have experienced trauma and are also more likely to be a sole carer for a child or family member. In line with The Promise, Justice Social Work is committed to keeping women in their local communities where it is safe to do so and provide robust alternatives to custodial sentences. Currently the Justice team offers a gender responsive service which includes a weekly women’s group and a woman only unpaid work group. Support is offered in partnership with other services to promote opportunities for individuals to engage with community resources which will be available beyond their time within the justice service. Graph 21: Justice social work reports (JSWR) Justice social work reports (JSWR) remain a priority to reduce any delays in sentencing and for Fin Quarter 2 the target of 100% on time has been met. Whilst reports are prepared at the request of any Court for an individual living in Moray, most reports are submitted to Elgin Sheriff Court. There has been small reduction in sentencing reports completed in Fin Quarter 2 due to a reduction in requests received from Courts. The trend of small increases or decreases is expected each month or quarter. Pie chart 8: Justice Report Types Page 38
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APPENDIX 1 19 | P a g e In addition to a standard JSWR report the Court may request additional assessments such as a Drug Treatment and Testing Order (DTTO) assessment and a Restriction of Liberty Order (ROLO) assessment as shown in pie chart 8. The imposition of a ROLO or DTTO can be a direct alternative to custody so effective assessments for these Orders can offer a robust community-based disposal. Graph 22: Structured deferred sentences (SDS) An SDS is a flexible intervention providing structured social work support for an individual after conviction but prior to sentencing. Successful completion of an SDS reduces the need for a statutory Court Order, in turn reducing the overall length of time an individual is open to the service. There has been a reduction in SDSs in Fin Quarter 2 which will have been impacted slightly by the reduction in overall reports requested. There was also a slight increase in report requests for a ROLO which indicates a more serious offence or pattern of offending for which a recommendation for an SDS would unlikely be suitable. Graph 23: Bail supervision 3, 3% 39, 36% 62, 58% 3, 3% Type of Report JSWR DTTO Assessment JSWR ROLO Assessment JSWR Standard JSWR Unpaid Work/DTTO/ROLO Assessment 15 5 7 1 MALE Q1 FEMALE Q1 MALE Q2 FEMALE Q2 Structured Deferred Sentences Number imposed Page 39
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APPENDIX 1 20 | P a g e Bail supervision is an alternative to remand and the priority for this in Moray is women, young people, those with caring or parental responsibilities and those with issues relating to mental health or addictions. There is no significant change in either numbers of assessments requested, or bail supervision orders imposed in Fin Quarter 2. Less than 25% of assessments result in bail supervision being imposed. National data is not available to compare, however, working groups have confirmed this variation is not isolated to Moray. Currently the prison population is significantly high, and bail supervision is one area of work which is hoped will assist in reducing these numbers whilst offering more positive outcomes for individuals within their local communities. Graph 24: CPO with supervision requirement Fin Quarter 2 has seen an increase in the imposition of Community Payback Orders (CPO), despite a small reduction in reports being submitted. Most individuals made subject to a CPO are seen on the day of sentencing, for those where this has not been possible, an appointment with their allocated worker is made within seven days of an Order being imposed. Missed targets this quarter all relate to individuals not attending appointments. 54 5 58 413 1 11 2 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 Male Q1 Female Q1 Male Q2 Female Q2 Bail Supervision Bail Sup. Assessments Bail Sup imposed Page 40
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APPENDIX 1 21 | P a g e Diversion from Prosecution Diversion from prosecution allows someone accused of offences to be dealt with outside of the formal justice system. The Justice Social Work team undertakes all assessments of suitability; however, the Youth Justice team will complete any interventions or support for young people aged 16 and 17. The referral rate varies which is a result of the process of cases being marked by the Procurator Fiscal. There can occasionally be delays in the commencement of these cases where additional agreement is required from the Procurator Fiscal, e.g. an extended period for completion. Successful completion of a diversion from prosecution means an individual will not have a conviction for the alleged offence which may impact their current or future employment or education alongside other significant areas of their life. Graph 25: Diversion from prosecution: Female Page 41
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APPENDIX 1 22 | P a g e Graph 26: Diversion from prosecution: Male Policy Team. Support and protection of children and young people procedure rollout As noted in the previous report, the Policy Team within Children and Families and Justice Social Work, in collaboration with partner agencies, lead on the revision of the Moray Multiagency Child Protection Procedure now known as Support and Protection of Children and Young People. This procedure has been successfully rolled out via a comprehensive implementation plan targeting several practitioners across the partnership, as illustrated on the figure below. Page 42
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APPENDIX 1 23 | P a g e The briefing paper outlined the key changes to the procedure, whilst the interactive briefing sessions offered a walkthrough of various processes through Alfie’s story, a video series (developed by the charity Not in Our Community) exploring the realities of criminal exploitation from the perspective of a young person. Commissioning. Pie chart 9: Contract categories Pie chart 9 identifies the seven main category areas of the contracts held within the Children & Families and Justice commissioning team. The family support category covers a range of services which deliver prevention and early intervention to avoid family breakdown and possible out of area care. This category covers three family support services (Families Together, Functional Family Therapy and Youth Point Services) and the Independent Advocacy contract. For the services delivered to children with a disability, the short breaks service contract commenced this quarter with the incumbent provider following a commissioning process including tender advertisement, ensuring there was continuity and no gap in service provision. There is a new service for children with a disability – group activities, which was tendered, evaluated and awarded to Action for Children, this contract was due to commence 1 November 2024. A local framework was developed to formalise the contractual agreements for 3 young people to reside locally and be supported with their physical disabilities in a residential home. There are currently 8 young people residing in residential care in Moray provided by Action for Children. This contract expires 31 March 2025 and during Fin Quarter 2 the commissioning team gathered the views of the young people, developed and finalised the specification with the tender being advertised as part of the commissioning process. The three family support services report a combined total of 116 children, young people and their families on their current workload, broken down in the illustration below: Page 43
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APPENDIX 1 24 | P a g e All three family support services have capacity for referrals, which has been communicated across social work teams. The three family supports services are reporting and providing evidence on achieving 21 contractual outcomes with a further 11 in progress: Families Together have reported 88 children and young people (from 57 families) being positively impacted following families being supported with financial gains and debt management as part of the Children First service. The illustration above details service outcomes. The independent relational advocacy service has been contracted for a full year and the referral rate is beginning to stabilise. There are two lots for this contract, lot 1 for all the young people and lot 2 for their parents, carers and siblings. They currently have 143 children, young people, parents or carers and siblings on their caseload, including 36 looked after children and 39 subject of child protection. In Fin Quarter 2, independent advocates supported children and families in 46 meetings. Graph 27: Meetings attended by independent advocacy service Pie chart 10: LAC and CP on current caseload A direct award contract for self-regulation and behaviour management was finalised (previously this was for foster care) which commences on 1 November 2024, will include adoptive, kinship and supported lodgings care. For the first year, the Scottish Government expanded the Scottish Living Wage uplift to cover the providers of children’s services which the commissioning team continues to implement. The commissioning team attended 4 training sessions – modern slavery, trauma informed, and 2 x child criminal exploitation. These courses have helped to contribute to the language of the specifications and contract monitoring going forward. On 13 September 2024 there was a commissioning development day held with adult services commissioning and service managers in relation to the contract monitoring process. LAC & CP on Current Caseload LAC Under CP Page 44
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REPORT TO: EDUCATION, CHILDREN’S AND LEISURE SERVICES COMMITTEE ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025 SUBJECT: EDUCATION REVENUE BUDGET MONITORING TO 31 DECEMBER 2024 BY: DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE (EDUCATION, COMMUNITIES AND ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT) 1. REASON FOR REPORT 1.1 To inform the Committee of the revenue budget position for Education as at 31 December 2024. 1.2 This report is submitted to Council in terms of Section III (A) 2 of the Council's Scheme of Administration relating to the consideration of capital and revenue budgets and long term financial plans. 2. RECOMMENDATION 2.1 It is recommended that Committee scrutinises and notes the budget position at 31 December 2024. 3. BACKGROUND 3.1 The report highlights those areas of budget where there is variance identified at 31 December 2024. 4. BUDGET POSITION 4.1 The spend at 31 December is £88,378,000 against a budget of £118,688,000 giving an underspend of £321,000, as shown in Appendix 1. 4.2 The variance in Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) Education is a £45,000 overspend which relates to an underspend in snack and fundraising of £37,000 will be transferred to ear marked reserves at the end of the financial year, £8,000 of underspend in the training budget and £2,000 of small underspends and an overspend of £92,000 to partner providers. Item 6.* Page 45
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4.3 In Primary Devolved School Management (DSM) scheme there is an underspend of £331,000 across all schools. This relates to an underspend of £245,000 across all primary schools and an underspend of £66,000 on non- devolved costs ie oncosts £51,000 underspend, energy underspend of £17,000, grounds maintenance overspend of £3,000 and rent and rates underspend of £1,000. The oncosts underspend is due to a staffing underspend on the devolved budget. This will continue to be monitored across the year where there has been no increase in these budget lines for a number of years. 4.4 The Secondary DSM scheme has an underspend of £510,000 which relates to an underspend of £452,000 across all secondary schools and a £58,000 underspend in the non-devolved budget made up of a £9,000 underspend in energy, £46,000 underspend in oncosts and £3,000 underspend in rent and rates. The oncosts underspend is due to staffing underspend in the devolved budget. As with Primary DSM there has been no increase in the non- devolved budget line for a number of years. However budgets are changed for increases in pension and National Insurance (NI) contributions and changes in energy prices. Underspend in Secondary is exacerbated due to the difficulty in filling subject specific posts. 4.5 Within additional support needs there is an overspend of £21,000 which is due to overspend of £56,000 on redundancy payments following a recent change management plan, where there was no suitable alternative post identified, which will be funded from reserves. The posts were not deleted however staff did not wish to be matched to new positions which will better meet the needs of the service. There is also an overspend of £21,000 on legal fees linked to ASN Tribunal, underspend of £26,000 on the Speech and Language contract due to delay in filling a post. There are small underspends in the training budget of £6,000, and general underspends of £12,000. 4.6 In the Education Central Services budget there is an overspend of £219,000 which relates to underspends of £23,000 for school sanitary products a slight increase from other reporting periods, £5,000 for disturbance allowance, £9,000 for teacher post advertising and £13,000 of other minor over/underspends. There is an overspend of £269,000 in the central supply budget relating to cover for long term absence and maternity leave payments. This is projected, on current rates, to be an overspend of £600,000 by year end. A process has been put in place in order to ascertain whether the overspend is due to maternity cover or sickness which is informing the service in order that schools with high level of sickness can be targeted for support. Half of the supply budget supports maternity absence which has increased over the last few years. There is no contingency for this apart from considering increasing the budget taking trend data into account. 4.7 The Out of Area (OOA) budget is overspent by £220,000 and is predicted to be £430,000 of an overspend at year end. This has been identified as a budget pressure and is being closely monitored by the Interim Chief Social Worker and Chief Education Officer. This can be further impacted on where Page 46
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care packages have to be adapted or where court or Children’s Reporter processes impact on decisions regarding young people. 5. EDUCATION SAVINGS 2024-25 Details Approved Saving £000 Achieved Saving £000 Reason for non achievement Primary Advisor role 15 15 ELC – delete PSA post 12 12 ELC – reduce teaching team by 2 posts 83 83 Primary – teacher pupil ratio move to statutory position – change in linear formula 42 41 Secondary – reduce DSM 188 192 Central Education – remove 1 QIM 109 85 Saving started August 2024. Balance made in 25/26 Central Education – remove 1 Learning Technologist 50 43 Saving started August 2024. Balance made in 25/26 Total 499 471 6. OUTTURN 6.1 The predicted outturn for year end based on current spend is £113,000 of an underspend mainly related to the underspends in DSM offset by predicted overspends in ELC, the central education budget and the out of area budget. 7. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS (a) Corporate Plan and 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP)) The Education Revenue Budget has particular reference to National Outcome 8 – we have improved the life chances for children, young people and families at risk. (b) Policy and Legal The Council has statutory responsibilities to meet educational needs, the needs of children and young people in need and those it looks after. (c) Financial implications The resource implications are set out in this report and at Appendix 1. The underspend as at 31 December 2024 is £321,000 against a budget to date of £88,378,000. The estimated year end position is expenditure Page 47
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of £118,575,000 against a budget of £118,688,000 resulting in an underspend of £113,000. (d) Risk Implications Budget managers are aware of their responsibilities for managing budget allocations and approval for any variances will be sought from Committee in line with Financial Regulations. The central supply budget is a key risk for the service in terms of posts having to be covered during absence. Trends in increased maternity leave and long term absence are noted and put further pressure on this budget. (e) Staffing Implications There are no staffing implications associated with this report. (f) Property There are no property issues arising from this report. (g) Equalities/Socio Economic Impact This is not needed because the report is to inform the Committee on budget monitoring. (h) Climate Change and Biodiversity Impacts None. (i) Consultations Chief Financial Officer, Nicky Gosling, Accountant and Caroline O’Connor, Committee Services Officer have been consulted and are in agreement with the contents of this report where it relates to their areas of responsibility. 8. CONCLUSION 8.1 The Committee considers and notes the budget position as at 31 December 2024. Author of Report: Vivienne Cross, Head of Education Background Papers: Ref: SPMAN-1315769894-617 Page 48
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Educational Services APPENDIX 1 Budget Monitoring Report to 31 December 2024 Service Revised Budget Budget to Date Actual to Date Variance to Date Variance Full Year Forecast Full Year Variance £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 % £'000 £'000 Early Learning and Childcare 15,406 10,699 10,744 (45) - 15,513 (107) Primary Education 35,003 26,157 25,846 311 1 % 34,941 62 Secondary Education 39,593 29,744 29,234 510 2 % 39,535 58 Additional Support Needs 19,793 14,589 14,610 (21) - 19,789 4 Education Central Services 5,246 4,684 4,903 (219) (5)% 5,777 (531) Management 140 105 100 5 5 % 134 6 Out of Area 3,279 2,400 2,620 (220) (9)% 3,709 (430) Efficiency Savings-Education 228 - - - - (767) 995 - Educational Services Total 118,688 88,378 88,057 321 - 118,631 57 Item 6.* Page 49
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REPORT TO: EDUCATION, CHILDREN’S AND LEISURE SERVICES COMMITTEE ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025 SUBJECT: EARLY LEARNING AND CHILDCARE – PRIMARY 1 ADMISSIONS BY: DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE (EDUCATION, COMMUNITIES AND ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT) 1. REASON FOR REPORT 1.1 To inform the Committee of the admissions policy surrounding early entry, deferral and exceptional deferral for Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) children transitioning to Primary 1 (P1). 1.2 This report is submitted to Committee in terms of Section III (D) (1) of the Council's Scheme of Administration relating to all the functions of the Council as Education Authority. 2. RECOMMENDATION 2.1 It is recommended that Committee:- (i) scrutinise and note the contents of this report; and (ii) agrees the guidance contained in Appendices 1 and 2 as the admissions policy surrounding early entry, deferral and exceptional deferral. 3. BACKGROUND 3.1 When an ELC child is transitioning from ELC to Primary the standard process is for parents/carers to register online, in the January prior to their child starting in their chosen school e.g. for starting school in August 2025 the parent/carer would register the child in January 2025. 3.2 Children normally start school in the August following their 5th birthday. Children who are aged 4 at the school commencement date in August and who will have attained the statutory school age on or before 29 February may start at age 4. Item 7.* Page 51
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3.3 As well as the standard process for registration there are also three further options for children transitioning from ELC to P1. These are Early Entry, Deferral and Exceptional Deferral. Early Entry 3.4 Early entry is when a family request that a child starts Primary school before the predetermined date. Generally the decision is made after discussion with the ELC setting and may be linked to the families’ plans to move out of area to a different school system. 3.5 The formal process determines that parents should apply, in writing for Early Entry, and then a member of the ELC central team makes initial contact. Parents are then provided with a time and date for a telephone interview to support the Early Entry application. 3.6 At the end of term 3, the ELC setting is asked to complete a standard Early Entry questionnaire and an observation is completed by 2 staff from the ELC central team. An assessment is then undertaken with the child, administered by the ELC central team using a number of criteria, to assess readiness to start school early. This takes place in the zoned school with the parent and Head teacher present. 3.7 Finally the gathered information, from the observation, assessment and noting criteria, is considered and parents are informed of the outcome by letter. Parents are made aware at every stage of the process that there is no right of appeal and that the child’s needs are always at the heart of the decision made. Further details can be found in Appendix 1. Deferral 3.8 Deferred entry to school means that children start Primary School one year later than the typical start date, e.g. after the start of the new school term – 18th August 2025 for the next academic year 3.9 All parents and carers have the legal right to defer their child’s entry to Primary School if they are not yet 5 years old at the beginning of the school year. 3.10 All children who defer will automatically be entitled to an additional year of funded ELC when they defer P1 entry. Exceptional Deferral 3.11 Exceptional deferral means that the Team Around the Child (TAC), including parents, recommend that a child does not start school as soon as they are eligible. 3.12 If the TAC is requesting an exceptional deferral this means the child has no right to automatic entitlement and no central government funding is made available to support an additional ELC year for these children. Therefore the cost of any such request is an additional cost for the ELC service and Council. Page 52
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3.13 There are some exceptional circumstances where deferred entry could be considered as an intervention e.g. where a child has had a serious illness and missed a significant period of time in ELC due to being in hospital. 3.14 The right to exceptional deferral is not a legislative requirement and instead the decision is made by the Head of Education once the recommendation from the TAC is considered. The basis of the decision to request an exceptional deferral needs to be evidenced through the Child Planning process. The expected impact of the request needs to be evidenced and there is no right to appeal 3.15 For children with significant additional support needs, deferred entry may be considered as an intervention if it is agreed by the child’s parents/carers and the team around the child that this would be in their best interests. However, it should be noted that in most situations the child will continue to have significant needs, even with an additional ELC year, and so it is better to assess the needs of the child and agree an appropriate support package for school rather than deferring school entry. Further details can be found in Appendix 2. 4. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS (a) Corporate Plan and 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP)) This report relates to the ‘Tackle Poverty and Inequality’ priority as referred to in the Moray Council Corporate Plan and to ‘Building a better future for our children and young people in Moray’ from the LOIP. (b) Policy and Legal None arising directly from the report. (c) Financial implications Historically the cost of standard deferral has always been covered by Moray Council. As we continue to see a rise in standard deferrals there is an expected increase in the cost. Any exceptional deferrals also incur an additional funding cost. Early entry does not have any financial implications. (d) Risk Implications None arising directly from the report. (e) Staffing Implications None arising directly from the report. (f) Property None arising directly from the report. (g) Equalities/Socio Economic Impact ASN and Health needs have been considered however there is no change so no IIA is required. (h) Climate Change and Biodiversity Impacts Page 53
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None arising directly from the report. (i) Consultations Head of Education (Chief Education Officer), Continuous Improvement Officer (West), Continuous Improvement Officer (East), Principal Teacher Early Years Education Service and Caroline O’Connor, Committee Services Officer have been consulted and are in agreement with the contents of this report as regards their respective responsibilities. 5. CONCLUSION 5.1 That Committee is invited to scrutinise and note the contents of this report for ELC admissions. Author of Report: Hazel Sly, Early Years’ Service Manager Background Papers: Ref: SPMAN-1315769894-607 Page 54
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APPENDIX 1 ELC exceptional deferral 1 Moray Education ELC | Early Entry __________________________________________________________________________________ Parents who decide to request Early Entry for their child do so by discussion with their ELC and accessing the Moray Council Website which gives them initial points to consider. If the parents decide to move forward with Early Entry the following steps are initiated; - An email request from the parent is sent to Education and Social care who pass the request to the Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) Central team. - The Early Years Service Manager, on receipt of the email, contacts the parent and has an initial discussion, detailing the process, collecting initial information and then giving them time to consider if they still wish to continue. - Parents are advised to indicate in writing that they wish to formally start the process and they are then given a date when the parent telephone interview will take place. This considers the best time to reach them and will take into account the country they are resident in at time of application. - At the end of term 3 requests are made to the child’s current Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) provision for the setting to complete the ELC questionnaire. - 2 staff from the ELC Central team will observe the child in the nursery and confirm any further information that has been of concern from the parent interview and ELC submission. - At the start of term 4 the same ELC Central staff complete the face-to-face assessment with the child. The parent and the Head Teacher of the zoned school are also present. - Using the results of all 3 assessments a final decision is made which focusses on the best outcome for the child. - The parents are contacted by the Early Years Service Manager to give them feedback on the decision, and they will also then receive a formal notification letter. - Parents are made aware at every stage of the process that there is no right of appeal and that the child’s needs are always at the heart of the decision made. Item 7.* Page 55
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APPENDIX 2 ELC exceptional deferral 1 Moray Education ELC | Deferral & Exceptional Deferral __________________________________________________________________________________ Definition of deferral Deferred entry to school means that children start primary school one year later than the typical start date. All parents and carers have the legal right to defer their child’s entry to primary school if they are not yet 5 years old at the beginning of the school year. All children who defer will automatically be entitled to an additional year of funded early learning and childcare (ELC) when they defer P1 entry. Definition of exceptional deferral In Moray an exceptional deferral means that the Team Around the Child (TAC), including parents, do not wish to send a child to school as soon as they are eligible. How are these different? Nationally, the Team Around the Child does not require to be involved in a standard deferral. As per the legislation this is a parent and carers legal right to defer their child’s entry to primary school if they are not yet 5 at the beginning of the school year. The right to exceptional deferral is not a legislative requirement and instead comes from the views of the Team Around the Child (TAC - which can include Health, Education, Social Work and other related professionals). The basis of the decision to request an exceptional deferral needs to be evidenced through the Child Planning process. The expected impact of the request needs to be evidenced. For children with significant additional support needs, deferred entry may be considered as an intervention if it is agreed by the child’s parents/carers and the team around the child that this would be in their best interests. However, it should be noted that in most situations the child will continue to have significant needs, even with an additional ELC year, and so it is better to assess the needs of the child and agree an appropriate support package for school rather than deferring school entry. Reasons for Deferral Item 7.* Page 57
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APPENDIX 2 ELC exceptional deferral 2 Standard deferral Requests relating to August – December birth dates If parents/carers have any concerns or wish to discuss their child’s entry to school, staff will be happy to help parents/carers better understand their child’s progress and needs while supporting them in considering the issues pertinent to their child. Parents may be concerned that their child is not socially or academically able to cope with the demands of school and formal education and it may be helpful for them to visit the P1 class and/or to discuss aspects of the early level curriculum with the Head Teacher. Requests relating to January - February birth dates Parents of children with birthdays close to the end of the February cut-off date for school entry, are sometimes concerned about whether their child is ready to start school. If their child’s birthday falls within January or February and they wish to defer entry to primary school, their child is entitled to an additional year of provision within an ELC setting. Continued funding is available to support this entitlement. In all instances parents and carers should be encouraged to discuss deferral first with the Manager of the early learning and childcare (ELC) setting the child attends, which may also include a child minder. While ELC staff in Moray can’t influence the decision they are always happy to support parents with a discussion. Exceptional deferral Requests relating to August (when your child is already 5) If your child is already five at the start of the school term the situation is more complex should a parent/carer wish to request to defer entry to school. These children have no automatic entitlement and no central government funding is made available to support an additional ELC year for these children. There may be some exceptional situations in which deferred entry could be considered an intervention. For example: • the child may have temporary additional support needs affecting their development, • the child has only recently arrived into the UK and has not experienced ELC at the same level as their peers and needs time to adjust to nursery/school life, • the child may have missed a lot of ELC through illness, • the child has a summer birthday and was born very prematurely. Page 58
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APPENDIX 2 ELC exceptional deferral 3 Additional support needs discussions could include: • the opinion of the child, parents, school and other staff involved about whether it is right for the child and their family • making sure parents understand any likely future issues • checking that the child will integrate effectively into the new group • making sure that any other services the child needs are also involved • making sure there is a plan for what happens after that year • checking that the decision is being made for the child’s benefit and with cognisance of their right to be educated with their peers. In all cases of exceptional deferral there needs to be clear evidence of the discussion, through Child planning, of the decision of the Team Around the Child (TAC). Clear action planning should be the foundation of the exceptional deferral request to ensure robust interventions are agreed to support the additional year in ELC. Process of deferral Firstly, we recommend considering the following when choosing to defer entry: • You must discuss your request with your child’s early learning and childcare provider as well as the primary school they would be attending. • The final decision will be a shared one between you and the Education team. If you have not decided whether to defer entry of your child, please continue with the enrolment process so that your child does not miss out on a place. If you have decided to defer entry of your child you must complete both the ELC registration form and continue with the enrolment process and indicate deferred entry as your choice, the enrolment registration will be much shorter as a result and should take no more than a few minutes. For more information, please contact the Education team; education@moray.gov.uk Process of exceptional deferral In Moray the exception deferral process needs to come from the TAC. TAC discussions might include the child’s; • approach and attitude to learning • ability to communicate their own needs, feelings and ideas • levels of independence and self help Page 59
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APPENDIX 2 ELC exceptional deferral 4 • emotional and personal development, including self-confidence and esteem • their relationships and friendships with other children and adults In terms of exceptional deferral circumstances, it may be helpful to consider the general development of the child using a very broad range of criteria. Assessment at this stage should be completed by ELC staff, who are asked to ensure the child’s assessment record is backed by evidence that shows the areas of development. This assessment process may include information and assessments completed by other professionals working with the child, to provide a wider context upon which the final decision can be made. Developmental overviews are used in all settings by Early Intervention Teachers and ELC staff and are also key to reaching the correct decision. If parents/ carers are concerned about whether or not their child is ready for school, they should speak directly to the staff who care for their child and/or to the Manager of the ELC setting their child attends. This initial discussion can take place at any stage in the child’s pre-school year. An example timeline of the exceptional deferral process for the team supporting the application would be; Dec/Jan EI Team and Early Years’ Service Manager to meet for initial discussion around preschool placements. Any Exceptional deferral request should have been voiced by the Child Planning Team around the Child in run up to registration for school. School and ELC should be involved at this stage. QIO ASN updated regarding ‘potential’ requests. Feb Lead person for Exceptional Deferral to meet with EI Teacher to outline plans and arrange dates for process to take place. Head of Education made aware at this stage. Information Capture sheet completed by Team around the child. Relevant schools and ELC settings informed of request. Request for information from ELC settings of child and Child Planning minutes sent by Lead for Exceptional Deferral 28th Feb Deadline for requests to be made for Exceptional Deferral to Primary School. Wk beg 1st March Visits by Early Years Team to observe children in ELC Setting. Assessment sheet completed by Early Years Team. End of March Lead person for Exceptional Deferral, Early Years’ Service Manager and QIO ASN to meet for final consideration of requests. Request submitted to Head of Education for final decision. April Final decisions made then parents, ELC settings, schools and Business Support Officer informed of outcomes. The recommendation is to apply for both school and ELC in case deferral is not accepted. Page 60
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APPENDIX 2 ELC exceptional deferral 5 All information gathered will be passed to the Head of Education, who will consider the request and the evidence available and provide a formal written response to the parent/carer. Where it is agreed that a child will significantly benefit if their entry to school is deferred, a continued ELC place may be agreed by the Head of Education. The cost of this place will be met by the Council. Even if a parent/carer has been offered a deferred entry place they can change their mind and decide to send their child to school right up until the start of term in August. If the Head of Education does not agree that the child should have a funded additional ELC place, the decision is final and there is no right to appeal. The ultimate goal for all involved is to ensure the best interests of the child are kept at the forefront of the decision making. Page 61
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REPORT TO: EDUCATION, CHILDREN’S AND LEISURE SERVICES COMMITTEE ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025 SUBJECT: EDUCATION SCOTLAND INSPECTION OF ST GERARDINE NURSERY, LOSSIEMOUTH BY: DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE (EDUCATION, COMMUNITIES AND ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT) 1. REASON FOR REPORT 1.1 To inform the Committee of the outcomes of the recently published report on a Moray Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) setting following inspection by Education Scotland. 1.2 This report is submitted to Committee in terms of Section III (D) (1) of the Council's Scheme of Administration relating to all the functions of the Council as Education Authority. 2. RECOMMENDATION 2.1 It is recommended that Committee scrutinise and notes the contents of this report and findings of Education Scotland following their inspection. 3. BACKGROUND 3.1 When an ELC setting is inspected by Education Scotland a report is published (by Education Scotland) which gives commentary on the setting’s performance. These reports are presented regularly to this Committee, where possible at the first available opportunity after publication. 3.2 In October 2024, Education Scotland inspected St Gerardine, Lossiemouth using the Short Inspection Model. 3.3 The key features of the short inspection visit model were; - The team comprised of two inspectors. - The inspectors spent 2½ days at the setting, including time for initial scoping and feedback. - The team inspecting Nursery liaised with the team inspecting School. Item 8.* Page 63
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3.4 The Education Scotland Inspection team use selected Quality Indicators (QI’s) from the How Good is our Early Learning and Childcare (HGIOELC) quality framework which were evaluated using the six point scale, namely; QI 2.3 – Learning, Teaching and Assessment QI 3.2 - Securing Children’s Progress 3.5 The inspectors also had a focus on safeguarding as is the case in every inspection. 3.6 The inspection findings indicated that St Gerardine Nursery has the capacity to continue to improve and Education Scotland will make no more visits in connection with this inspection. 3.7 The summary of the inspection report is contained in Appendix 1. The original inspection report and summary of inspection findings can be viewed at; St Gerardine Primary School | Inspection Report | Education Scotland 4. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS (a) Corporate Plan and 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP)) This report relates to the ‘Tackle Poverty and Inequality’ priority as referred to in the Moray Council Corporate Plan and to ‘Building a better future for our children and young people in Moray’ from the LOIP. (b) Policy and Legal This report relates to Section 66 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, which concerns the inspection of educational establishments. (c) Financial implications None arising directly from the report. (d) Risk Implications None arising directly from the report. (e) Staffing Implications None arising directly from the report. (f) Property None arising directly from the report. (g) Equalities/Socio Economic Impact An Equality Impact Assessment is not required as this report is to inform Committee on performance following external scrutiny/validation activity. (h) Climate Change and Biodiversity Impacts None arising directly from the report. (i) Consultations Head of Education (Chief Education Officer), Continuous Improvement Officer (West), Continuous Improvement Officer (East), Principal Page 64
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Teacher Early Years Education Service and Caroline O’Connor, Committee Services Officer have been consulted and are in agreement with the contents of this report as regards their respective responsibilities. 5. CONCLUSION 5.1 That Committee is invited to scrutinise and note the contents of this report at St Gerardine Nursery, Lossiemouth. Author of Report: Hazel Sly, Early Years’ Service Manager Background Papers: Ref: SPMAN-1315769894-603 Page 65
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1 | St Gerardine Primary School Nursery, Moray Council, 5202221 © Crown Copyright 17 December 2024 Dear Parent/Carer In October 2024, a team of inspectors from Education Scotland visited St Gerardine Primary School Nursery. During our visit, we talked to parents/carers and worked closely with the manager and staff. The inspection team found the following strengths in the setting’s work. • Happy, confident and independent learners. Nurturing, respectful relationships between children, practitioners and families support children to feel secure and settle quickly. Children benefit from a wide variety of learning experiences in their playroom and local community. • Practitioners who work well with parents. The team understand and value children’s individual achievements and interests. They use this information effectively to respond promptly to what children would like to participate in or learn more about. This supports children to be motivated and make good progress in their learning and development. The following areas for improvement were identified and discussed with the manager and a representative from Moray Council. • Approaches to observation and assessment of children’s learning need to be improved. The team should develop further how they use their observations of children’s learning to inform their planning of spaces and experiences. Practitioners need to identify more opportunities for children to apply and develop further their skills. • New approaches to record and track children’s learning over time should now be implemented. As planned the manager should work with practitioners to better evidence the progress children make over their time spent in nursery. APPENDIX 1 Item 8.* Page 67
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2 | St Gerardine Primary School Nursery, Moray Council, 5202221 © Crown Copyright We gathered evidence to enable us to evaluate the setting’s work using quality indicators from How good is our early learning and childcare?. Quality indicators help learning and childcare settings, local authorities and inspectors to judge what is working well and what needs to be improved. Here are Education Scotland’s evaluations for St Gerardine Primary School Nursery Quality indicators for the nursery class Evaluation Learning, teaching and assessment good Securing children’s progress good Descriptions of the evaluations are available from: How good is our early learning and childcare? Appendix 1: The six-point scale A more detailed document called Summarised Inspection Findings (SIF) will be available on the Education Scotland website at: St Gerardine Primary School | Inspection Report | Education Scotland What happens next? We are confident that the setting has the capacity to continue to improve and so we will make no more visits in connection with this inspection. Moray Council will inform parents/carers about the school’s progress as part of its arrangements for reporting on the quality of its settings. Margaret Paterson HM Inspector Page 68
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REPORT TO: EDUCATION, CHILDREN’S AND LEISURE SERVICES COMMITTEE ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025 SUBJECT: EDUCATION SCOTLAND INSPECTION OF FINDOCHTY PRIMARY SCHOOL BY: DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE (EDUCATION, COMMUNITIES AND ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT) 1. REASON FOR REPORT 1.1 To inform the Committee of the outcomes of the recently published report on a Moray school following inspection by Education Scotland’s His Majesty’s Inspectors of Education (HMIE). 1.2 This report is submitted to Committee in terms of Section III (D) (1) of the Council's Scheme of Administration relating to all the functions of the Council as an Education Authority. 2. RECOMMENDATION 2.1 It is recommended that Committee scrutinise and note the contents of this report and findings of Education Scotland HMIE following their inspection visit. 3. BACKGROUND 3.1 When a school is inspected by Education Scotland HMIE and/or the Care Inspectorate, a report is published which gives commentary on the school’s performance. These reports are presented regularly to Committee, where possible at the first available opportunity after publication. 3.2 In September 2024, a team of inspectors from Education Scotland HMIE visited Findochty Primary School. During their visit, inspectors talked to parents/carers and children and worked closely with the Headteacher and staff. 3.3 Findochty Primary School was subject to a full inspection model visit spanning over five days in total. Item 9.* Page 69
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3.4 The Education Scotland Inspection team use selected Quality Indicators (QIs) from “How good is our school? 4th edition” (HGIOS4), rated using the six- point scale. 3.5 Education Scotland HMIE focus QIs for the Primary school (full inspection model) are: QI 1.3 Leadership of change QI 2.3 Learning, teaching and assessment QI 3.1 Ensuring wellbeing, equality and inclusion QI 3.2 Raising attainment and achievement 3.6 Full establishment inspections also include focus on Safeguarding and themes from other QIs to ensure Inspectors continue to capture the evidence needed to promote improvement and provide evidence to inform national policy development. These are not assigned a rating and are: QI 2.2 Curriculum (Learning Pathways theme) QI 2.7 Partnerships (Partnerships in evaluating the impact of parental engagement) 3.7 Following further dialogue between Education Scotland HMIE and the local authority, Education Scotland published Findochty Primary School’s Inspection Report on 19 November 2024 with the following gradings: QI 1.3 Leadership of change Satisfactory QI 2.3 Learning, teaching and assessment Satisfactory QI 3.1 Ensuring wellbeing, equality and inclusion Good QI 3.2 Raising attainment and achievement Satisfactory 3.8 The inspection team found the following strengths in the school’s work: • The warm, welcoming and nurturing ethos children learn in. Staff demonstrate care and support for all children and ensure everyone is fully included in the life of the school. As a result, children feel safe and secure with a strong sense of belonging. They behave well and engage positively in their learning. • The enthusiastic and hardworking staff team. They work well together to support children to talk about and understand their emotions. As a result, they support children’s wellbeing outcomes effectively. • Staff’s approaches to improving children’s enthusiasm for reading. All staff have supported children in a variety of ways to develop a love of reading. This is improving children’s attainment in reading. 3.9 The inspection team agreed the following areas for improvement with the Head Teacher and Moray Education: • With support from the local authority, improve approaches to gathering accurate information that identifies clearly progress and next steps in Page 70
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whole school improvement. In addition, staff should ensure they identify an achievable number of school improvement priorities. • Improve approaches to learning, teaching and assessment to ensure a consistently high quality of experience for all children across the school. In particular, staff need to plan learning that is appropriately progressive across all areas of the curriculum and meets the needs of all children. • Develop further the school’s new processes to track more effectively the progress of children across all areas of the curriculum. 3.10 The Education Scotland HMIE inspection report and summary of inspection findings for the school can be viewed at (lower set of documents on web page directed to on each link below): • Inspection Report • Summarised Inspection Findings • Additional Inspection Evidence 3.11 Following inspection, Education Scotland HMIE have advised that they are confident that the school has the capacity to continue to improve and will make no more visits in connection with the inspection. 3.12 As a local authority we will continue to inform key stakeholders including parents/carers on the school’s progress through normal arrangements on reporting on quality of schools. 3.13 In further recognition of this positive inspection outcome, a Press Release was published on 19 November 2024 (day of Education Scotland HMIE report publication) to recognise the strengths recognised by the inspection team as well as actions underway to address areas for improvement identified. 3.14 For reference, the Education Scotland HMIE visit report published in November 2024 following visit in September 2024 is contained within Appendix 1. 4. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS (a) Corporate Plan and 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP)) Reflective of priorities within the Corporate Plan with particular regard to (People) in providing a sustainable education service aiming for excellence, progress in achieving better performance and improved inspection outcomes, empowering and raising aspirations. With regards to the 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan LOIP), (2) building a better future for our children and young people in Moray through equity of learning experience offered across our schools; supporting ambitious and confident children, able to reach their full potential. (b) Policy and Legal Page 71
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It is the duty of the local authority to secure improvement and the quality of school education which is provided in schools managed by Head Teachers and to raise standards of education (Section 3, 8 of Standards in Scotland Schools Act etc 2000). This report relates to Section 66 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, which concerns the inspection of educational establishments. (c) Financial implications There are no financial implications arising directly from this report. (d) Risk Implications There are no risk implications arising directly from this report. (e) Staffing Implications There are no staffing implications arising directly from this report. (f) Property None. (g) Equalities/Socio Economic Impact An Equality/Socio Economic Impact Assessment is not required as this report is to inform Committee on school performance following external scrutiny/validation activity. (h) Climate Change and Biodiversity Impacts No climate change or biodiversity implications have been determined due to the scrutiny based nature of activities reported and no findings related to such implications contained herein. (i) Consultations Senior Officers in Education, Communities and Organisational Development, Equal Opportunities Officer, Human Resources Manager, Caroline O’Connor, Committee Services and the Headteacher of Findochty Primary School have been consulted and are in agreement with the contents of this report as regards their respective responsibilities. 5. CONCLUSION 5.1 Committee is invited to scrutinise and note the contents of this report, following positive full inspection model visit by Education Scotland HMIE as outlined above, to Findochty Primary School. Author of Report: Stewart McLauchlan, Quality Improvement Manager Background Papers: Inspection Report Summarised Inspection Findings Additional Inspection Evidence Press Release How good is our school? 4th edition Page 72
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Education Scotland six-point scale Ref: SPMAN-1315769894-612 Page 73
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1 | Findochty Primary School, Moray Council, 5207126 © Crown Copyright 19 November 2024 Dear Parent/Carer In September 2024, a team of inspectors from Education Scotland visited Findochty Primary School. During our visit, we talked to parents/carers and children and worked closely with the headteacher and staff. The inspection team found the following strengths in the school’s work. • The warm, welcoming and nurturing ethos children learn in. Staff demonstrate care and support for all children and ensure everyone is fully included in the life of the school. As a result, children feel safe and secure with a strong sense of belonging. They behave well and engage positively in their learning. • The enthusiastic and hardworking staff team. They work well together to support children to talk about and understand their emotions. As a result, they support children’s wellbeing outcomes effectively. • Staff’s approaches to improving children’s enthusiasm for reading. All staff have supported children in a variety of ways to develop a love of reading. This is improving children’s attainment in reading. The following areas for improvement were identified and discussed with the headteacher and a representative from Moray Council. • With support from the local authority, improve approaches to gathering accurate information that identifies clearly progress and next steps in whole school improvement. In addition, staff should ensure they identify an achievable number of school improvement priorities. • Improve approaches to learning, teaching and assessment to ensure a consistently high quality of experience for all children across the school. In particular, staff need to plan learning that is appropriately progressive across all areas of the curriculum and meets the needs of all children. • Develop further the school’s new processes to track more effectively the progress of children across all areas of the curriculum. APPENDIX 1 Item 9.* Page 75
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2 | Findochty Primary School, Moray Council, 5207126 © Crown Copyright We gathered evidence to enable us to evaluate the school’s work using four quality indicators from How good is our school? (4th edition). Quality indicators help schools, local authorities and inspectors to judge what is working well and what needs to be improved. Following the inspection of each school, the Scottish Government gathers details of our evaluations to keep track of how well Scottish schools are doing. Here are Education Scotland’s evaluations for Findochty Primary School Quality indicators Evaluation Leadership of change satisfactory Learning, teaching and assessment satisfactory Ensuring wellbeing, equality and inclusion good Raising attainment and achievement satisfactory Descriptions of the evaluations are available from: How good is our school? (4th edition), Appendix 3: The six-point scale A more detailed document called Summarised Inspection Findings (SIF) will be available on the Education Scotland website at: Findochty Primary School | Inspection Report | Education Scotland What happens next? We are confident that the school has the capacity to continue to improve and so we will make no more visits in connection with this inspection. Moray Council will inform parents/carers about the school’s progress as part of its arrangements for reporting on the quality of its schools. Judith Reid HM Inspector Page 76
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REPORT TO: EDUCATION, CHILDREN’S AND LEISURE SERVICES COMMITTEE ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025 SUBJECT: INITIAL ANALYSIS OF ACHIEVEMENT OF CURRICULUM FOR EXCELLENCE LEVELS 2024 BY: DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE (EDUCATION, COMMUNITIES AND ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT) 1. REASON FOR REPORT 1.1 This report provides Committee with a summary of the Moray data collected in June 2024 and provided to the Scottish Government at the end of October 2024 regarding Teacher Professional Judgements (TPJ) on children achieving Curriculum for Excellence levels (ACEL) at P1, P4, P7 and S3. This data appears in the Scottish Government report published in December 2024. 1.2 This report is submitted to Committee in terms of Section III (C) 1 of the Council’s Scheme of Administration relating to exercising all of the functions of the Council as Education Authority within the terms of relevant legislation with regard to nursery, primary and secondary education. 2. RECOMMENDATION 2.1 It is recommended that the Committee:- (i) scrutinises and notes the content of this report; (ii) acknowledges work underway by Education and across our schools using resources available in order to address identified areas of underperformance and improve outcomes for all children and young people; (iii) notes ACEL results for P1, P4, P7 and S3, improvement over time and progress in relation to Stretch Aims set using available data intelligence, as part of the Scottish Government and Education Scotland Framework for Recovery and Accelerating Progress requirements; and (iv) notes actions underway and planned in support of improving outcomes for all learners and their ACEL achievement. Item 10.* Page 77
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3. BACKGROUND 3.1 The Scottish Government first published the National Improvement Framework (NIF) for Scottish Education in January 2016. The First Minister at that time described the document as being key in driving work to continually improve Scottish Education and close the poverty related attainment gap, delivering both excellence and equity. 3.2 The revised 2025 National Improvement Framework was published in December 2024 and replaces the 2024 NIF and Improvement Plan. It is stated that the vision for Scottish Education should be ambitious, inclusive and supportive in order to deliver: • Excellence through raising achievement and improving outcomes: ensuring that every child and young person achieves the highest standards they can. • Achieving equity: ensuring every child and young person has the same opportunity to succeed. 3.3 The key priorities of the National Improvement Framework remain as: • Placing the human rights and needs of every child and young person at the centre of education • Improvement in children and young people’s health and wellbeing • Closing the attainment gap between the most and least disadvantaged children and young people • Improvement in skills and sustained, positive school-leaver destinations for all young people • Improvement in achievement, particularly in literacy and numeracy. 3.4 Outcomes expected to be achieved through this focus are identified as: • A globally respected, empowered, and responsive education system with clear accountability at every level that supports children, young people, and adult learners to thrive. The system enables the development of their knowledge, skills, values, and attributes that give them the best opportunity to succeed and contribute to Scotland’s society and economy • Young people experiencing the benefit of schools and early years settings working in excellent partnerships with wider children’s services and other partners, families, and communities, in line with the Getting it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC) approach • Inclusive and relevant curriculum and assessment which gives young people the knowledge and skills necessary to contribute to society, and shape a sustainable future, while celebrating and supporting progression for all • High levels of achievement across the curriculum for all learners, with action to close the poverty-related attainment gap Page 78
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• Highly skilled teachers and school-leaders driving excellent learning, teaching and assessment for all, especially those with additional support needs • Improving relationships and behaviour, and attendance, with increased engagement in learning and a culture of dignity and respect for all • An education system engaging in digital technology to enhance all aspects of learning and teaching, supported by a digitally-skilled workforce and tackling digital inequality 3.5 It is noted that despite challenges posed by the ongoing impact of the pandemic, and the cost-of-living crisis there remain many strengths in Scottish Education. The NIF in relation to Achievement of Curriculum for Excellence (ACEL) levels noted the following from evidence available: • Record levels of literacy and numeracy attainment at primary and secondary school level. (Scottish Government, ACEL data, 10 Dec 2024) • Record low attainment gap in literacy for primary pupils, and in literacy and numeracy at secondary level. (Scottish Government, ACEL data, 10 Dec 2024) 3.6 As noted in the 2025 National Improvement Framework, in the coming year and for the remainder of this Parliament, focus will be on improving the ABC – attendance, achievement, behaviour and the curriculum in schools to boost standards. Full details on actions that will be taken to deliver outcomes, evidence to support them and how progress will be measures will be set out in due course and published early this year through the NIF Improvement Plan 2025. 3.7 With regard to ACEL, Teacher Professional Judgement data is collected from local authorities by Scottish Government with codes as shown in brackets is as follows in respect of learner achievement in literacy and numeracy as noted in 3.5 above: Literacy – Reading (R) Literacy – Writing (W) Literacy – Listening and Talking (LT) Numeracy - Numeracy (N) 3.8 Schools are required to submit data on Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) levels for each child in primary schools stages P1, P4 and P7 and each young person in secondary school stage S3. The levels reported are Early, First, Second, Third and Fourth. CfE levels are determined by teachers following a review of key evidence of learner achievement, including classwork, homework, assessment, ongoing formative assessments and holistic task achievement. Teachers also work together and engage in a process of moderation to ensure common understanding of what achievement of a level looks like overall, guided by teacher planning, national guidance and benchmarks. Schools ensure levels achieved, learner progress and future predictions are recorded using tracking and monitoring approaches in line with Page 79
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our agreed and universal Moray Tracking Language. 3.9 The data collected refers to the anticipated levels of attainment at the following stages noting this may be earlier or later for some children and young people depending on individual needs, as detailed from Education Scotland. Level Stage (this may be earlier or later for some learners) Early (E) The end of P1 First (1st) The end of P4 Second (2nd) The end of P7 Third (3rd) The end of S3 Fourth (4th) Some pupils will also achieve this by the end of S3 3.10 Following annual request for ACEL data submission for P1, P4, P7 and S3 stages, data was collected in June 2024 using our Seemis Progress and Achievement module. This followed ongoing work in schools on assessment, moderation and professional commitment to all areas of teacher professional judgement. 3.11 ACEL data was submitted to Scottish Government in October 2024 following a range of Quality Assurance processes from school staff and central officers. The initial data provided by schools was, in some cases, further quality assured by central officers directly with schools and where necessary provided with additional support and guidance to ensure the submission of robust and reliable data. 3.12 The Scottish Government ACEL national data was published in December 2024, providing a range of data across all of Scotland’s local authorities as well as specific cohort and characteristic data. 3.13 As requested by Scottish Government and Education Scotland guided by the Framework for Recovery and Accelerating Progress, Stretch Aims have been set in discussion with both organisations, and provide a basis for measurement and review, to guide improvement activities moving forwards across the service. In respect of ACEL, the following provisional Stretch Aims were set for Moray in discussion with Education Scotland and Scottish Government colleagues with those pertaining to session 2023/2024 as follows: 2024 Stretch Aim 2026 Stretch Aim Primary (P1, P4 ,P7 combined) Literacy 67-70% 74% Primary (P1, P4, P7 combined) Numeracy 70-74% 78% Secondary (S3) Literacy (3rd level or above) 79-83% 88% Secondary (S3) Numeracy (3rd level or above) 86-88% 89% Authority Approaches Page 80
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3.14 In order to support schools with ongoing improvements in attainment at Broad General Education level, a strategic approach within all Moray schools continues to be adopted. The development and implementation of the following strategy areas is supporting more cohesive and planned methodology to ensure practices to improve achievement for all learners continue to be our Education vision in Moray. These include: • National Improvement Framework Self-evaluation • National Improvement Framework Plan 2024-2025 outlining our actions for Raising Achievement for all Learners • Our Moray Standard: Learning and Teaching Strategy, support materials and toolkits • Our Moray Standard: Supporting All Learners Strategy and support materials • Moray and Northern Alliance Curriculum Progressions for Literacy and Numeracy • ACEL Assessment and Moderation Guidelines • QAMSO (Quality Assurance and Moderation Support Officer) Network • Tracking and Monitoring Guidelines and Tracking Tools/System • Moray Quality Improvement Framework and Quality Improvement team support and challenge regarding data analysis, tracking and monitoring and attainment discussions with all schools Primary 1 – Early level ACEL 3.15 The percentages noted below present the P1 ACEL data for the past 6 years for Moray in comparison with the national averages. Please note that there was no Scottish Government data collected in 2019/2020 per section 3.10. Year P1 LT R W LIT. NUM. 2024 Moray 87 80 78 75 83 National 87 81 79 77 85 2023 Moray 86 78 75 71 81 National 87 81 78 76 85 2022 Moray 84 76 73 69 78 National 86 79 77 74 84 2021 Moray 85 77 71 69 78 National 84 77 74 71 81 2020 Moray 2019/20 data was not collected by Scottish Government 2019 Moray 85 77 76 71 79 National 87 82 79 76 85 3.16 Moray figures where highlighted in green above indicate where performance exceeds national average; amber indicates where performance is marginally Page 81
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below and red highlight as notably below national average where appropriate. P1 data for 2024 shows that Listening and Talking is in line with National average, with Reading, Writing, Literacy overall and Numeracy near to and marginally below national averages. The table below shows further comparison of Moray’s 2024 data with 2023 as previous year with similar colour coding to highlight changes: Year: LT R W LIT. NUM. 2023 Moray 86 78 75 71 81 2024 Moray 87 80 78 75 83 % Change Moray +1 +2 +3 +4 +2 3.17 Listening and Talking, Reading, Writing, Literacy overall and Numeracy have all increased from 2023 in Moray as shown in green highlight above. Three- year trend information across all measures for P1 show yearly improvement over the three-year trend period. Literacy ACEL overall has increased by 4% from 2023. While ACEL remains in line with National average for Listening and Talking and marginally below National comparators for other organisers as outlined in 3.19 above, positive improvement in performance is noted year on year, 2023 to 2024 once more, as highlighted above 3.18 The following graphical representation of data trends over time are further presented for P1 for Listening and Talking, Reading, Writing, Literacy (Overall) and Numeracy. Further commentary is provided alongside each graph. P1 - Listening and Talking Data trend over time now exceeds pre-pandemic Moray data from 2019 and in line with 2023 ACEL. P1 Listening and Talking is in line with 2024 national average (87%), 1% above 2023 Moray average. 2024 ACEL is highest recorded for Moray across the 2018-2024 trend period, noting positive and improving trend. Page 82
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P1 – Reading Data trend over time remains above Moray pre-pandemic data from 2019 and 2% above 2024 ACEL. P1 Reading is 1% below 2024 national average. 2024 ACEL is highest recorded for Moray across the 2018-2024 trend period, noting positive and improving trend. P1 – Writing 2024 data is above Moray pre- pandemic data from 2019, showing improvement of 3% from 2023. P1 Writing is 1% below 2024 national average. 2024 ACEL is highest recorded for Moray across the 2018-2024 trend period, noting positive and improving trend (2021-2024). P1 – Literacy Literacy overall has increased by 4% to 75%, highest across the trend period presented. National average has also increased by 1% from 2023 leading to a notably reduced 2% gap remaining between Moray and national average. Noting positive and improving 3-year trend for Moray (2022-2024). Page 83
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P1 – Numeracy Numeracy has increased by 2% from 2023 to 83%, highest performance recorded across the trend period presented. National average has remained at 85% resulting in a reduced 2% gap between Moray and national average in 2024. Noting positive and improving 3- year trend for Moray (2022- 2024). Primary 4 – First level ACEL 3.19 The percentages noted below present the P4 ACEL data for the past 6 years for Moray in comparison with the national averages. Please note that there was no Scottish Government data collected in 2019/2020 per section 3.10. Year P4 LT R W LIT. NUM. 2024 Moray 84 77 68 66 73 National 87 79 74 71 78 2023 Moray 84 76 69 66 73 National 87 78 72 70 77 2022 Moray 81 73 67 61 69 National 85 76 70 67 75 2021 Moray 82 73 66 61 64 National 82 73 67 64 72 2020 Moray 2019/20 data was not collected by Scottish Government 2019 Moray 78 72 63 60 65 National 85 78 73 70 77 3.20 Moray figures where highlighted in green indicate where performance exceeds national average; amber indicates where performance is marginally below and red highlight as notably below national average where appropriate. P4 data for 2024 shows that all Literacy elements and Numeracy are noted as marginally below, or below national averages. The table below shows further comparison of 2024 data with 2023 as previous year with similar colour coding applied: Year: LT R W LIT. NUM. 2023 Moray 84 76 69 66 73 2024 Moray 84 77 68 66 73 % Change Moray 0 +1 -1 0 0 Page 84
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Reading has increased by 1% from 2023. Listening and Talking, Literacy (overall) and Numeracy have remained at previous year percentage achievement for this year’s cohort. Writing ACEL has decreased by 1% from 2024 ACEL cohort data collection. 3.21 The following graphical representation of data trends over time are further presented for P4 for Listening and Talking, Reading, Writing, Literacy (Overall) and Numeracy. Further commentary is provided alongside each graph. P4 - Listening and Talking Data trend over time remains positive overall compared with pre-pandemic data from 2019 and in line with 2023 ACEL (84%), highest across trend period for second year at 84%. Moray’s P4 Listening and Talking remains 3% below 2024 national average, common with 2023. P4 – Reading Data trend over time remains positive overall compared with pre-pandemic data from 2019 and 1% above 2023 ACEL (77% compared to 76%). P4 Reading is 2% below 2024 national average, where 2024 is noted as highest performance across the trend period presented at 77%, showing yearly improvement. P4 – Writing Slight decrease in Writing of 1% is noted from 2023, second highest ACEL percentage across trend period. National average in 2024 has increased by 2% from 2023 with Moray reducing by 1%, year on year (2023 to 2024). Moray ACEL is 6% below 2024 national average. Page 85
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P4 – Literacy Literacy overall in 2024 has remained constant at 66%, compared with 2023. National average has increased by 1% from 2023 leading to a 5% gap between Moray and national average in 2024 (6% gap in 2022, 4% gap in 2023). P4 Literacy overall remains joint highest percentage overall across trend period P4 – Numeracy Numeracy in 2024 has remained constant at 73%, compared with 2023. National average has increased by 1% from 2023 to 78% leading to a 5% gap between Moray and national averages in 2024 (4% gap in 2022. P4 Numeracy remains joint highest percentage overall across trend period Primary 7 – Second level ACEL 3.22 The percentages noted below present the P7 ACEL data for the past 6 years for Moray in comparison with the national averages. Please note that there was no Scottish Government data collected in 2019/2020 per section 3.12. Year P7 LT R W LIT. NUM. 2024 Moray 87 82 73 72 74 National 88 81 76 74 78 2023 Moray 82 78 70 66 74 National 87 81 75 73 78 2022 Moray 83 74 70 65 69 National 86 79 73 71 76 2021 Moray 80 71 64 62 62 National 82 76 69 66 72 2020 Moray 2019/20 data was not collected by Scottish Government 2019 Moray 81 76 67 64 66 National 86 80 74 71 76 Page 86
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3.23 Moray figures where highlighted in green above indicate where performance exceeds national average; amber indicates where performance is marginally below and red highlight as notably below national average where appropriate. P7 data for 2024 shows that Reading is 1% above National average. Listening and Talking, Writing, Literacy overall and Numeracy and marginally below national averages. The table below shows further comparison of 2024 data with 2023 as previous year with similar colour coding applied: Year: LT R W LIT. NUM. 2023 Moray 82 78 70 66 74 2024 Moray 87 82 73 72 74 % Change Moray +5 +4 +3 +6 0 3.24 The following graphical representation of data trends over time are further presented for P7 for Listening and Talking, Reading, Writing, Literacy (Overall) and Numeracy. Further commentary on trends over time is provided to the right of each graph. P7 - Listening and Talking P7 Listening and Talking has increased by 5% to 87%, with increase in national average by 1% to 88%. A 1% gap is now present in 2024, compared with 5% in 2023. Performance for Moray is highest across the data trend period presented, marginally below national average for 2024. P7 – Reading Data trend over time remains positive with a further 4% increase from 2023 to 82%. National average remains constant at 81% highlighting Moray performance above national average by 1% in 2024. Compared with pre-pandemic data from 2019 (76%) and trend over time, 2024 performance at 82% is highest across the trend period presented, with 3% and 4% increases also noted from 2021 to 2022 and 2022 to 2023. Page 87
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P7 – Writing Writing has improved in performance over time and in relation to 2023, 73% ACEL level achievement in 2024 and positive overall compared with pre-pandemic data from 2019. National average has increased by 1% from 2023 with Moray below national average by 3% compared with 5% in 2023. Highest ACEL for P7 Writing noted in 2024 across trend period presented. P7 – Literacy Literacy overall has increased to 72%, 6% increase on 2023 and highest year’s performance across trend period presented. National average has increased by 1% from 2023 to 74% leading to a 2% gap between Moray and national averages in 2024 (6% gap noted in 2022, 7% gap noted in 2023). Highest performance across trend period presented. P7 – Numeracy Numeracy overall has remained constant at 74% compared with 2023 and is favourable compared with pre-pandemic 2019 average (66%). National average has also remained at 78% compared with 2023, where a 4% gap between Moray and national averages remains in 2024 as it was in 2023 (7% gap noted in 2022, 10% gap in 2021). Improvement trend over time remains positive overall. Secondary 3 (S3) – Third level ACEL and Fourth level ACEL Page 88
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3.25 The percentages noted below present the S3 ACEL data for the past 6 years for Moray in comparison with the national averages for ACEL 3rd level and ACEL 4th level. Please note that there was no Scottish Government data collected in 2019/2020 or 2020/2021 for S3 pupils per section 3.10. ACEL 3rd level Year Third level LT R W LIT. NUM. 2024 Moray 89 89 88 87 87 National 91 90 90 88 90 2023 Moray 89 89 87 86 87 National 91 90 89 88 90 2022 Moray 82 80 77 72 86 National 89 88 87 86 89 2021 Moray/National 2020/21 data was not collected by Scottish Government 2020 Moray/National 2019/20 data was not collected by Scottish Government 2019 Moray 90 88 87 83 92 National 91 91 90 88 90 ACEL 4th level Year Fourth level LT R W LIT. NUM. 2024 Moray 68 68 63 61 63 National 64 63 61 58 65 2023 Moray 62 63 57 54 58 National 63 62 60 56 63 2022 Moray 44 45 43 37 55 National 55 54 52 48 59 2021 Moray/National 2020/21 data was not collected by Scottish Government 2020 Moray/National 2019/20 data was not collected by Scottish Government 2019 Moray 35 31 29 24 56 National 57 55 52 48 59 3.26 Moray figures where highlighted in green above indicate where performance exceeds national average; amber indicates where performance is marginally below and red highlight as notably below national average where appropriate. S3 data for 2024 at 3rd level ACEL achieved in S3 shows that all Literacy elements are marginally below national averages. At 4th level ACEL, all Literacy elements including Literacy overall are above national averages, Page 89
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Numeracy is marginally below national averages at 3rd and 4th levels in 2024. The table below shows further comparison of 3rd and 4th level 2024 data with 2023 as nationally published ACEL data by Scottish Government, with colour coding applied to highlight changes in performance year on year, 2023 to 2024. ACEL 3rd level Year: LT R W LIT. NUM. 2023 Moray 89 89 87 86 87 2024 Moray 89 89 88 87 87 % Change Moray 0 0 +1 +1 0 ACEL 4th level Year: LT R W LIT. NUM. 2023 Moray 62 63 57 54 58 2024 Moray 68 68 63 61 63 % Change Moray +6 +5 +6 +7 +5 Listening and Talking, Reading, Writing, Literacy overall and Numeracy have witnessed positive increase on 2023 Moray ACEL averages at 4th level, resulting in 7% increase in Literacy overall and 5% increase in Numeracy. At 3rd level, all Literacy organisers including Literacy overall and Numeracy remain comparable to 2023 ACEL overall with exception increases in Writing and Literacy overall, (1%, 1%). 3.27 The following graphical representation of data trends over time are further presented for S3 for Listening and Talking, Reading, Writing, Literacy (Overall) and Numeracy at third and fourth levels. Further commentary on trends over time is provided to the right of each graph. S3 - Listening and Talking 3rd level 2024 ACEL (89%) is in line with 2023 Moray ACEL, remaining 2% below national average (2023: 91%, 2024: 91%). Comparable to 2019 pre- pandemic performance of 90% with sustained performance noted at 3rd level. No change in Moray or national averages year on year (2023 to 2024) for S3 Listening and Talking (3rd level). Page 90
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S3 - Listening and Talking 4th level 2024 ACEL of 68% is the highest across the trend period, exceeding 2024 national average by 4%. Positive improvement in performance compared with 2023 and positive trend over time across a 3-year trend period, post- pandemic. S3 – Reading 3rd level 2024 ACEL of 89% remains comparable to 2023 data, where national average also remains constant (90%). Sustained performance comparable to pre- pandemic 2019. Overall, in line with 2024 national average (1% below), where 2023 is also1% below national average. S3 – Reading 4th level Positive increase of 5% on Moray 2023 data in 2024 highlighting positive improvement in performance, 5% above 2024 national average (63%). Highest performance across the trend period presented and positive compared with pre-pandemic Moray averages and 2023. 40 55 35 57 0 0 0 0 44 55 62 63 68 64 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 Moray National Moray National Moray National Moray Moray Moray National Moray National Moray National 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Listening and Talking - S3 - 4th Level Page 91
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S3 - Writing 3rd level 2024 data highlighting positive improvement in performance of 1%, remaining 2% below national average. Highest performance across trend period. 2024 national average increase (90% in 2024 compared with 89% in 2023), results in 2% gap remaining between Moray and national. S3 – Writing 4th level 2024 data highlighting positive improvement in performance to 63%, 2% above 2024 national average and 6% above Moray 2023 average. Significant reduction in attainment gap is presented, highest performance noted across trend period. S3 - Literacy 3rd level 2024 data highlights improvement, compared with 2023 (87, 1% increase%) now 1% below national average (2023: 2% below). National average remaining constant (2023-2024) at 88%. Highest performance across trend period presented. Positive increase in ACEL Literacy overall performance. Page 92
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S3 - Literacy 4th level Literacy at 4th level has increased to 61%, higher than previous years recorded and above 2024 national average by 3%. National average also witnessing increase by 2%. Positive increase in performance overall, highest across trend period presented. S3 – Numeracy 3rd level Numeracy at 3rd level has remained constant at 87%. National average has also remained at 90% leading to a continuing 3% gap between Moray and national average in 2024 (also 3% in 2022 and 2023). Marginally below national average in 2024. S3 – Numeracy 4th level Numeracy at 4th level has increased by 5% to 63% and is favourable compared with pre- pandemic 2019 average (56%) and 2023 (58%). National average has increased to 65% leading to a reduced 2% gap between Moray and national averages in 2024 (4% gap in 2022, 5% gap in 2023). P1/P4/P7 Literacy and P1/P4/P7 Numeracy Combined Measure and Stretch and Stretch Aims 3.28 Data analysis relating to S3 Literacy (Combined) and S3 Numeracy have been provided in 3.28 above. Further analysis for P1/P4/P7 combined measure for Literacy and Numeracy is provided below. Page 93
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P1/P4/P7 - Literacy (Combined) P1/P4/P7 Literacy (combined) has increased to 71% and is 3% higher than 2023 continuing on positive improving trend. National average has increased by 1% from 2023 leading to a 3% gap between Moray and national averages in 2024 (5% gap in 2023 and 6% gap based on 2022 averages). Highest performance noted in 2024 across the trend period outlined and positive improvements in performance. P1/P4/P7 Numeracy (Combined) P1/P4/P7 Numeracy (combined) has increased by 2% to 77% and is favourable compared with 2023 (75%) and 2022 (72%) averages. National average has remained constant compared with 2023 (80%) with a reduced 3% gap between Moray and national averages in 2024 compared to a 5% gap noted in 2023 (6% gap in 2022). P1/P4/P7 and S3 Literacy and Numeracy (Combined) Stretch Aims 3.29 Following review of all data and analysis, the following Core Stretch Aims which had been set as requested by Scottish Government and monitored by Education Scotland following publication of the Framework for Recovery and Accelerating Progress nationally in relation to ACEL. Stretch Aims were reported previously to Education, Children’s and Leisure Services Committee (25 January 2023, item 8 Stretch Aims Appendix 1; refreshed in line with Education Scotland’s update to the Framework for Recovery and Accelerating Progress. Progress towards revised Stretch Aims is further reported annually through the Moray Education National Improvement Framework Self- evaluation and Action Plan (17 September 2024, item 8: Education National Improvement Framework Report 2023-2024 and Plan 2024-2025). 2024 ACEL Stretch Aim Trajectory 2024 ACEL Actual Progress 2026 Aspirational Stretch Aim Page 94
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Primary Literacy (P1, P4 ,P7 combined) 67-70% 71% ✓ 74% Primary Numeracy (P1, P4 ,P7 combined) 70-74% 77% ✓ 78% Secondary (S3) Literacy (3rd level or above) 79-83% 87% ✓ 88% Secondary (S3) Numeracy (3rd level or above) 86-88% 87% ✓ 89% 3.30 Progress towards stretch aims based on annual trajectory remains positive as noted above. P1, P4, P7 Literacy and Numeracy combined, and S3 Literacy (3rd level or above) exceed the 2024 ACEL trajectory range set. Secondary (S3) Numeracy (3rd level or above) is within the trajectory range. Early indications would suggest that progress towards 2026 aspirational stretch aims remains positive across key stretch aims measures above. 3.31 As an education service, we continue to monitor in greater depth the performance of individual groups of children and young people in relation to specific characteristics. This includes Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) characteristics, looked after children and young people and achievement for children and young people with Additional Support Needs (ASN). Due to low number of children in SIMD quintiles 1 and 5 and low number of children and young people with looked after status, data is subject to disclosure control where SIMD quintiles align to specific school localities. 3.32 As part of the role of the Moray Quality Improvement team, discussions with schools regarding their whole school and individual cohort data takes place on a systematic and rigorous basis in line with our Moray Quality Improvement Framework. As a result and due to individual school context nature of learner achievements, further specific school data pertaining to class composition, school size and class numbers is not provided in this Moray overall performance report where direct correlation between these aspects and individual school attainment is not commonly identified following central Quality Improvement Team data interrogation and review. 3.33 Overall, data has shown improvement across almost all measures based on Moray averages from 2023 to 2024 with exception of P4 writing, showing very marginal reduction. Overall attainment gap between Moray and National averages has reduced further across almost all measures, with current year P1 Listening and Talking and P7 Reading above national averages. In S3, 4th level Listening and Talking, Reading, Writing and Literacy overall exceed national averages. 3.34 As noted in 3.30 and 3.31 above and in line with Scottish Government and Education Scotland’s Framework for Recovery and Accelerating Progress we have made positive progress in relation to annual trajectory range set for ACEL achievement for 2024 with positive steps towards achieving agreed stretch aims by 2026. Page 95
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3.35 As an Education Service, we will continue to progress with key actions noted below which are underway or planned in order to continue to raise attainment in literacy and numeracy: • Finalisation of the Moray Literacy and Numeracy Strategies developed as part of the Moray Improvement Groups for Literacy and Numeracy, currently progressing through internal finalisation processes, providing consistent guidance for delivery of literacy and numeracy based learning • Further embedding of Moray and Northern Alliance Literacy and Numeracy curriculum progressions for literacy and numeracy in order to ensure breadth, challenge and enjoyment in learning as well as application of learning in new and unfamiliar contexts, ensuring progression in learning across the ACEL levels • Continued development of the Quality Assurance and Moderation Support Officer (QAMSO) network supported by a Quality Improvement Officer and Primary Head Teacher, extending support for Teacher Professional Judgements when determining ACEL through agreed moderation processes and support materials for undertaking moderation at stage, school and wider Associated Schools Group/Family Improvement Group levels • Continued moderation activities in our schools, within and across stages and within Associated Schools groups to ensure shared understanding of national standards for learner achievement of a level • In order to increase P4 Writing attainment, five schools supported by our Education Scotland Attainment Advisor, a Quality Improvement Officer and Educational Psychologist are participating in the Children and Young People’s Collaborative (CYPiC) Improving Writing project with proven national results in raising attainment in P4 writing for participating schools. This will be further extended this year, adding a further 6 schools approached to participate in this programme, underpinned by improvement methodology and consistent approaches • Extended tracking and Monitoring through use of Seemis Progress and Achievement with support from the Moray AnalyseM data analysis tool, resources and planning materials developed to strengthen data literacy and analysis • Continue to embed the revised Moray Quality Improvement Framework with particular regard to ACEL Early Indication data analysis at key stages during each school session and data collection, analysis and central Quality Improvement team follow-up and discussions with schools and Head Teachers, after each data collection event for early intervention and support for raising attainment • Quality Improvement Team visits to schools with particular focus on learning, teaching and assessment, observation of learning and review of data in order to identify strengths and guide key improvements required at individual school level • Continued training of staff on National Standardised Assessments with support from our Scottish Government regional trainers, adding to evidence base and knowledge of analysis when • Continued scrutiny by the Quality Improvement Team of school performance with targeted support visits where required in order to Page 96
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• Stretch Aims continue to be used as a focus for future improvement activities for key literacy and numeracy measures as outlined in 3.30 above, with ongoing monitoring at local authority level to gauge progress and areas for further focussed improvement • Continued emphasis on provision of high quality learning experiences in line with Our Moray Standard for Learning and Teaching and local school context interpretation. Investment in Power Up Your Pedagogy across our schools with further roll-out of the Northern Alliance Learning and Teaching toolkit has led to further development of teacher learning communities, strengthening pedagogical practice through reflection and working together • Continued work on the review of Additional Support Needs and mandatory training for staff in support of meeting learning needs. This includes training for teaching and non-teaching staff in order to support a diverse range of learners where they may have specific needs or require supportive interventions • Further use of Scottish Attainment Challenge (Pupil Equity Fundings, Strategic Equity Funding and Care Experienced Children and Young People Funding) in order to support identified children and young people with regard to closing poverty related attainment gaps and in provision of key supports and interventions for raising attainment in literacy and numeracy • Further focus on Moray secondary schools and learning journey through the S1-S3 Broad General Education (BGE) to the S4-S6 Senior Phase, ensuring that learner level achievement continue to build in the BGE in order to raise attainment in the Senior Phase through targeted school visit programme, reviewed target setting and enhanced scrutiny of attainment data with planned next steps 4. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS (a) Corporate Plan and 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP) Reflective of priorities within the Corporate Plan 2024-2029 with particular regard to ‘Tackle Poverty and Inequality’ where we look to get it right for every child so that we continue to improve attainment for all, with focus on improved attainment in the Broad General Education through ACEL measures and success through percentage of P1, P 4 and P7 pupils combined achieving excepted CfE level in literacy and numeracy as well as reduction in identified attainment gaps. With regards to the 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan LOIP), (2) building a better future for children and young people in Moray through equity of learning experience offered across Moray’s schools. (b) Policy and Legal It is the duty of the Council to secure improvement and the quality of school education which is provided in schools managed by Headteachers and to raise standards of education (Section 7, 8 of Standards in Scotland’s Schools etc Act 2000). Page 97
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(c) Financial implications There are no financial implications arising directly from this report. Continued support from finance is required in order to ensure timely financial updates in order to guide spending plans in line with statutory reporting and external scrutiny requirements. (d) Risk Implications There are risk implications if we cannot support national expectations and requirements in relation to this key national policy directive. The risks associated with inability to support expectations and requirements are the potential negative impact on school inspection reports and in the failure to improve learner achievement and attainment. This would have a direct impact on any reporting to the Scottish Government and Education Scotland on National Improvement Framework areas and progress or achievement of Stretch Aims as part of the Framework for Recovery and Accelerating Progress. While some recent improvement is noted, schools continue to be impacted by ongoing digital connectivity and bandwidth issues in respect our ICT Education network operating in schools. As a results, schools continue to report operational issues with ICT infrastructure, log-in times, access to core software, devices and poor connectivity having notable impact on learning, teaching and assessment, learner access to digital platforms, school administration, also impeding exploration of school-to- school/school to external learning partner digital consortia approaches. Colleagues within ICT continue to work closely with schools within existing resources in order to remedy issues arising on an ongoing basis, where Education colleagues appreciate ongoing support provided. Improvement in digital provision is required in order to realise positive consortia approaches and digitally enabled learning and teaching, with absence of 1:1 devices for learners in Moray impacting on learner experiences. Looking outwards where local authorities are digitally enabled, this is having direct positive impact on learning, teaching and assessment and overall achievements of learners in schools where equity in digital access is supported for all. As new digital technologies continue to be explored, this is of further concern as we look to the curriculum of the future. A number of schools continue to observe an increase in children and young people with specific Additional Support Needs (ASN) and Social, Emotional and Behavioural Needs (SEBN) where due to these needs, access a personalised curriculum with individual targets and outcomes. This requires schools to allocate resources available in a targeted way and has an impact on overall attainment levels and universal supports available. Increased reports of anti-social and disruptive behaviours among a very small minority of young people in secondary, has impacted on learning and diverted staff from supporting wider pupils/groups. Page 98
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It is acknowledged that budget pressures and resulting savings may arise in the future, leading to potential reduction in resources and supports available to schools. This will have a direct impact on attainment levels for children and young people, were reduced universal or targeted supports to schools accessible. Schools will require timely and accurate financial information in order to plan for interventions, using all funding available to them including Pupil Equity Funding. (e) Staffing Implications There are no staffing implications arising directly from this report. In recent sessions, particular difficulties in recruitment to Secondary School posts in Maths and English have been experienced as well as discrete Science based subject areas. This has resulted in schools developing creative timetabling approaches through, for example, appointment of BGE Teachers of Literacy and Numeracy who are Primary qualified but within registration requirements, may teach specific Broad General Education classes. (f) Property There are no property implications arising directly from this report. (g) Equalities/Socio Economic Impact An Equality/Socio Economic Impact Assessment is not required as this report is to inform Committee on performance. (h) Climate Change and Biodiversity Impacts No climate change or biodiversity implications have been determined due to the scrutiny and performance based nature of activities reported and no findings related to such implications contained herein. Move to virtual meetings and platforms where possible for certain activities (e.g. Moderation using Microsoft Teams, Subject Groups) has reduced potential impact of carbon emissions and pollution caused by staff travel by car to central locations. (i) Consultations Senior Officers in Education, Communities and Organisational Development, the Equal Opportunities Officer, the Human Resources Manager and Caroline O’Connor, Committee Services Officer have been consulted and are in agreement with the contents of this report as regards their respective responsibilities. 5. CONCLUSION 5.1 ACEL attainment based on key Moray datasets and trends is presented within this paper for P1, P4, P7 and S3 for Literacy (Reading, Writing, Listening and Talking) and Numeracy for 2024, including performance and trends over time. Noted improvements in performance across almost all measures from 2023 have been identified and analysed. While noted within the paper that performance remains marginally above, marginally below or in line with national averages overall, improvements are noted Page 99
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within key literacy elements and numeracy at different stages and levels. Data comparisons are made against the national average where improvements in performance continue to be realised year on year for almost all measures. 5.2 Moray schools continue to use all resources available to them in including Pupil Equity Fund and Strategic Equity Fund as appropriate, in order to implement targeted and universal supports and approaches. As a result, attainment gaps have witnessed reduction across almost all measures from 2023 to 2024. A range of key actions have been initiated or continue to progress as noted in 3.36 above, strengthening our approach to raising attainment and Teacher Professional Judgements (TPJ) on learner level achievement. 5.3 Positive progress towards Stretch Aims has been realised overall as outlined in para 3.30, required by Scottish Government and Education Scotland as part of the revised framework for recovery and accelerating progress as both prudent and aspirational targets for improvement. We exceed or remain within 2024 annual trajectory data ranges for Stretch Aims set, with positive progress noted at this time towards ultimate 2026 aspirational Stretch Aims. Further key service actions in pursuit of strengthened attainment are outlined in our NIF Plan 2024-25. 5.4 Committee is invited to scrutinise data and key messages reported and acknowledge work planned or ongoing to improve ACEL, centrally and across Moray schools with most recent 2024 ACEL and performance over time outlined within this paper against national comparator figures. Author of Report: Stewart McLauchlan, Quality Improvement Manager Background Papers: 2025 National Improvement Framework Framework for Recovery and Accelerating Progress Education National Improvement Framework Report 2023-2024 and Plan 2024-2025 Ref: SPMAN-1315769894-611 Page 100
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REPORT TO: EDUCATION, CHILDREN’S AND LEISURE SERVICES COMMITTEE ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025 SUBJECT: ADDITIONAL SUPPORT NEEDS ALLOCATIONS BY: DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE (EDUCATION, COMMUNITIES AND ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT) 1. REASON FOR REPORT 1.1 To advise Committee of the proposed allocation methodology for Additional Support Needs (ASN) (teachers and support staff) for session 2025/26. 1.2 This report is submitted to Committee in terms of Section III (D) (1) of the Council's Scheme of Administration relating to all the functions of the Council as an Education Authority. 2. RECOMMENDATIONS 2.1 It is recommended that Committee: (i) agrees the methodology to be used for school ASN allocations; (ii) scrutinises and notes the work being carried out regarding nursery allocations and agrees with the proposal in paragraph 3.4; and (iii) agrees to work continuing to develop a new process for ASN funding moving from one school to another where there is a significant change in circumstances and/or need. 3. BACKGROUND 3.1 The review of Additional Support Needs in the Council has been ongoing for some time with various reports to Committee. After a significant moderation exercise, a report was presented to this Committee on 27 March 2024 (para 8 of the minute refers) to provide details of work to date and agreeing the maintenance of budget allocated for ASN staffing to be shared on a pro rata basis. The option agreed maintained teacher numbers and allocated support staff hours based on need. Item 11.* Page 101
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3.2 This resulted in an agreed total budget of £14.3m for Early Years, teachers and support staff in schools and a contingency for emerging need of £0.6mm to be used to support emergent need for pupils coming into Moray, as well as those with a significant change in circumstances. In addition to this, the ASN Resource Group (ARG) has an operational budget of £0.956m which is for requests for transport, equipment and other support. The group meets fortnightly to consider and allocate requests. 3.3 The Committee on 27 March 2024 also approved budget of £0.7m, which is included in the £0.956m for ARG, to fund adapted curriculum for those children and young people attending central ASN provision i.e. Pinefield Parc, Moray Adapted Curriculum (based in East End Annexe) and the newly developed Flexible Learning Resource (FLR) Central (based in East End Annexe). 3.4 Plans were in place to create a physical FLR in the Forres Associated School Group, (ASG) temporarily until the new Forres Academy is complete. However the situation with the capital budget of the Council has prevented this and so the resource in terms of staffing will be utilised across the ASG. Similarly, an FLR in Buckie was also planned given the level of need in the area. This too is on hold given the position of the Capital Plan and budge. In the meantime, the service will recruit to the posts and either use this in the central ASN service as outreach or deploy within the Buckie ASG. 3.5 The moderation exercise was particularly effective for school based allocations. However follow up review of nursery allocations has evidenced that this has been less effective. As a result officers are reviewing the approach taken to consider developmental needs that require support alongside emerging or already identified ASN needs. This review will be completed through creation of a short life working group, involving Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) cross sector representation to gain further feedback and test methodology. The short life working group compiled of officers and partners intend to have the new approach for ELC allocations completed before the end of this session. The funding for nursery will be separated from the total budget ie £1.25m so that the allocations can be finalised and budget available is known. 3.6 Allocations are now provided to the school or setting and not to a child. This provides Head Teachers and Nursery Managers with autonomy to manage the resource as they wish by timetabling support staff and teachers to work with groups of pupils or individuals as appropriate. 3.7 Once agreed, the allocations for 2024/25 were set for the session ahead. Where there was a significant reduction in the level of need in a school or setting, due to timely interventions or other reasons, the budget remained in the school. Conversely, where a school or setting saw a significant increase in the level of need, an additional allocation was made using ARG funding. This put some pressure on the emerging need monies where the school with an increase in need had to request additional funding through the ARG group. The service are working with Finance and Human Resources on a process for funding so that it moves when need significantly changes or moves from one school to another in Moray and this will be in effect for August 2025. Page 102
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3.8 Due to the significant ASN moderation process last year and an increased understanding of context, it has been possible to more accurately forecast the level of need within individual settings. ASN officers continue to track movement of need across and into the authority to ensure that the appropriate level of support is available to settings in a timely manner. This will continue next year with the proposed development work in allocations to ELC settings. A barrier to the accurate forecasting of need is the level of placing requests received during the year. 3.9 To ensure a continued confidence in the level of support in settings, a process of re-moderation will commence in February. Schools who have reported a large change of need will be visited in the first instance with some other settings being visited on an ad hoc basis being mindful of equity across the system. 3.10 The roll out of a comprehensive training programme and professional development programme has made an impact on schools and settings ability to meet a growing and diverse range of needs. Proposal For ASN Allocations 3.11 It is proposed that the funding for ASN is maintained at the same level as last year, taking into account pay awards allocated. This will maintain teacher numbers and allocate support staff hours based on needs. Allocations will be based on session 2023/24 moderation exercise, awareness of change of need across the year, ARG requests in 2024-25 and re-moderation information. No request is being made for any additional funding for emerging need as the service will monitor and track requests for a further year to gauge demand. A Moray wide change management plan for support staff (PSAs) will take place to take into account where there has been a significant change of additional support need within settings. However, due to the significant staffing exercise undertaken last year this is anticipated to involve less movement of PSA staff. There will be no movement of teaching staff. 3.12 The funding for this would support: Teachers (89.78 fte) £6.6m Support Staff (7,900 hours per week) £5.9m ELC £1.2m Emerging Need/Contingency £0.6m Total: £14.3 m This gives a total cost of £14.3m which is within budget and also allows a contingency to support emergent need for pupils coming in to Moray as well as those with a significant change in circumstances. In addition there will be continuation of the £0.956m for Adapted Curriculum. Next Steps 3.13 All schools will be advised of their allocation prior to the end of this term. Page 103
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3.14 Nursery allocations have a different process to school based allocations due to the shorter period that children attend the settings and so are on a temporary basis rather than permanent as they change annually. It is anticipated that they will be advised of their initial allocation for August intake in May and again before January intake and Easter intake. However, this will be based on the agreed approach taken by the working group. 3.15 A draft ASN forecasting tool has been developed however this will need further refinement. Officers are monitoring this as further data emerges including the movement of need when placing requests are made, particularly from one enhanced provision school to another. In addition, there is also a pilot in early years looking at data from health services which has been looked at across two associated schools groups with further pilot in a third. A remoderation process has started using information from placing requests and ARG group requests and this is targeted at those schools who have seen a significant increase or decrease in need during the course of the year. Officers will continue to develop a process for the movement of funding from one school to another within an academic year. 4. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS (a) Corporate Plan and 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP)) This report supports the LOIP outcomes: Building a better future for children and young people in Moray: • A place where children and young people thrive; • A place where they have a voice, have opportunities to learn and can get around; • A place where they are able to reach their full potential. Also the aims of the Corporate Plan to: • Provide opportunities where young people can achieve the potential to be the best they can be (b) Policy and Legal There are no policy or legal implications arising directly from this report. The Council has a statutory duty to make adequate and efficient provision for the additional support required by each child or young person for whose school education it has responsibility for, in term of the Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004. The ASN Review implementation is proceeding within the context of this legislation and also the recommendations of the Morgan Review. . (c) Financial implications The financial implications are as follows: Total funding £14.3m Made up of: Funding for Teachers £6.6m Funding for Support Staff £5.9m Funding for Nursery £1.2m Emerging Need/Contingency £0.6m Page 104
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In addition – ARG/Adapted Curriculum £0.956m In addition it is noted that the lack of capital budget is a constraint in the planned approach to roll out Flexible Learning Resources across Moray. (d) Risk Implications The main risks around meeting the needs of learners is around ASN Tribunal applications should there be dissatisfaction on whether the Council is meeting the needs of any individual young person. Due to Moray having military establishments in its communities, there is also risk attached to any movement and our ability to meet emerging needs for children moving to Moray and expectations to replicate specialist provision elsewhere. In addition there are financial risks whereby the service is operating within budget (taking into account pay awards) although the level of need is increasing. This means schools and settings are receiving a smaller proportion of overall funding. In addition the capital plan/budget position is constraining the service from plans to implement a further FLR in the Buckie area. The service is not currently engaging with the Parent/Carer Action group as elected members and the Interim Chief Executive have been working with them. This is a risk although a parent/carer survey is being sent out this term to consult with the wider parent/carer body and the service has plans to implement an ASN Parent/Carer Support Group. (e) Staffing Implications There will be a Moray change management plan process this year however the reduction/increase of staff hours for support staff will not be significant. Any workforce implications will be managed in accordance with agreed Council policy and procedure. There will be no teacher movement. Although the FLRs will not progress due to capital budget restraints, the posts for the provisions will be advertised and appointed to and used to support outreach work either within localities or as part of the central provisions. (f) Property There are no property implications arising directly from this report. (g) Equalities/Socio Economic Impact Any changes in support staff will have an impact on female employees as the majority of our support staff are female. An Integrated Impact Assessment has been completed and is attached as Appendix 1. The purpose of the ASN review has been to ensure that resource is closer to the child with the desire to improve equality impacts for those with ASN. (h) Climate Change and Biodiversity Impacts Page 105
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None. (i) Consultations The Chief Financial Officer, Nicky Gosling, Accountant, Head of HR, ICT and OD, Quality Improvement Manager, Early Years’ Service Manager, QIO (ASN), Principal Educational Psychologist, HT Moray SEBN, the Education Consultative Group, the Business Support Team Manager, and Caroline O’Connor, Committee Services Officer, have been consulted on this report and agree with the sections of the report relating to their areas of responsibility. 5. CONCLUSION 5.1 Committee is asked to consider the work to date after a significant change in allocations for this session and agree the recommendations as outlined above. Author of Report: Vivienne Cross, Head of Education Background Papers: The Morgan Review Ref: SPMAN-1315769894-614 Page 106
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APPENDIX 1 SPFINANCE-565096732-34 06/02/2025 10:03 INTEGRATED IMPACT ASSESSMENT COVERING • EQUALITIES & SOCIO ECONOMIC DUTIES • HUMAN RIGHTS AND RIGHTS OF THE CHILD STAGE 1 - DO I NEED AN INTEGRATED IMPACT ASSESSMENT? Name of policy or proposal: Allocation of Pupil Support Assistant (PSA) hours to support Additional Support Needs (ASN) in schools and early years’ settings Is this a Mark X below New activity, programme or policy? Change to an existing activity, programme or policy? X Budget proposal? X Duties: tick the boxes you think apply No Maybe Yes Equalities: Will your proposal have an impact on groups with protected characteristics? Consider the impact of your proposal on people and how they access your services and information without barriers. X Socio-economic Not every person/family has access to regular income or savings. Will your proposal have an adverse impact on them x Does your proposal impact on the human rights of people? X Does your proposal impact on the rights of children and young people X Reasoning Briefly describe your reasoning for the responses given above: Pupils covered by the Equality Act 2010 are supported by PSAs in schools/settings where an assessment of need indicates that such support is required. PSA allocations have Item 11.* Page 107
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APPENDIX 1 SPFINANCE-565096732-34 06/02/2025 10:03 usually been reviewed each year to ensure hours are allocated appropriately, with a focus on supporting children and young people with the highest level of need. If you have answered “maybe” or “yes” to any of the Stage 1 questions above then proceed to complete the Stage 2 Integrated Impact Assessment questions below. If you have answered “no” to the Stage 1 questions above then provide the details below and submit to [email] Lead Officer for developing the contract Vivienne Cross Other people involved in the screening (this may be council staff, partners or others i.e. contractor or community) Diane Douglas (QIO ASN), Rhonda Geddes-Stewart (Senior HR Advisor), Date 27/1/25 Page 108
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APPENDIX 1 SPFINANCE-565096732-34 06/02/2025 10:03 STAGE 2: INTEGRATED IMPACT ASSESSMENT Brief description of the affected service 1. Describe what the service does: Teachers/practitioners (including ASN teachers in enhanced provisions) have a responsibility to support all pupils in their class/setting. However, if there is an increased level of additional support need that is assessed as requiring additional support, PSA hours will be allocated to a school/setting. It is the responsibility of the Head Teacher and nursery manager to manage their allocation so that all children with additional support needs are supported appropriately in their learning. The school/setting will recruit PSAs to cover the needs depending on the allocation provided to them. The PSAs are directed by the class teacher/practitioner or ASN teacher in an Enhanced Provision, in terms of the support that is to be provided. Most PSA hours are allocated long-term to best meet the ongoing additional support needs contexts in schools/settings. However, changes in circumstances regarding individual pupils or groups of peoples will mean that PSAs may be redirected to work with different children or groups of children. This is managed by Head Teachers. It is hoped that there will be less change of PSA hours over time due to the better understanding of the additional support needs contexts in schools/settings. The allocations provided to schools and settings last year were more robust as they were as a result of a comprehensive moderation exercise whereby each school and setting was visited by a group of moderators. This was the first year that this had taken place whereby allocations were previously based on a paper exercise. In addition, training has been provided for staff to support them further in fulfilling their roles. 2. Who are your main stakeholders? Pupil Support Assistants, Teachers, Early Years Practitioners, Senior Leadership Teams in schools, Nursery managers, Children and Young People with additional support needs, Parents/Carers 3. What changes as a result of the proposals? Is the service reduced or removed? The allocation to schools/settings is based on ASN Moderation of need across the authority. Rather than being based purely on individual children, it also looks at the context of settings to ensure that the correct allocation is given. The Council has provided additional monies over the past few years to maintain and add additional PSA resource which cannot be continued and is not necessary given the evidence from the moderation work. Last year ASN allocation was reconsidered as part of the ASN review and was based on the level of need as well as the context of individual settings. As a result of the large change last year, based on more robust knowledge of need, it is anticipated that there will be less movement of staff and moves will only happen where there has been a Page 109
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APPENDIX 1 SPFINANCE-565096732-34 06/02/2025 10:03 significant change in need to ensure that allocations meet schools/settings ASN requirements. 4. How will this affect your customers? Parents/Carers may feel that a reduction in hours in particular schools/settings will disadvantage their children, however support provided in a school/setting comes from a team, that will include class teachers, ASN teachers and practitioners, and the planning and support provided in a school should have a positive impact on pupil development, meaning that the goal is to reduce PSA support over time. Head Teachers and Nursery Managers have a responsibility to manage the support provided in order to meet the needs of pupils. There are times where a ASN need can be overcome resulting in the pupil requiring less support or that interventions have a great impact, and this again will be managed by the HT and NM. 5. Impact on staff providing the service PSAs are recruited on permanent or temporary contracts to cover the hours allocated. Where there is a reduction in hours PSAs on permanent contracts may be asked to move to alternative schools. PSAs are predominantly female so there may be a disproportionate impact on the grounds of sex. School/Early Years’ staff are impacted by a reduction in PSA hours when they are used to operating their timetables with a certain number of PSA hours in a setting, however any reduction will reflect the needs in the settings at the time of allocation. Investment in induction training and ongoing training for PSAs is currently planned which will ensure staff are fully supported to undertake their roles. Initial feedback from PSA training in in- service days is being used to further develop this. 6. Please indicate if these apply to any of the protected characteristics Protected groups Potential impacts and considerations Race Disability Potential positive impact – The new PSA approach from last year supports the inclusion of all children and young people with needs promoting appropriate levels of independence and achievement while providing greater autonomy and flexibility to schools to allocate support more appropriately to a pupil or group of pupils. Carers (for elderly, disabled or minors) Sex Potential Negative Impact - PSAs are predominantly female so there may be a disproportionate impact on the grounds of sex. Page 110
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APPENDIX 1 SPFINANCE-565096732-34 06/02/2025 10:03 Pregnancy and maternity (including breastfeeding) Sexual orientation Age (include children, young people, midlife and older people) Potential positive impact – The new PSA approach supports the inclusion of all children and young people with needs promoting appropriate levels of independence and achievement while providing greater autonomy and flexibility to schools to allocate support more appropriately to a pupil or group of pupils. Religion, and or belief Gender reassignment Inequalities arising from socio- economic differences Human rights List of convention rights Describe, where applicable, if and how specific rights are engaged Article 5: Right to liberty and security Article 6: Right to a fair trial Article 8: Right to respect for private and family life, correspondence and the home Article 10: Freedom of expression Those affected have a right to be consulted and their views heard and considered regarding the proposal to change the service. Article 11: Freedom of assembly and association Article 12: Right to marry Article 14: Prohibition of discrimination (in relation to the convention rights) Article 1 of Protocol 1: Protection of property Article 2 of Protocol 1: Right to education Children with additional support needs will receive the support they require to become as independent as possible while also allowing access to education. Article 3 of Protocol 1: Right to free elections by secret ballot Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Relevant articles – UNCRC Page 111
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APPENDIX 1 SPFINANCE-565096732-34 06/02/2025 10:03 Article 2 – Non discrimination Respect rights of the child without discrimination irrespective of disability. Take all appropriate measure to ensure the child is protected from discrimination The new PSA approach supports the inclusion of all children and young people with needs Article 12 – Respect of the views of the child Article 3.1 – Best interest of the child Ensure that best interest of the child is a primary consideration and their rights are realised in practice. Children with additional support needs will receive the support they require to become as independent as possible while also allowing access to education. Article 6.2 – Right to survival and development 7. Evidence. What information have you used to make your assessment? Performance data Internal consultation x Consultation with affected groups This is an ongoing part of the change management process Local statistics x National statistics Other ASN Moderation – the in-person moderation allowed for a clear and robust understanding of the nature of need across the authority and showed examples of best practice when using PSA support. This highlighted the benefits of moving away from hours being allocated to individual pupils but rather that settings are able to use the hours to best support their need in their own context. This is starting to show the promotion of independence where appropriate while allowing sufficient support for our more complex children and young people. In addition to this there has been a clear focus on further supporting our schools/settings to learn from the best practice already in Moray in terms of meeting the needs of learners as well as supporting our staff to support pupils appropriately. 8. Evidence gaps Page 112
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APPENDIX 1 SPFINANCE-565096732-34 06/02/2025 10:03 Do you need additional information in order to complete the information in the previous questions? No 9. Mitigating action Can the impact of the proposed policy/activity be mitigated? Please explain The service described above, and the allocation process, have a positive impact on children and young people with disability as support is provided based on an assessment of need, with a focus on supporting those with the highest levels of need. Changes will be less than last year as the allocation will only change where there has been a significant change in overall need. When there will be a reduction in hours in a particular setting, permanent staff are supported by HR to find alternative hours in a setting where there is an increase in hours (redeployment). If PSAs do not want to be redeployed there may also be the option to reduce their hours in the setting they are working in. Some temporary staff will retain their posts and a number of posts will be advertised. 10. Justification If nothing can be done to reduce the negative impact(s) but the proposed policy/activity must go ahead, what justification is there to continue with the change? The ASN Moderation last year highlighted a reliance in some settings on individual PSA support to individual children, creating a culture of dependency and lack of independence. While some settings utilised PSA support in creative ways, ensuring that all children and young people were supported, other settings were only providing support to the children in receipt of hours. Understanding that there is a wide diversity of need across the authority, it is important that the usage of hours is flexible within all settings to best meet need in their own context. The new approach introduced last year has supported the inclusion of all children and young people and promoted appropriate levels of independence and achievement. The new approach also allowed schools/settings to be empowered to allocate support to a pupil or group of pupils rather than to a child which is not Best Value for the Council. Potential indirect discrimination of PSA staff can be justified as it serves as a proportionate means to meet a legitimate aim in terms of the positive impact on pupils with additional support needs. It is proportionate as the aim of supporting individual needs cannot be achieved by less discriminatory means. Page 113
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APPENDIX 1 SPFINANCE-565096732-34 06/02/2025 10:03 SECTION 3 CONCLUDING THE IIA Concluding the IIA 1. No potential negative impacts on any of the protected groups were found. 2. Some potential negative impacts have been identified. The impacts relate to: Reducing discrimination, harassment, victimisation or other conduct prohibited under the Equality Act 2010 X Promoting equality of opportunity x Fostering good relations 3. The proposals interfere with human rights and/or the rights of the child X 4. Negative impacts can be mitigated the proposals as outlined in question 8 X 5. The negative impacts cannot be fully mitigated but are justified as outlined in question 9. 6. Further consultation with affected groups is needed. 7. It is advised not to go ahead with the proposals. Decision Set out the rationale for deciding whether or not to proceed with the proposed actions: Any negative impacts can be mitigated as outlined in section 9 above and justified as per section 10. Date of Decision: 28.1.25 Page 114
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APPENDIX 1 SPFINANCE-565096732-34 06/02/2025 10:03 Sign off and authorisation: Service Department Education Policy/activity subject to IIA Allocation of Pupil Support Assistant (PSA) hours to support Additional Support Needs (ASN) in schools and early years’ settings We have completed the integrated impact assessment for this policy/activity. Name: Diane Douglas Position: QIO(ASN) Date: 27.1.25 Authorisation by head of service Name: Vivienne Cross Position: Head of Education (Chief Education Officer) Date: 28.1.25 Permission to publish on website - Please return this form to the Equal Opportunities Officer, Chief Executive’s Office. Page 115
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REPORT TO: EDUCATION, CHILDREN’S AND LEISURE SERVICES COMMITTEE ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025 SUBJECT: EDUCATION RESOURCES AND COMMUNITIES REVENUE BUDGET MONITORING TO 31 DECEMBER 2024 BY: DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE (EDUCATION, COMMUNITIES AND ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT) 1. REASON FOR REPORT 1.1 To inform the Committee of the budget position for Education Resources and Communities as at 31 December 2024. 1.2 This report is submitted to Committee in terms of Section III (A) (2) of the Council’s Scheme of Administration relating to the consideration of capital and revenue budgets and long term financial plans. 2. RECOMMENDATION 2.1 It is recommended that Committee scrutinises and notes the budget position at 31 December 2024. 3. BACKGROUND 3.1 The report highlights those areas of the budget where there is a significant percentage variance identified as at 31 December 2024. 4. BUDGET POSITION 4.1 The spend at 31 December 2024 is £10,244,000 against a budget to date of £10,296,000 giving an underspend of £52,000 as shown in Table 1 below. 4.2 The underspend is mainly within Culture, Sport and Leisure Services where there is a total underspend of £47,000 arising from £69,000 overachievement of income and underspend of £18,000 on income offset by additional costs for licensing, transport costs for Moray Music Centre and a small underachievement of Libraries income. There are also small underspends in operational budgets within learning estate and Youth Work amounting to £27,000. 4.3 The Public Private Partnership (PPP) budget is £6.528m. There is a small variance of £24,000 in budget relating to a £20,000 under achievement on non performance deductions and a utlilties cost adjustment of £4,000. Item 12.* Page 117
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Table 1 4.4 The progress on delivering savings approved for the service is set out in Table 2 below. Table 2 5. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS (a) Corporate Plan and 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP) The Education Resources and Communities Revenue Budget has particular reference to National Outcome 8 – we have improved the life chances for children, young people and families at risk. (b) Policy and Legal The Council has statutory responsibilities to meet educational needs, the needs of children and young people in need and those it looks after. (c) Financial implications Budget Monitoring Report to 31 December 2024 Service Revised Budget Budget to Date Actual to Date Variance to Date Variance Full Year Forecast Full Year £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 % £'000 £'000 Communities 1,428 1,056 1,047 9 1 % 1,424 4 Culture, Sport & Leisure 4,338 3,187 3,140 47 1 % 4,316 22 Learning Estate 319 215 199 16 7 % 301 18 Business Support Unit 707 517 514 3 1 % 705 2 Education Resources & Communities Management 30 1 - 1 100 % 29 1 Public Private Partnership 6,328 5,320 5,344 (24) - 6,359 (31) Education Resources & Communities Efficiency Savings 128 - - - - (82) 210 - Education Resources & Communities Total 13,278 10,296 10,244 52 - 13,052 226 Education Resources and Communities 2024-25 Savings Approved Achieved Reason for Saving Saving Non Achievement £000 £000 Business Admin remove 4 posts 55 111 Saving was to be over 2 years but due to vacancies the full saving has been taken in 24/25 Primary School FM - Delete PAT testing post and contract out 27 27 Sport and Culture - Replace mobile library with redesigned service 20 20 Sport and Culture - Remove Health and Wellbeing Officer post 51 51 Communities Team - Remove 1 Outdoor Learning post 59 59 Communities Team - Remove 1.75fte from the Community Support Unit 88 88 Saving started August 2024. Balance of saving will be made in 25/26 Communities Team - Reduce community capacity training budget 4 4 Saving started July 2024. Balance of saving will be made in 25/26 Elgin Community Centre closure - VER 163 123 Balance of saving will be achieved when building sold Library contract management systems 7 7 Relocate staff from Auchernack and Forres Community Centre staff restructure 20 23 Page 118
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The resource implications are set out in this report and at Table 1. The underspend at 31 December 2024 is £52,000 against a budget to date of £10,296,000. The estimated year end position is expenditure of £13,052,000 against the budget of £13,278,000 resulting in an underspend of £226,000, which arises mainly due to vacancies and appointments of staff lower in the salary scale in addition to the other points noted in this report. (d) Risk implications Budget Managers are aware of their responsibilities for managing budget allocations and approval for any variances will be sought from Committee in line with the Financial Regulations. (e) Staffing implications There are no staffing implications associated with this report. (f) Property There are no property implications associated with this report. (g) Equalities/Socio Economic Impact An Equality Impact Assessment is not needed because the report is to inform the Committee on budget monitoring. (h) Climate Change and Biodiversity Impacts No climate change and biodiversity impacts arise directly from this report. (i) Consultations Chief Financial Officer and the Caroline O’Connor, Committee Services Officer have been consulted and are in agreement with the contents of this report where it relates to their areas of responsibility. 6. CONCLUSION 6.1 That Committee scrutinises and notes the budget position as at 31 December 2024. Author of Report: Denise Whitworth, DCE (ECOD) Nicky Gosling, Accountant Background Papers: with authors Ref: SPMAN-1315769894-490 / SPMAN-9425411-320 Page 119
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REPORT TO: EDUCATION, CHILDRENS AND LEISURE SERVICES COMMITTEE ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025 SUBJECT: EDUCATION RESOURCES AND COMMUNITIES AND EDUCATION CAPITAL BUDGET MONITORING REPORT TO 31 DECEMBER 2024 BY: DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE (EDUCATION COMMUNITIES AND ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT 1. REASON FOR REPORT 1.1 To inform Committee of the capital budget position for Education Resources and Communities and Education as at 31 December 2024. 1.2 This report is submitted to Committee in terms of Section III (A) (2) of the Council's Scheme of Administration relating to the consideration of Capital and Revenue budgets and long-term financial plans. 2. RECOMMENDATION 2.1 It is recommended that the Committee scrutinises and notes the capital budget position as at 31 December 2024. 3. BACKGROUND 3.1 It is the practise of this Committee to receive regular reports providing an update on the current financial position of the Education Resources and Communities and Education Capital Budget programmes. 3.2 At the meeting of Moray Council on 24 January 2024, the Capital Plan for 2024/25 was approved (para 11 of minute refers). At the meeting of Moray Council on 26 June 2024 (para 13 of minute refers), carry forward for capital budget within Education Resources and Communities and Education was approved. 3.3 This report highlights those areas of the capital budget relating to Education Resources and Communities and Education budgets where there is a significant percentage variance as at 31 December, or the risk of variance over the course of the financial year (highlighted as red or amber in the budget update at Appendix 1). Item 13.* Page 121
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3.4 The report also provides a narrative update on major ongoing projects. 3.5 The capital budget expenditures for the Education Resources and Communities and Education Services are listed in Appendix 1. 4. BUDGET POSITION 4.1 The total approved capital budget for Education Resources and Communities and Education for financial year 2024/25, including carry forwards from 2023/24 and amendments in the year, is: 2024/25 £000 Land and Buildings 15038 Vehicles Plant and Equipment 263 Total 15,301 4.2 The actual expenditure up to 31 December 2024 was £3,107,000 4.3 Current variance (or risk of variance) in the Capital Plan relate to the following: Schools Essential Maintenance / BB Upgrade Programme 2024/25 4.4 The planned expenditure on school B/B condition and suitability upgrade, building element replacement and compliance works for 2024/25 is 2 lines within the Capital Plan which totalled £6m. The first line is made up of a £5m budget for actual upgrade works, and the second line a £1m budget for preparatory works (detail design, planning and tendering) for building works planned to go ahead over the next two financial years – supporting a 3 year project delivery timeline for these works. This approach was established to support the design and build project stages and associated project budgets that extend over one or more financial years. 4.5 The current in year budget for each individual project is detailed in Appendix 1 for budget monitoring purposes. The majority of the programme is phased work which seeks to address school fabric and components, as defined in the Scottish Government’s Condition Core Fact guidance, graded as Condition D with the possibility of full or partial failure or works to ensure building standards or other statutory compliance. 4.6 It was reported in the Quarter 2 monitoring report that there would be a likely underspend of ‘preparatory’ design budget (Appendix 1 – Line 39). The transition from a ‘make-do-and-mend’ asset management approach to school buildings over the last 12 months, a methodology in place for almost a decade has resulted in a significant decline in the condition and suitability of buildings across the Learning Estate. Coupled with the absence of recent core condition building reports required to inform asset improvement planning this has resulted in a significantly more challenging task to develop a prioritised list for works and undertake the task to complete project design packages for competitive tender than was envisaged at the start of this financial year. Page 122
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Consequently, the majority of upgrade projects planned for this financial year are either in an earlier stage of design than planned or not yet started. This has resulted in forecast underspend of the BB design allowance budget of £658,000 allocated for this year. Given the capital plan affordability pressures over the next 3 years there will be no request for carry forward of this underspend. 4.7 An annual budget of £200k was assigned to the support the recruitment of an Asset Manager to support both the BB upgrade programme and develop related asset management plans for all the school builds over this and the next 2 years. The recruitment to this post has been difficult with no suitable candidates to date. Thomas and Adamson have provided some consultancy service to assist in development some of the asset management plans accounting for £50k of the budget. The budget is an agreed in year spend so the remaining £150k will not be carried forward. Further efforts to recruit for next year continue. 4.8 The Cullen Primary School B Condition/Enerphit upgrade design and subsequent tender process has taken longer than was planned. A significant project reprofiling has been undertaken and a request to Council to carry forward a budget of £546,000 into financial year 2025/26 as part project reprofiling. A significant element of this carried forward is a part of the SALIX grant award for this pilot project totalling £593,888. 4.9 The Mortlach Primary School BB upgrade design process has been complex and taken longer than was initially planned. A phased project over next 2 years is needed to deliver significant building update and component replacement works and the completion of the design works requires a carry forward of £79,000 into financial year 2025/26. 4.10 The Milnes High School and Speyside High School replacement doors and windows project was delayed as original tenders returns were significantly higher than expected and project directed to look to reduce project cost by reducing time on site. Further engagement with both schools, to see if more classrooms could be made available over a shorter period of time using a more aggressive decanting plan (which saved in the region of £300k project costs). A reprofiling of these projects will see work complete in late 2025 and a request to carry forward £1.099m into financial year 2025/26. 4.11 The Bishopmill PS replacement sports floor project had to tender twice for this project and was therefore not able to undertake works during October 2024 school holidays. The next opportunity to complete this work will be spring school holidays in April 2025 and it will require a budget carry forward of £100,000 into financial year 2025/26. 4.12 Milnes High School roof project was completed on time with an underspend of £19,000 of unspent risk contingency. 4.13 A failure of the Speyside High School back up heating system required an urgent system upgrade to avoid the risk of school closures over the winter and to be compliant with current building technical standards at a cost of £95,000 Page 123
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which has been funded from programme contingency. This work has been completed to time and cost. 4.14 East End Primary School phased programme to compete the render replacement will now extend into the 2025 requiring a carry forward of the remaining £175,000 budget into financial year 2025/26 to complete the project. The project slippage was due to workload issues across the design and construction team that were not noted in time to recover the delay. Project monitoring has been improved to support early identification and mitigate potential risks and issues project timelines 4.15 The Knockando Primary School Horsa hut project was originally set to only replace the roof on the gym building to remove an asbestos risk. Due to a similar asbestos risk with the dining block roof, the project scope was increased to also replace this roof at an additional £22,000 cost. 4.16 Keith Grammar fire alarm upgrade project work was originally costed and expected to complete in 2023. With the need for wide access to the building, that could only be accommodated during the 2024 summer school holidays, the project was delayed significantly, and market costs increased the total project by £10,000. 4.17 The drainage upgrades at East End and Millbank primary schools are complete and the upgrade at Seafield Primary Schools is near completion with an overall project underspend of £418,000. As reported in the Q2 report to Committee in November 2024 a review of the significant discrepancy between estimated and actual identified a significant early risk allowance applied to the project due to uncertainty over below ground conditions. Although the risk was reduced early in the project this was not corrected in the capital plan. The asset management working group have noted this and have improved the process for reporting change. 4.18 The drainage upgrade costs at Aberlour Primary School have increased by £38,000 due to the additional works needed to reinstatement the existing Additional Support Needs (ASN) playground area and this was unable to completed during term time and the work has rescheduled to complete during the spring holiday in April 2025 and will require a carry forward a budget of £64,000. 4.19 The drainage upgrade costs at Aberlour Primary School have increased by £38,000 due to the additional works needed to reinstatement the existing Additional Support Needs (ASN) playground area and this was unable to completed during term time and the work has rescheduled to complete during the spring holiday in April 2025 and will require a carry forward a budget of £64,000. 4.20 The New Elgin Primary School water and heating pipework project was originally estimated to cost £401,000 but following tender the contract ward was for £325,000 which included a significant contingency budget assigned to cover complexity risk. The works was much easier to compete with a resultant underspend of the risk allowance of £108,000. Page 124
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Forres Academy – Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete Mitigation 4.21 Although significant work was undertaken last financial year to mitigate the finding of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete across Forres Academy an additional £245,000 was budgeted to cover known additional works (fire door replacement to meet a changed building fire strategy) and a risk allowance for any further issues arising from the monitoring survey cycles. Further high risk issues were identified in the kitchen and technical teaching block and mitigation work completed last year. To date the cost of works has been £199,000 leaving a contingency of £46,000 for any further risk mitigation. If any or all of this remaining contingency is not allocated in Q4 there will be a request to carry this forward into financial year 2025/26. Elgin High School Capacity Extension 4.22 The Q2 Capital Monitoring Report stated that although a capital budget of £2,415,000 had been allocated for financial year 2024/25 a delay in establishing the legal ‘carve’ out of land from the existing school red line boundary as defined by the Design Build Finance Maintain (DBFM) legal framework had resulted in a budget re-profiling of £1,755,000 into the financial year 2025/26 with revised cashflow forecasts and a revised operational handover of the new school building to December 2026. 4.23 The decision to pause the project for up to 12 months at the conclusion of concept design phase in January 2025, to allow a reassessment of the future school capacity requirements, will see the spend for this financial year reduce to £416,000 and a further profiling of spend across 2025/26 and 26/27 financial years. Future Forres Academy 4.24 The Future Forres Academy project is currently at Hub Stage 1/RIBA Stage 2 Concept Design which is now due to complete at the end of April this year. 4.25 The 2024/25 capital plan has £2,381,000 allocated to the project; however, as reported in the Q2 monitoring report, the 4-month delay has resulted in a change to cashflow forecasts and a reduction in planned spend of £1.186m for this financial year and reprofiling of the overall project capital budget over the next 3 years. Future Buckie High School 4.26 The Future Buckie High School project was not successful in its bid to be a LEIP Phase 3 project. The current project plan seeks to deliver the future school in 2029/2030 timeframe. The Q2 capital monitoring report to ECLS Committee in November 2024 stated a report into future options would be submitted to this Committee in February 2025. However, with the significant reduction of capital £32.319m agreed to the 3 year capital budget across the whole Learning Estate delivery programme agreed at Council on 21 January 2025 (para 7 of minute refers), to ensure that Council capital borrowing remains within agreed threshold caps, the existing refurbishment options are not affordable and further work has been commissioned to determine further cost reductions options and an assured timeframe for delivery which will consider, and be dependent on, wider investment decisions across the Learning Estate. A detailed report on the project is planned to be submitted to this Committee on 13 May 2025. Page 125
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Universal Free School Meals 4.27 On 7 November 2022, a Scottish Government capital funding allocation of £598,000 was paid as part of the General Capital Grant on 15 December 2022. Further capital grant funding allocations of £19,142 and £92,000 were paid in March 2024 and October 2024 respectively to support the phased expansion of free school meals to those in receipt of Scottish Child Payments. To date only £10,000 has been allocated to new equipment provision and some early design work on the reinstatement of two production kitchens to meet additional future demand with an expansion of free school meals to all primary school children. 4.28 The Scottish Government has indicated it will not look to roll out to the remaining P6-P7 cohort during this administration. It is therefore only planned to spend £40,000 of the budget during this financial year 2024/25 to support further equipment procurement for kitchens and to increase capacity in dining areas across a number of primary schools. A carry forward of the remaining £653,000 grant budget to financial year 2025/26 is recommended to support P6-P7 roll out capacity expansion over the next 2 years. 4.29 A specific update report on the Universal Free School project is planned to be submitted to this Committee on 13 May 2025. Early Learning and Childcare 4.30 This is a “spend to save” option which is being considered as part of the wider Council savings to ensure Elgin Academy Associated School Group (ASG) has sufficient capacity for demand of funded 3 and 4 year olds. Care Inspectorate toilet and nappy changing guidance deems that additional toilets and change spaces will be required to increase capacity at Seafield Nursery from 40 to 56 children. Libraries and Leisure 4.31 Land & Buildings (L&B) Libraries and Leisure capital project spend on land and buildings to the end of Q3 was £32,000. All identified projects are progressing as planned and within timescales, in the main repair works at Elgin Library. The £1,353,000 refurbishment and upgrade of swimming pools will not be progressed until the future direction for the Leisure Estate is determined. As such the full balance has been removed from the 2024/25 Capital Plan and will be made available when further decision on the Leisure Estate are agreed. The £700,000 allocation against Moray Leisure Centre is contingency in regards to any potential asset failure which would result in facility closure, any underspend will be requested as a carry forward. The new 3G pitch allocation of £592,000 will not be utilised until the Forres Academy development progresses and a there is a request to carry forward this. 4.32 Vehicle, Plant & Equipment (VPE) Spend to date on VPE was £130,000. All identified projects are progressing as planned to improve the operational matters of our leisure facilities including support for plant repairs to Moray Leisure Centre. 5. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS Page 126
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(a) Corporate Plan and 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP)) The capital projects referred to in this report support the delivery of the LOIP outcome of building a better future for our children and young people in Moray and developing, diverse and sustainable economy, and are advancing the Corporate Plan priority of building thriving, resilient, empowered communities in terms of managing the financial and resourcing pressures of our learning estate. (b) Policy and Legal The Council has statutory responsibilities to meet educational needs, the needs of children and young people in need and those it looks after. (c) Financial implications The financial implications are set out in this report and at Appendix 1. Budget managers are aware of their responsibilities for managing budget allocation and approval for any unavoidable variance will be sought from the Council in line with the financial regulations. The capital plan approved by Council on 21 January 2025 detailed the outcome of the annual 10-year capital plan review and the council approved overall Council capital spend of £86m over the next 3 years, which included a £32.4m reduction impacting the Learning Estate programme planned budget named and core projects. It is acknowledged that given the requirement to set an affordable capital spend across Council services and ensure compliance with prudential borrowing rules, there will be no increases to the 3 year capital budget. However, there are significant strategic and operational risks associated with this that will impact the existing learning estate delivery strategy that should be fully understood and managed and communicated carefully due to the associated political and reputational risk implications. Further significant capital investment in the BB Condition/Suitability upgrade projects would be required to improve the condition of schools for a further 15 years (out to 2039). In applying that focus to the Learning Estate the asset standard (condition and suitability) for schools is mandated as a B (satisfactory) minimum. In addition, if there is a reduction in planned upgrade works there is a risk the assets will continue to deteriorate, and the risk likelihood of building failure will increase. The realistic options for the Learning Estate are therefore to reduce assets or lengthen programmes of work. The BB upgrade programme plan has now been extended from 10 to 15 years. In regards to Leisure and Libraries, significant refurbishment and upgrade of facilities has not progressed this year as the future of both these Estates are yet to be determined. This has resulted in these assets continuing to deteriorate which places greater pressure on the Properties service repairs and maintenance budget. (d) Risk Implications Page 127
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The school estate (excluding new build) continues to deteriorate with now 32 out of the 53 schools reported as C (Poor) condition and a further 2 as D (Bad) condition. Without the level of investment reported in para 4.3 and managing the affordability factors outlined in para 5 (c) the risk of building failures, temporary closures and/or health and safety continue to be a concern. The leisure and libraries estate continues to deteriorate with 50% reported as C (poor) condition. With the level of investment required outweighing available budget the risk of building failures, temporary closures and/or health and safety continue to be a concern. (e) Staffing Implications There are no staffing implications arising directly from this report. (f) Property There are no property implications other than those detailed in the report. (g) Equalities/Socio Economic Impact There are no equalities or socio-economic implications associated with this report. (h) Climate Change and Biodiversity Impacts A number of detailed technical surveys have been completed to support EnerPHit (Passivhaus standard to achieve a high level of building thermal performance) informed retrofit based investment decisions focused on the value for money impact of fabric and heating/power improvements across a selection of school architectural types. These have already informed BB upgrade design options for projects, notably Cullen Primary School (which benefits from SALIX grant funding). All BB upgrade projects will consider the EnerPHit Informed Retrofit approach to support design options to increase energy efficient and reduce carbon emissions of school buildings. All new build schools will seek to reduce embodied carbon in design and to be operationally net zero through the adoption of an energy efficient building design together with non-fossil fuel heat and power sources. (i) Consultations The Senior Accountant, Property Asset Manager, Design and Construction Manager, Programme Manager (Learning Estate), Early Year’s Service Manager, Sports and Culture Service Manager, Legal Services Manager, Strategy and Performance Manager and Caroline O’Connor, Committee Services Officer have all been consulted and the comments received have been incorporated into the report. 6. CONCLUSION 6.1 This report presents the Education Resources and Communities and Education Capital budget position to 31 December 2024. It highlights Page 128
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and provides detail on any variances and provides an update to Committee on agreed named major projects. Author of Report: Andrew Hall, Programme Manager (Learning Estate) Background Papers: Ref: SPMAN-942411-492 Page 129
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Current Capital Plan 2024/25 £000 Actual Expenditure to 31 Dec 2024 £000 Total Projected Expenditure FY 24/25 £000 Q3 Projected Variance £000 RAG Status LANDS AND BUILDINGS Learning Estate B for condition and B for suitability Asset Management Plans- Asset Manager 200 0 50 150 A Alves - Sustainability Feasibility Study 2 20 27 -25 A Mosstodloch - Sustainability Feasibility Study 2 1 2 0 G Mosstodloch Primary School -- Flat roof replacement 5 2 5 0 G Bishopmill Primary -- Replace sports hall flooring 100 0 0 100 A Buckie High School -- Replacement roof feasibility design 2 1 2 0 G Buckie High School -- Security door and access upgrade 206 195 220 -14 G East End Primary School -- Doors, Window and Render Replacement 118 103 103 15 G East End Primary School -- Render and Window replacement 194 0 6 188 A Keith Grammar - Fire alarm upgrade. 78 59 62 16 G Bishop Primary- Design work for replace / demolish Horsa Hut 23 23 23 0 G Knockando Primary -- Design work for replace / demolish Horsa Hut 48 1 70 -22 A Mortlach - B Upgrade 100 1 21 79 A New Elgin Primary School - Water and heating pipework 325 142 217 108 A Forres Academy -- Upgrade Pupil Toilets 181 173 194 -13 G Cullen Primary School - BB/Enerfit Upgrade Design 750 105 204 546 A Kinloss Primary School - BB/Enerfit Upgrade Design 50 16 34 16 Burghead Primary School - BB/Enerfit Upgrade Design 50 19 19 31 Pilmuir Primary School - BB/Enerphit Upgrade Design 50 37 37 13 Dyke Primary School - BB/Enerphit Upgrade Design 20 0 5 15 West End Primary School - BB/Enerphit Upgrade Design 0 19 19 -19 Rothes Primary School - BB upgrade design 0 0 3 3 Speyside HS - Replace doors and windows 825 7 12 813 A Milnes HS - Replace doors and windows 295 6 9 286 A Milnes HS - Roof 110 120 91 19 A Aberlour PS - Drainage 68 4 4 64 A East End Primary School - Drainage 257 0 110 147 A Millbank Primary School - Drainage 295 116 115 180 A Seafield Primary School - Drainage 145 105 54 91 A Speyside HS - Backup heating system upgrade 0 95 95 -95 A G Forres Academy-RAAC Forres Academy -- Fire Door Replacement 100 75 75 25 A Forres Academy -- Kitchen intervention 100 88 88 12 A Forres Academy -- (Contingency) T19 intervention 45 0 36 9 A APPENDIX 1 Item 13.* Page 131
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BB design allowance (FY25/26 works) 1,000 197 342 658 A BB Contingency 208 99 99 109 A BALANCE 5,952 1,532 2012 3505 Compliance Requirements Legionella works - Schools 16 6 16 0 G Schools -Fire, Safety and Security - Minor Works 200 119 200 0 G Schools Accessibility 46 23 46 0 G BALANCE 262 262 0 Major Refurbishment and Rebuild Elgin High School Modular Units 8 7 8 0 G Elgin High School Extension 2,415 416 416 1999 A Forres Academy 2,381 993 1186 1195 A Future Buckie High School 38 38 38 0 G Elgin South Primary Capacity Management 50 0 25 25 G BALANCE 4,892 1,454 1,673 3,219 Scottish Gov Funded Projects CO2 Monitors / Ventilation 86 1 7 79 G Universal Free School Meals 693 10 40 653 G BALANCE 779 11 47 732 Learning Estate BALANCE 11,885 2,997 3,994 7,456 Libraries and Leisure Resurface & rejuvenate 3G pitches in Moray 253 5 0 253 G New 3G Pitches 592 0 0 592 R Refurbishment & upgrade of pools 1353 0 0 1,353 R Libraries refurbishment 139 32 32 107 A Moray Leisure Centre 700 0 0 700 R Libraries and Leisure BALANCE 3037 37 32 3,005 ELC Settings Cullen Nursery 10 11 12 -2 G Portgordon Nursery 84 31 28 56 A Kinloss Nursery 0 1 0 0 G Pilmiur Nursery 10 12 13 -3 G Aberlour Nursery 12 11 24 -12 G Portessie Nursery 0 7 7 -7 G ELC BALANCE 116 73 84 32 ERC TOTAL 15,038 3,107 4,110 10,493 VEHICLES PLANT AND EQUIPMENT Libraries and Leisure 94 8 30 30 A Page 132
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Moray Leisure Centre 169 119 119 0 G TOTAL 263 127 149 30 Page 133
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REPORT TO: EDUCATION, CHILDRENS AND LEISURE SERVICES COMMITTEE ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025 SUBJECT: LEARNING ESTATE WORKING GROUP BY: DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE (EDUCATION COMMUNITIES AND ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT 1. REASON FOR REPORT 1.1 To inform the Committee of the progress made by the Learning Estate Working Group and its recommendations to Committee. 1.2 This report is submitted to Committee in terms of Section III (D) (1) of the Council's Scheme of Administration relating to all the functions of the Council as an Education Authority. 2. RECOMMENDATION 2.1 It is recommended that the Committee:- (i) notes the progress made by the Learning Estate Working Group; and (ii) agrees to proceed without acceleration of the planned approach to the Learning Estate Strategy and to review the policies associated with the future learning estate work as set out in the report. 3. BACKGROUND 3.1 The Education Children’s and Leisure Services (ECLS) Committee on 17 September 2024 (para 8 of minute refers) agreed to establish a Short Life Working Group to consider the strategic issues surrounding the learning estate and to consider the development of learning estate rationalisation which would report back to the ECLS Committee. 3.2 This followed on from discussion at the 21 August 2024 members workshop and the actions identified in the latest Best Value report and reports by external advisers. Item 14.* Page 135
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3.3 Following discussion, the Working Group agreed to work to the terms of reference set out in Appendix 1 to carry out the remit given to them by Committee. 3.4 The Working Group met on four occasions and considered a range of statistical information and data regarding individual schools on an Associated School Group (ASG) by ASG basis. The Group considered this information in the context of the Learning Estate Strategy and the Council’s revenue budget position which was developing over the period of time that the Group met. 3.5 The Learning Estate Strategy was approved by Moray Council on 16 December 2020 (para 5 of minute refers) and updated on 28 September 2022 (para 15 of minute refers) and sets out the Council’s vision of providing a sustainable education service aiming for excellence. It is based on the occupancy, condition and suitability of our schools being more efficient and a fit-for-purpose school estate for communities across Moray. The Strategy is being progressed through a staged programme of ASG by ASG engagement that is due for completion by June and planned to be reported to this Committee in September 2025. 3.6 The key questions for the Group were whether the work on the Learning Estate Strategy should continue as is or whether it should be accelerated to bring earlier benefits to aid the Council’s budget position and if so, how should that programme of work be designed. 3.7 Having identified and considered a number of possible options, the Working Group was mindful that the revenue budget position of the Council was the main driver for considering acceleration. However, the Group also noted that the planned Learning Estate Strategy is a vital contributor to the medium term revenue and capital positions and its success is essential to ensuring a sound foundation for the future learning estate and so gave priority to ensuring future change is not inhibited by any accelerated work. 3.8 The potential impact of short term data was a further consideration and the Group identified the importance of planning based on known and predictable facts rather than changeable, subjective issues was identified to build into future work. 3.9 Taking account of all of the issues and the developing revenue budget position, the Group decided to recommend that acceleration of the planned work does not go forward but that the following actions be progressed: 1. Develop the policy foundation for future change: a. Mothballing policy including consideration of an “in zone” approach (May 2025 ECLS committee) b. Placing Requests policy – to be reviewed to ensure alignment of purpose 2. Apply updated policy position to opportunities from August 2025 term onwards Page 136
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3 Progress the Learning Estate Strategy as planned and bring report to this Committee in September 2025. 3.10 The Working Group was satisfied that the remit from ECLS had been discharged and that the Group could be brought to a close. However, at the point at which the planned Learning Estate Strategy would benefit from informal political input, it was suggested that a member working group be re- convened. 4. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS (a) Corporate Plan and 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP)) The Learning Estate Strategy supports the priorities in the corporate plan. There are no specific implications from this report. (b) Policy and Legal A number of policy issues have been identified as set out in the report. In some cases this will lead to further legal considerations and these will be addressed in the reports that come to committee on these policy areas. (c) Financial implications There are no direct financial implications from this report (d) Risk Implications There are considerable risks to continuity of education associated with the condition of the learning estate. Maintaining the current estate at an acceptable standard and condition is unaffordable in the context of the council’s budget and requires consideration of a future planned approach. These are risks that will be addressed through the work planned on the Learning Estate Strategy. There is a risk that acceleration could jeopardise the Learning Estate Strategy and that has been a key consideration leading to the position recommended by the Working Group. (e) Staffing Implications There are no direct staff implications from this report. (f) Property The Learning Estate Strategy aims to secure the long term future of the learning estate to support the delivery of education in Moray. However, there are no property implications from the recommendations in this report. (g) Equalities/Socio Economic Impact There are no direct impacts from this report. Considerations will be built into the future planned learning estate work. (h) Climate Change and Biodiversity Impacts There are no direct impacts from this report. Climate and environmental considerations will be built into the future planned learning estate work. Page 137
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(i) Consultations The Chair and Vice Chair of ECLS Committee, Head of Education and Learning Estate Programme Manager have been consulted on the report and feedback incorporated. 5. CONCLUSION 5.1 The Learning Estate Working Group has concluded a series of meetings where members reviewed information on the learning estate and considered this is the context of potential acceleration of the Learning Estate Strategy to bring forward the benefits of the work. The Group has concluded to recommend progress the Strategy as planned with a report to this Committee later this year and to progress policy work that would support this. The Working Group is satisfied that is has discharged the remit from ECLS Committee and can be concluded. Author of Report: Denise Whitworth Background Papers: Ref: SPMAN-9425411-496 Page 138
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APPENDIX 1 SHORT LIFE WORKING GROUP: LEARNING ESTATE TERMS OF REFERENCE/REMIT 1. BACKGROUND 1.1 ECLS Committee 17 September 2024 agreed to establish a Life Working Group to consider the strategic issues surrounding the learning estate and to consider the development of learning estate rationalisation which would report back to the ECLS Committee. 1.2 This follows on from discussion at the 21 August 2024 members workshop and the actions identified in the latest Best Value report and reports by external advisers 2. REMIT AND PURPOSE OF THE GROUP 2.1 The Primary objective of the group is to identify options to accelerate the rationalisation of the learning estate over the next 18 months or so to bring educational and financial advantage. 2.2 Aim is to develop a short term, realistic plan for acceleration of rationalisation of learning estate that is consistent with the long term objectives of the Council’s Learning estate strategy. 3. TERMS OF REFERENCE OF THE GROUP 3.1 To review and consider the data associated with the learning estate to ensure that elected members have a full understanding in order to inform the development of a programme of rationalisation associated with the Learning Estate Strategy. 3.2 Consider the specification of the project to rationalise the learning estate as set out in the Project Mandate. Item 14.* Page 139
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APPENDIX 1 3.3 To consider principles that could be recommended to the council to further guide the implementation of the Learning Estate Strategy in the context of the constrained financial situation and the unaffordability of the capital plan. 3.4 To discuss, consider and identify options for a programme of learning estate rationalisation. 3.5 To consider and plan for medium term work related to the learning estate strategy at the appropriate time, including issues relating to policies and workforce. 4. Outcomes: 4.1 Learning estate rationalisation programme that can be recommended to the council in order to ensure sustainable, quality and affordable schools for the future delivery of education in Moray. 4.2 Member awareness of the longer term work planned on the agreed learning estate strategy in order to inform future planning. 5. Membership of the Working Group: 2 Conservative, 2 SNP, 1 Labour, 2 Independent/non aligned Page 140
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REPORT TO: EDUCATION, CHILDREN’S AND LESIURE SERVICES COMMITTEE ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025 SUBJECT: EDUCATION DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE READINESS UPDATE BY: DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE (EDUCATION, COMMUNITIES AND ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT) 1. REASON FOR REPORT 1.1 To inform the Committee of progress on development of the schools ICT infrastructure to ensure readiness for digital development. 1.2 This report is submitted to Committee in terms of Section III (D) 1 of the Council's Scheme of Administration relating to exercising all the functions of the Council as an Education Authority. 2. RECOMMENDATION 2.1 It is recommended that Committee: (i) consider and note the progress on the procurement and implementation of the Mobile Device Management (MDM) system, and that the expected completion date of the project is now 30 April 2025; (ii) note that the licensing model for the MDM system has changed to a perpetual based model, meaning that the total project cost is contained within the year 1 allocation, with no recurring costs thereafter, other than licences for additional devices; (iii) note the update on the Scottish Wide Area Network (SWAN) programme; and (iv) note that a further progress report will be brought forward to this Committee in September 2025. 3. BACKGROUND 3.1 On 14 December 2022 an Outline Business Case was presented for consideration to this Committee outlining 3 options for the development of digital inclusion in Moray’s schools (para 9 of minute refers). It was agreed to Item 15.* Page 141
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focus on preparing and developing the ICT infrastructure to ensure readiness for digital development. Leading on from this, a further report submitted to this Committee on 19 September 2023 highlighted connectivity issues and specifically the detrimental impact of the increased use of iPads on the performance of the schools’ ICT network (para 11 of minute refers). Mobile Device Management (MDM) Update 3.2 The report highlighted that the implementation of a MDM would contribute towards addressing the wider performance issues by ensuring that the bandwidth available is efficiently used. The procurement of an MDM system was approved by Committee, with indicative costs of between £18,000 to £24,000 in Year 1 followed by recurring costs of between £8,000 to £9,000. 3.3 The procurement process and ensuing commercial discussions highlighted an alternative licensing model to the annual subscription model on which the indicative costs in the previous Committee report were predicated i.e. a perpetual licence model, whereby the cost is incurred up front, with no recurring annual costs. 3.4 Furthermore, the professional services and training elements were more modest than anticipated. Consequently, the total contract value of £24,500 is very close to the year 1 total previously reported, with no further recurring costs for the current device estate. 3.5 There are two phases to the implementation: • Phase 1 – configure iPads to allow Internet access • Phase 2 – configure iPads to allow full management of the iPads and apps The phases were designed to run in parallel, with phase1 offering a quick method to get iPads online with the new system, as this was flagged as a priority. 3.6 Phase 1 commenced at the end of October 2024. Prior to commencing Phase 2, a pilot was undertaken for a small number of schools; Buckie High School, Lossiemouth High School, and Millbank Primary School. The objective of the pilot was to test the fully supervised enrolment, which enables the management of the iPads, as well as the provision and update of the apps. The pilot proved successful, and the enrolment of iPads in the remaining schools began in November 2024. 3.7 The original target for completion of both phases was December 2024 based on metrics from the supplier. However, this has proven to be overly optimistic, with progress sitting at 63% for iPads that are enabled for Internet access, and 15% for iPads that are fully managed. 3.8 The main reason for this is that it has been challenging and time-consuming to get older devices updated to a level where they can access the system. This has been exacerbated by the long-standing capacity issues on the central Internet link for the schools. Page 142
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3.9 Following protracted discussions with the supplier of the schools’ Internet link, Capita Business Services Limited (Capita), it was agreed on 17 January 2025 to increase the capacity of the central Internet link. Early indications are that this has had a positive impact in the schools, albeit there are still performance issues at the start of the school day, and a number of residual connectivity issues to address and ICT continue to work with individual schools on these. 3.10 In terms of the MDM, it is estimated that the project will now be completed by the end of April 2025, which will allow for an assessment of the impact of the MDM system on network performance. It is proposed to provide a further progress report to this Committee in September 2025. Network Connectivity Update 3.11 In terms of improved network connectivity, this will be significantly addressed by the next iteration of the Scottish Wide Area Network (SWAN) framework. Connectivity in schools is currently provided via the initial SWAN framework, which is managed by Capita. The Council’s call-off contract with Capita comes to an end in March 2026, and there has been no scope to increase bandwidth in schools since 31 March 2023. 3.12 The SWAN framework was retendered and awarded to British Telecommunications plc (BT) in April 2023. The Council has entered into a call-off contract with BT, and the transition to the new SWAN framework will be in three phases: • Phase 1 – secondary schools and a small number of corporate sites (identified as part of the Smarter Working project) • Phase 2 – primary schools and Data Centre links • Phase 3 – remainder of corporate sites 3.13 Work on phase 1 commenced in September 2024 and new circuits have been installed in all secondary schools; transition to the BT network is expected to take place late March / early April 2025. Work to analyse fibre availability for Phase 2 is progressing with BT, and this work is expected to be completed by the middle of February 2025. 3.14 Further detailed updates on the progress and impact of the new SWAN framework will be included in the report referred to in para 3.10 above. 3.15 On 16 December 2024 concerns regarding the digital connectivity issues within Moray and the consequent impacts were raised with the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Education. A response from the Deputy First Minister was received on 31 January 2025 in which the concerns raised were recognised and it was noted that additional bandwidth had now been provided. 4. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS (a) Corporate Plan and 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP)) This report relates to the Improvement and Modernisation Programme and also relates to ‘Building a better future for our children and young Page 143
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people in Moray’ as part of the LOIP and the priority to ‘provide a sustainable education service aiming for excellence as part of the Corporate Plan. (b) Policy and Legal None. (c) Financial implications The following table provides a breakdown of the costs for this project: Item Value (£) 1. Professional services for implementation and training 3,000 2. MDM Licences 21,500 Total 24,500 The costs are currently sitting against the ICT Capital Plan. Professional service costs will be met from Transformation budget. Any additional licence costs to schools for any new iPads that are purchased will be covered by schools’ own budgets. However, this will be closely monitored and will still allow for savings compared with the initial indicative pricing over the 5-year term in the ICT Asset Policy. (d) Risk Implications The initial report to Committee highlighted a potential risk in relation to DSM budgets with regard to the purchase of additional iPads. As indicated above, this report was predicated on the basis of a software subscription model. The figures in the table above are based on a perpetual licence model, with no recurring costs for the existing devices. This will mitigate the licence costs arising from the purchase of additional iPads. (e) Staffing Implications There are no staffing implications arising from this report. (f) Property There are no property implications arising from this report. (g) Equalities/Socio Economic Impact For the purposes of this report an Equality and Socio Impact Assessment is not required. (h) Climate Change and Biodiversity Impacts There are no immediate climate change implications directly arising from this report. (i) Consultations Page 144
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The Head of Education, Quality Improvement Manager and Heads of Service have been consulted and their comments incorporated into the report. 5. CONCLUSION 5.1 Work continues on the ICT infrastructure to prepare for and ensure readiness for digital development. As part of this the MDM solution is being deployed through a planned roll out. The core ICT infrastructure is being upgraded through the SWAN 2 programme on a phased basis and residual issues within schools continue to remain the focus for ICT. A further update will be provided to this Committee in September 2025. Author of Report: Graham Cooper, ICT Infrastructure Manager Background Papers: Ref: SPMAN-824703530-494 Page 145
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REPORT TO: EDUCATION, CHILDREN’S AND LEISURE SERVICES COMMITTEE ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025 SUBJECT: INFORMATION REPORT: PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOL CAPACITY AND OCCUPANCY 2024/25 BY: DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE (EDUCATION, COMMUNITIES AND ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT) 1. REASON FOR REPORT 1.1 To inform the Committee of the Primary and Secondary School Planning Capacities and Occupancy for session 2024/25. 1.2 This report is submitted to Committee in terms of Section III (D) (1) of the Council's Scheme of Administration relating to all the functions of the Council as Education Authority. 2. BACKGROUND 2.1 Primary School Functional Capacities have been reported annually to this Committee. Secondary School Functional Capacities have been included since 2018/2019. 2.2 The Working Capacity of the school is the maximum number of pupils that a school can accommodate in any one year taking into account the organisational needs of the school and in particular the age distributions of the pupils. 2.3 Guidance to Local Authorities on the determination of “School Capacity” set out by the Scottish Government is followed when calculating the primary school capacity in order to increase consistency across the country. (Determining Primary School Capacity Guidance 2014) Two measures of primary school capacity are used and are described as Planning Capacity and Working Capacity. Planning Capacity is the physical, theoretical measure of the total number of pupils which can be accommodated in a school, based on the total number of teaching spaces, the size of these spaces and the class size maxima. Working Capacity is the more realistic measure of the total number of pupils which can be accommodated in a school in a particular school session. The Working Capacity is adjusted based on the organisational needs of the school that session. eg. Taking into account pupil roll, composite classes, etc. to calculate Working Capacity. Page 147
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2.4 In previous reports Planning Capacity was referred to as “Physical Capacity” and Working Capacity as “Functional Capacity”. In line with the above guidance since September 2023, the terms Planning Capacity and Working Capacity have been used when reporting school capacities. 2.5 The Working Capacity for each school is calculated on census day in September each year, which in this case was 11 September 2024. 2.6 The Working Capacity and percentage occupancy for session 2024/25 for primary schools are attached in Appendix 1 (schools in alphabetical order) and Appendix 2 (schools according to Associated School Group). Secondary school capacities and percentage occupancy are attached in Appendix 3. 2.7 In Moray the maximum class size in Primary 1 has been set at 25 and in Primary 2 and 3 it has been set at 30 for session 2024/25. The maximum class size in Primaries 4-7 has been set at 33. 3. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS (a) Corporate Plan and 10 Year Plan (Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP)) There is no direct connection to either of these plans from this report. (b) Policy and Legal There is no policy or legal implication arising directly from this report. (c) Financial implications The continuing over provision of pupil spaces has ongoing resource implications for the council. (d) Risk Implications There are no risk implications arising directly from this report. (e) Staffing Implications There are no staffing implications arising directly from this report. (f) Property There are no property implications arising directly from this report. (g) Equalities/Socio Economic Impact There is no requirement for an equality impact or socio economic impact assessment to be carried out. (h) Consultations Primary and Secondary School Head Teachers and Senior Officers in Education, Head of Education, Acting Head of Education, Resources and Communities, Chief Financial Officer, Legal Services Manager, Equal Opportunities Officer, and Caroline O’Connor, Committee Services Officer have been consulted and are in agreement with the contents of this report as regards their respective areas of responsibilities. Page 148
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4. CONCLUSION 4.1 Committee is asked to note the Primary and Secondary School Capacities and Occupancy for Session 2024/25. Author of Report: Lindsey Stanley, Business Support Team Manager Background Papers: Ref: SPMAN-9425411-474 Page 149
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APPENDIX 1 PRIMARY SCHOOL Working Capacity 22/23 Working Capacity 23/24 Working Capacity 24/25 School Roll 22/23 School Roll 23/24 School Roll 24/25 % Occ. Capacity 22/23 % Occ. Capacity 23/24 % Occ. Capacity 24/25 Aberlour 167 165 167 109 105 113 65 64 65 Alves 125 125 125 74 77 80 59 62 64 Anderson's 307 317 317 251 259 270 82 82 85 Applegrove 463 462 458 299 278 269 65 60 85 Bishopmill 424 425 425 386 381 383 91 90 90 Botriphnie 50 50 50 18 18 19 36 36 38 Burghead 165 150 150 133 107 112 81 71 75 Cluny 392 407 375 329 318 329 84 78 88 Craigellachie 75 75 75 49 46 47 65 61 63 Cullen 195 190 185 100 102 93 51 54 50 Dallas 50 50 50 31 30 32 62 60 64 Dyke 106 100 100 81 72 82 76 72 82 East End 287 290 292 163 175 177 57 60 61 Findochty 150 150 150 57 58 55 38 39 37 Glenlivet 47 47 47 14 16 15 30 34 32 Greenwards 434 416 413 328 326 329 76 78 80 Hopeman 279 230 251 153 141 145 55 61 58 Hythehill 386 359 380 288 287 279 75 80 73 Keith 414 428 417 320 325 334 77 76 80 Kinloss 310 310 316 206 221 202 66 71 64 Knockando 75 75 75 40 44 39 53 59 52 Lhanbryde 266 262 243 169 156 139 64 60 57 Linkwood 401 414 415 314 295 271 78 71 65 Logie 75 75 75 42 42 16 56 56 21 Millbank 382 415 416 233 212 203 61 51 49 Milne's 238 259 254 191 196 200 80 76 79 Mortlach 213 176 160 129 125 123 61 71 77 Mosstodloch 287 292 292 177 179 172 62 61 59 Mosstowie 75 75 75 56 56 66 75 75 88 New Elgin 534 498 496 374 364 353 70 73 71 Newmill 75 75 75 63 67 69 84 89 92 Pilmuir 249 238 243 128 124 126 51 52 52 Portessie 166 156 150 117 121 123 70 78 82 Portgordon 125 125 125 46 43 37 37 34 30 Page 151
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Portknockie 150 150 150 66 67 56 44 45 Rothes 194 174 189 82 80 78 42 46 41 Rothiemay 75 75 75 51 55 47 68 73 63 Seafield 470 461 474 362 358 356 77 78 75 St Gerardine 352 350 350 295 300 310 84 86 89 St Peter's 125 133 125 112 102 109 90 77 87 St Sylvester's 208 180 183 113 95 99 54 53 54 St Thomas 75 75 75 46 38 36 61 51 48 Tomintoul 75 75 75 33 29 28 44 39 37 West End 257 272 264 191 185 201 74 68 76 TOTALS 9968 9561 9797 6819 6675 6622 68 68 68 Page 152
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APPENDIX 2 Buckie High School ASG Cluny 392 407 375 329 318 329 84 78 88 Cullen 195 190 185 100 102 93 51 54 50 Findochty 150 150 150 57 58 55 38 37 37 Millbank 382 415 416 233 212 203 61 51 49 Portessie 166 156 150 117 121 123 70 78 82 Portgordon 125 125 125 46 43 37 37 34 30 Portknockie 150 150 150 66 67 56 44 45 37 St Peter's 125 133 125 112 102 109 90 53 87 ASG Total 1685 1726 1676 1060 1023 1005 63 59 60 Elgin Academy ASG Bishopmill 424 425 425 385 381 383 91 90 90 East End 287 290 292 163 175 177 57 60 61 Seafield 470 461 474 362 358 356 77 78 75 St Sylvester's 208 180 183 113 95 99 54 53 54 West End 257 272 264 191 185 201 74 68 76 ASG Total 1646 1628 1638 1214 1194 1216 74 73 74 Elgin High School ASG Greenwards 434 416 413 328 326 329 76 78 80 Linkwood 401 414 415 314 295 271 78 72 65 Mosstowie 75 75 75 56 56 66 75 75 88 New Elgin 534 498 490 374 364 353 70 73 71 ASG Total 1444 1403 1393 1072 1041 1019 74 74 73 Forres Academy ASG Alves 125 125 125 74 77 80 59 62 64 Anderson's 307 317 317 250 259 270 81 82 85 Applegrove 463 462 458 299 278 269 65 60 85 Dallas 50 50 50 31 30 32 62 60 64 Dyke 106 100 100 81 72 82 76 72 82 Kinloss 310 310 316 206 221 202 66 71 64 Logie 75 75 75 38 42 16 51 56 21 Pilmuir 249 238 243 130 124 126 52 52 52 ASG Total 1685 1677 1684 1109 1103 1077 66 66 64 Keith Grammar School ASG Botriphnie 50 50 50 18 18 19 36 36 38 Crossroads 50 ~ ~ 5 ~ ~ 10 ~ ~ Keith 414 428 417 320 325 334 77 76 80 Newmill 75 75 75 65 67 69 87 89 92 Rothiemay 75 75 75 53 55 47 71 73 63 St Thomas 75 75 75 46 38 28 61 51 37 ASG Total 739 703 692 507 503 497 69 72 72 Lossiemouth High School ASG % Occupant Capacity 24/25 % Occupant Capacity 23/24 % Occupant Capacity 22/23 Functional Capacity 22/23 School Roll 22/23 Working Capacity 23/24 School Roll 23/24 Working Capacity 24/25 School Roll 24/25 Page 155
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Burghead 165 150 150 133 107 112 81 71 75 Hopeman 279 230 251 153 141 145 55 61 58 Hythehill 386 359 380 288 287 279 75 80 73 St Gerardine 352 350 350 295 300 310 84 86 89 ASG Total 1182 1089 1131 869 835 846 74 77 75 Milne's High School ASG Lhanbryde 266 262 243 169 156 139 64 58 57 Milne's 238 259 254 191 196 200 80 76 79 Mosstodloch 287 292 292 177 179 172 62 61 59 ASG Total 791 813 789 537 531 511 68 65 65 Speyside High School ASG Aberlour 167 165 167 109 105 113 65 64 65 Craigellachie 75 75 75 49 46 47 65 61 63 Glenlivet 47 47 47 14 16 15 30 34 32 Inveravon ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Knockando 75 75 75 40 44 39 53 59 52 Mortlach 213 176 160 129 125 123 61 71 77 Rothes 194 174 189 82 80 78 42 46 41 Tomintoul 75 75 75 33 29 28 44 39 37 ASG Total 846 787 788 456 445 443 54 56 56 Page 156
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Secondary School Functional Capacity 22/23 Working Capacity 23/24 Working Capacity 24/25 School Roll 22/23 School Roll 23/24 School Roll 24/25 % Occupant Capacity 22/23 % Occupant Capacity 23/24 % Occupant Capacity 24/25 Buckie HS 944 944 944 837 826 811 89 88 86 Elgin Academy 1224 1224 1224 1028 1069 1074 84 87 88 Elgin HS 829 895 895 831 842 855 100 94 96 Forres Academy 1121 1121 1121 851 821 873 76 73 78 Keith GS 553 553 553 377 370 372 68 67 67 Lossiemouth HS 800 800 800 617 658 656 77 82 82 Milne’s HS 625 625 625 445 479 469 71 77 75 Speyside HS 562 562 562 402 395 378 72 70 67 TOTALS 6658 6724 6724 5388 5460 5488 81 81 82 APPENDIX 3 Page 157
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