Primary School Report 2022-23 - Bute and Cowal Area
Argyll and Bute Council · 6 June 2023
Back to Bute and Cowal Area Committee — 6 June 2023 and its agenda
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1 Argyll and Bute Council 2022 - 2023 OUR CHILDREN… THEIR FUTURE… Education Service Primary Area Attainment Report: Bute and Cowal (B&C)
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2 Introduction Within the Bute and Cowal area there are 14 Primary Schools, three on Bute and 11 in Cowal. There is secondary school provision at Dunoon Grammar School and Rothesay Joint Campus. Nursery provision is provided within several of these schools and Gaelic Medium Education is provided at Sandbank Primary School. Primary school rolls in Bute and Cowal vary considerably ranging from 12 pupils (Kilmodan PS) to 270 (Kirn PS). This report provides a range of key information about school provision during the school session August 2022 to June 2023 and reports the National collection of attainment and achievement data from June 2022. Additional and more detailed information about each school can be found in the schools’ Standards and Quality Reports. In addition each school’s Improvement Plan outlines their main priorities for improvement. Most schools have an active website where these documents can be accessed and further links or information can be obtained from the Head Teacher.
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3 Bute and Cowal School Profiles 2022-2023 Cluster Primary Schools 18/19 19/20 20/21 21/22 22/23 % change in Roll over 5 years1 Dunoon Primary School 206 203 191 187 186 -10% Inellan Primary School 32 28 29 41 38 +19% Kilmodan Primary School 16 14 17 19 12 -25% Kirn Primary School 276 274 273 252 270 -2% Lochgoilhead Primary School 23 25 29 23 21 -9% North Bute Primary School 33 36 38 39 26 -21% Rothesay Primary 277 254 249 240 246 -11% Sandbank primary School 63 70 62 56 60 -5% Sandbank Primary School Gaelic Unit 44 46 52 51 45 +2% St Andrew’s Primary 53 50 58 56 71 +33% St Mun’s Primary School 121 99 87 77 68 -44% Strachur Primary 32 27 27 31 27 -15% Strone Primary School 27 20 23 25 21 -22% Tignabruaich Primary School 36 40 45 55 66 +83% Toward Primary School 30 27 21 21 19 -37% Total Roll for cluster 1269 1213 1201 1173 1176 -7.3% * Data for rolls provided at Census each year 1 Please note the % change in Roll over 5 years shows the percentage change in roll figures from 2018/19 to 2022/23 and is not an average. SIMD Profile SIMD is the Scottish Government's standard approach to identify areas of multiple deprivation in Scotland, with SIMD 1 indicating areas of highest deprivation and SIMD 10 indicating the least deprived. It can help improve understanding about the outcomes and circumstances of people living in the most deprived areas in Scotland. It can also allow effective targeting of resources and and funding where the aim is to wholly or partly tackle or take account of area concentrations of multiple deprivation. Table shows number of pupils at each SIMD level in each area of Argyll and Bute. Area 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Unkn own TOTAL Bute and Cowal 186 159 233 108 255 219 32 0 17 20 1229 HALCO 40 83 105 50 130 223 274 352 192 138 33 1620 MAKI 0 84 115 137 128 568 301 0 0 1 4 1338 OLI 18 0 5 166 389 236 408 107 0 0 92 1421 Total 244 326 458 461 902 1246 1015 459 209 139 149 5608 * SIMD data from March 2023
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4 Footwear and Clothing Grant and Free School Meal Information for AREA Clothing and Footwear Grant (CFG) is not shown as a National Average as each authority set their own criteria and therefore cannot be compared accurately. Please note that 2022-20223 data for CFG and Free School Meals (FSM) is to date (end February 2023) and therefore may change as the year progresses. In January 2022, the Scottish Government launched the extension of free school meal universal eligibility to include all children in primary 1-5. The above figures only show those pupils in P6 and P7. In August 2021 the Scottish Government introduced a School clothing grant minimum for all authorities set at £120 for Primary pupils and £150 for Secondary pupils. During session 2020/21 the Scottish Government introduced ‘Bridging’ payments of £130 per pupil in receipt of FSM under the National criteria (this excludes anyone eligible who receive FSM in P1 to P6 who do not qualify financially). These payments are made 4 times per year (Easter, Summer, October and Christmas).Further information can be found at Scottish Child Payment Bridging Payments - mygov.scot. In addition to this anyone eligible for these payments have been paid a FSM payment during the school holiday period. Further information School meals - mygov.scot
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5 Exclusion and Attendance Information for Bute and Cowal Authorised absence includes bereavement, short – term exceptional domestic situations, religious observance, weddings of immediate family. Unauthorised absence includes truancy, unexplained absence and most family holildays during term time. Attendance and absence is outlined in Management Circular 3.03. During 2020/21 there were additional attendance codes added for COVID. These codes can count as attendance, authorised absence or unauthorised absence depending on the circumstance. Please note that attendance data for 2022/23 is up to 28 February and not a complete year. It is therefore subject to change. Please note that exclusion data for 2022/23 is up to 28 February and not a complete year. It is therefore subject to change.
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6 Additional Support needs Table below indicates the numbers of pupils identified as having Additional Support needs across the Bute and Cowal area at each stage of primary schools. Care Experienced Children and Young People A virtual Head Teacher took up post in April 2023. The core purpose of the role of the Virtual Head Teacher is to be relentless in driving improvements in the educational progress and attainment/achievement of an identified group of young people, including Care Experienced, across Argyll and Bute. The core function of the Virtual Head Teacher in terms of planning is to ensure that all children have access to appropriate and timely support achieved by collaborating with relevant professionals to ensure plans are of a high quality, with impact and outcomes followed up. The table below shows the numbers of care experienced children in our primary schools across each area of the Council as of May 2023. Area Previously looked after Looked after at home Looked after away from home. Total HALCO 14 4 11 29 OLI 13 2 5 20 MAKI 21 8 5 34 B&C 21 12 23 56
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7 Attainment of Curriculum for Excellence Levels over time Curriculum levels are national levels to describe different stages of learning and progress. For most children the expectation is: Throughout the Broad General Education, children and young people are assessed and decisions are made by teachers on when a child or young person has achieved learning at a particular level. This means that they have broadly covered the experiences and achieved the expected outcomes for that level. In making this decision, the teacher takes into account the evidence mentioned above, and considers the benchmarks produced by Education Scotland for each level as well as diagnostic feedback from the National Standardised Assessments (NSAs). Attainment of Curriculum for Excellence Levels (ACEL) data is collected annually each June by the Scottish Government. The data collection collects information on pupil performance in four areas, known as organisers. Organisers consist of Numeracy and the three literacy components; Reading, Writing and Listening and Talking. A combined literacy measure is also produced based on the three literacy organisers: reading, writing and listening and talking. The data is collected for pupils at the key stages of P1, P4,P7 and S3. Achievement of Curriculum for Excellence Levels across Bute and Cowal schools: June 2017- June 2022
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8 NOTES: ER English reading, EW English writing, ELT English Listening and talking N Numeracy GR Gaelic reading, GW Gaelic writing, GLT Gaelic Listening and talking. There was no ACEL collection during session 2019/20 due to COVID In English medium by June 2022: In reading, 70.14% of P1 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved early level, this is compared with 75% at authority level and 79% nationally In writing, 58.33% of P1 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved early level, this is compared with 68% at authority level and 77% nationally In talking and listening, 78% of P1 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved early level, this is compared with 81% at authority level and 86% nationally. In numeracy, 70.14% of P1 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved early level, this is compared with 78% at authority level and 84% nationally. In reading, 64.81% of P4 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved first level, this is compared with 71% at authority level and 76% nationally In writing, 56% of P4 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved first level, this is compared with 61% at authority level and 70% nationally In talking and listening, 77.16% of P4 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved first level, this is compared with 78% at authority level and 85% nationally. In numeracy, 66% of P4 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved first level, this is compared with 65% at authority level and 75% nationally.
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9 In reading, 63.41% of P7 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved second level, this is compared with 74% at authority level and 79.33% nationally In writing, 65% of P7 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved second level, this is compared with 67% at authority level and 73% nationally In talking and listening, 80.25% of P7 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved second level, this is compared with 82% at authority level and 86% nationally. In numeracy, 70.37% of P7 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved second level, this is compared with 65% at authority level and 76% nationally. In Gaelic medium By June 2022: In reading, 100% of P1 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved early level, this is compared with 82% at authority level and 83% nationally In writing, 100% of P1 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved early level, this is compared with 79% at authority level and 80% nationally In talking and listening, 100% of P1 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved early level, this is compared with 82% at authority level and 84% nationally. In reading, 70% of P4 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved first level, this is compared with 76% at authority level and 71% nationally In writing, 60% of P4 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved first level, this is compared with 68% at authority level and 63% nationally In talking and listening, 90% of P4 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved first level, this is compared with 76% at authority level and 80% nationally. In reading, 71.43% of P7 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved second level, this is compared with 65% at authority level and 75% nationally In writing, 42.86% of P7 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved second level, this is compared with 43% at authority level and 66% nationally In talking and listening, 85.71% of P7 pupils in the BUTE AND COWAL area achieved second level, this is compared with 68% at authority level and 80% nationally. Argyll and Bute Stretch Aims Session 2022-23 (Authority Level) The Scottish Attainment Challenge (SAC) is about achieving equity in educational outcomes, with a particular focus on closing the poverty-related attainment gap. SAC funding is provided to all of Scotland’s local authorities to help tackle the attainment gap and support education recovery and improve outcomes for children and young people most impacted by poverty. The Scottish Attainment Challenge aims to raise the attainment of children and young people living in deprived areas, in order to close the equity gap. Attainment Advisors within Education Scotland’s regional improvement teams work with authorities to identify core attainment measures and specific aims (Stretch Aims) which, informed by local evidence and data, are identified as local priority areas for improvement. The stretch aims are intended to be both ambitious and achievable within local contexts and targets are specific to individual authorities. Progress towards achieving the current stretch aims will be reported on later in 2023. The Stretch Aims are intended to support recovery from the pandemic and accelerate progress in closing the attainment gap and include:
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10 Achievement of Curriculum for Excellence Levels (literacy P1/4/7 combined and numeracy P1/4/7 combined) The stretch aims for literacy and numeracy identify the percentage of young people who achieve their expected Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) level: An overall attainment target, which includes all young people An attainment target for young people who live in the most deprived areas (SIMD quintile 1) An attainment target for young people who live in the least deprived areas (SIMD quintile 5) A target to reduce the attainment gap between the most and least deprived young people The Argyll & Bute literacy and numeracy tables illustrate the progress from the 2021 ‘post pandemic’ ACEL collection, through the most recent ACEL collection in 2022 (published December 2022), to the Stretch Aim targets in place for 2023. The year-on-year trend in ACEL data has been positive; in the two-year period between 2021 and 2022 the overall proportions of primary school pupils achieving the expected levels in literacy had increased by 3 percentage points, while in numeracy there had been an increase of 4 percentage points. The percentage of Quintile 1 (most deprived) young people who achieved their expected CfE level has increased by 5% in literacy and 10% in numeracy between 2021 and 2022. Scottish Attainment Challenge - Stretch Aim 2023: Literacy In literacy, the attainment gap between young people from the most and least deprived areas of Argyll & Bute was 33 percentage points in 2021, and by 2022 this narrowed to 27 percentage points. Argyll & Bute’s target is to reduce the attainment gap to 21.5 percentage points by 2023. Literacy P1/4/7 combined Dec 22 update Overall SIMD Q1 SIMD Q5 GAP (Q1-Q5) ACEL 2021 59% 48% 81% 33pp 2022 ACEL (published Dec 22) 62% 53% 80% 27pp Stretch Aims 2022/23 68.4% 60% 81.5% 21.5pp Improvement Target (p.p. 2021-2023) 9.4pp 12pp 0.5pp 11.5pp Literacy P1/4/7 combined Overall SIMD Q1 SIMD Q5 Gap (Q1-Q5) ACEL June 2021 59% 48% 81% 33pp Provisional 2022 ACEL data 62.2% 54.8% 79.2% 24.4pp OCT 22 Projections 62.5% 63.7% 77.8% 14.1% Feb 23 Projections* 65.7% 68.6% 77.8% 9.2% Stretch Aim 2022/23 68.4% 60% 81.5% 21.5pp Improvement Target (p.p. 2021-2023) 9.4pp 12pp 0.5pp 11.5pp *RAG’d against 2023 Stretch Aim
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11 In literacy, the attainment gap between young people from the most and least deprived areas of Argyll & Bute was 33 percentage points in 2021, and by 2022 this narrowed to 27 percentage points. Argyll & Bute’s target is to reduce the attainment gap to 21.5 percentage points by 2023. Scottish Attainment Challenge - Stretch Aims 2023: Numeracy In numeracy, the attainment gap between young people from the most and least deprived areas of Argyll & Bute was 29 percentage points in 2021, and by 2022 this narrowed to 18 percentage points. Argyll & Bute’s target is to reduce the attainment gap to 13.5 percentage points by 2023. Numeracy P1/4/7 combined Dec 22 update Overall SIMD Q1 SIMD Q5 GAP (Q1-Q5) ACEL 2021 69% 58% 87% 29pp 2022 ACEL (published Dec 22) 73% 68% 86% 18pp Stretch Aims 2022/23 75% 74% 87.5% 13.5pp Improvement Target (p.p. 2021-2023) 6pp 16pp 0.5pp 15.5pp Numeracy P1/4/7 Overall SIMD Q1 SIMD Q5 GAP (Q1-Q5) Current Level (ACEL June 2021) 69% 58% 87% 29pp Provisional 2022 ACEL data 72% 69% 83.5% 14.4% OCT 22 Projections 69% 69.6% 84.2% 14.6% Feb 23 Projections* 71% 72% 83.9% 11.9% Stretch Aim 2022/23 75% 74% 87.5% 13.5pp Improvement Target (p.p. 2021-2023) 6pp 16pp 0.5pp 15.5pp *RAG’d against 2023 Stretch Aim The table below outlines the National expectations of when most children and young people may achieve each level: CfE Level Stage
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12 Early The final two years of early learning and childcare before a child goes to school and P1, or later for some. First To the end of P4, but earlier or later for some. Second To the end of P7, but earlier or later for some. Third and fourth S1-S3, but earlier or later for some. Further information: National Improvement Framework for Scottish Education – https://www.gov.scot/policies/schools/national-improvement-framework/ Initiatives to raise attainment and achievement In response to data and evidence gathered in the areas of literacy, numeracy and health and wellbeing, a range of work has been undertaken in order to drive forward improvement and raise attainment and achievement across the authority.
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13 Literacy 8 schools have undertaken training in using a Quality Improvement approach to support writing attainment at 1st level. The training was originally offered by CYPIC and is now being delivered within the authority, supported by allied health professionals. Data shows that attainment at 1st level within the first set of schools to undertake the training has increased from an average of 56.2% in 2022 to an average of 72.8% based on Feb 23 predictions. 4 schools are undertaking training provided by Talk for Writing to support the development of sound pedagogical approaches to writing across their settings. The schools have set clear stretch aims for each class, against which attainment will be evaluated as implementation of the approach continues. Bespoke support has been offered to schools, covering aspects of literacy such as approaches to reading comprehension, writing pedagogy, emerging literacy and 1 to 1 reading interventions. Numeracy Schools within BUTE AND COWAL and Mull clusters have worked with Dr Lio Moscardini to develop cognitively guided instruction, an approach to problem solving within schools. As of March 2023, 73.3% of staff were confident that CGI was having or would have a positive effect on pupils, 13.3% were extremely confident. Evidence from Head Teachers and practitioners shows that this approach has had a particular impact on lower ability pupils: by giving pupils different opportunities to approach their work, practitioners report that it has levelled the playing field in classrooms. Authority-wide, numeracy based CLPL has been delivered to a total of 78 practitioners representing all cluster areas, focusing primarily on the development of SEAL (stages of early arithmetical learning) to support foundation skills in mathematical thinking. Support has also been offered to ASN departments in 2 secondary schools. Numeracy ACEL attainment data has risen from 69% across P1,4 & 7 in 2021 to a projected 70.95% as of Feb 23. Wellbeing , Rights and Relationships As part of COVID renewal plans, schools have had a continued focus on positive relationships focussing and the health and well-being of learners. The Exchange are now providing a counselling service for pupils aged 10+ within schools, again, this is helping to support the wellbeing needs of pupils. A focus on play pedagogy and outdoor learning alongside developments in the health and wellbeing curriculum have also been an important focus within school improvement plans to help support wellbeing. As it is anticipated that the United Nations Rights of the Child will become law later this year, a UNCRC Conference for Head Teachers was held in November 2022. The Rights Respecting Schools Award continues to support schools in developing awareness of children’s rights across our school communities as well as imbed a rights based approach within the school environment. In the past year, 16 schools have progressed their Rights Respecting Schools Journey. With 45 Primary schools on their accreditation journey to achieve with UNICEF, 31 have achieved Bronze, 10 Silver, 4 Gold and a further 11 have registered to date. A further 4 Silver accreditation visits are due to take place between now and the end of term. Support sessions for registered schools (not yet accredited) and information session for schools yet to register are also being delivered. Equality and diversity has been a key focus for professional learning for staff. The career long professional learning sway has provided a range of opportunities for staff to develop their professional knowledge and reflect on the practice within this area. As part of the Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland) Act 2021, schools have engaged in the My Tribe project which has
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14 made period products available to pupils and staff across all our schools. The launch of My Tribe has been supported by two launch events and online webinars. The webinar was recorded and shared with practitioners to ensure that information was accessible post this series of support events. Schools have enjoyed welcoming partners back into school to support the delivery of key aspects of the curriculum. The health and wellbeing drama productions that are delivered in partnership with our colleagues in NHS returned to face to face delivery. A total of 54 primary schools attended the Smoke Free Me production that was aimed at P6/P7 pupils. The performance was updated to include information and scenarios around vaping. Head Teachers have received information with regards to key messages that have been concluded from the March 2022 PIE Census. With the updated national data released in November, we were also able to draw comparisons against the national data. Developments in this area have been enhanced with professional learning from Connect who support the partnership between parents/carers, parent councils and schools. Schools and parent councils are responding to the needs of their community in how they are structuring events and meetings with many Parent Council meetings continuing to take place virtually, increasing accessibility and reducing travel requirements. The partnership working is also helping school communities respond to financial and environmental pressures with examples of good practice including Christmas jumper/dress swaps. School Contacts
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15 School Head Teacher Telephone No Dunoon Brenda Reid 01369 704159 Innellan Lisa Marle 01369 830560 Kilmodan Selina Portwine 01369 820280 Kirn Kirsteen MacDonald 01369 702509 Lochgoilhead Louise Blair 01301 703338 North Bute Marie Law from 26th May 2023 01700 503728 Rothesay Joint Campus Louise Nicol 01700 503227 Sandbank Gaelic Medium Norman MacDonald (Acting) 01369 706350 Sandbank Norman MacDonald (Acting) 01369 706350 St Andrew’s Louise Nicol (Temporary) 01700 503123 St Mun’s Lorraine Fisher (Acting) 01369 703643 Strachur Marion Boyd 01369 860293 Strone Dan Semple(Leadership of school) 01369 840242 Tighnabruaich Megan Stirling 01700 811413 Toward Lisa Marle 01369 870259
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