Care Experienced Children and Young People 2024-25 Academic Year Report
Argyll and Bute Council · 11 December 2025
Back to Community Services Committee — 11 December 2025 and its agenda
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ARGYLL AND BUTE COUNCIL COMMUNITY SERVICES COMMITTEE EDUCATION 11 DECEMBER 2025 CARE EXPERIENCED CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE 2024-25 ACADEMIC YEAR REPORT 1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1.1 The main purpose of this report is to provide the Community Services Committee with an update on actions being taken within the Education Service to support Care Experienced Children and Young People to achieve the best possible educational outcomes. 1.2 The report also details the expenditure against the grant allocated by Scottish Government to Argyll and Bute for session 2024 - 25 from the Scottish Attainment Challenge Care Experienced Children and Young People Fund. 1.3 Recommendations It is recommended that Community Services Committee: a) Continues to endorse the work undertaken by Argyll and Bute Education Services as part of the Corporate Parenting Board to improve the educational attainment and life chances of Care Experienced Children and Young People. b) Notes that the spending plan for the grant allocated by Scottish Government to Argyll and Bute for session 2024- 25 from the Scottish Attainment Challenge Care Experienced Children and Young People Fund has been produced and monitored by the Education Lead for Care Experienced Children and Young People, in consultation with key partners and specifically the Social Work Lead for Care Experience, the Chief Education Officer and Chief Social Worker. c) Note the significant progress made in reducing the attainment gap between CE and all learners. d) Note the continued progress made across key indicators including sustained reduction in exclusions, increased staff awareness and confidence in supporting our CE learners and partnership working to drive positive change. e) Agree the attainment funding for Care Experienced Children and Young People will support the continued input from the Care Experienced Education Team (Virtual Head Teacher and Health and Wellbeing Liaison Officers).
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f) Agree that the Chief Education Officer continues to provide updates on the improved outcomes for Care Experienced Children and Young People to the Corporate Parenting Board and /Community Services Committee.
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ARGYLL AND BUTE COUNCIL COMMUNITY SERVICES COMMITTEE EDUCATION 11 DECEMBER 2025 CARE EXPERIENCED CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE 2024-25 ACADEMIC YEAR REPORT 2.0 INTRODUCTION 2.1 Corporate Parenting is the responsibility that all local authority bodies in Scotland have for children and young people who are Care experienced under the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 and this cohort are known as Care Experienced Children and Young People (CECYP). 2.2 The establishment of Argyll and Bute’s Corporate Parenting Board was central to the Council response to improving outcomes for Care Experienced Children and Young People and care leavers. It was also a key element of the Getting it Right for our Care experienced Children’s Improvement Plan alongside our Education Strategic Plan 2024 - 2026. 2.3 As employees of the local authority, education staff are Corporate Parents and have a clearly defined role to play alongside the other 23 Corporate Parents defined in Schedule 4 of the Act. Staff working in education require to be aware of the unique role which they play in ensuring that care experienced children and young people experience a positive learning environment, strong, nurturing relationships and are supported to achieve positive destinations as they move into adulthood. Senior leaders require to ensure support and ongoing professional learning opportunities for education staff to allow them to fulfil this crucial role. 2.4 During session 2024/25 we have continued to build on the significant developments during the previous sessions to further support the educational experiences and outcomes for our children and young people in Argyll and Bute. The Care Experience Education Team (CEET) comprises of a Virtual Head Teacher (VHT) and four Health and Wellbeing Family Liaison Officers. 3.0 RECOMMENDATIONS It is recommended that Community Services Committee: a) Continues to endorse the work undertaken by Argyll and Bute Education Services as part of the Corporate Parenting Board to improve the educational attainment and life chances of Care Experienced Children and Young People.
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b) Notes that the spending plan for the grant allocated by Scottish Government to Argyll and Bute for session 2024/25 from the Scottish Attainment Challenge Care Experienced Children and Young People Fund has been produced and monitored by the Education Lead for Care Experienced Children and Young People, in consultation with key partners and specifically the Social Work Lead for Care Experience, the Chief Education Officer and Chief Social Worker. c) Note the significant progress made in reducing the attainment gap between CE and all learners. d) Note the continued progress made across key indicators including sustained reduction in exclusions, increased staff awareness and confidence in supporting our CE learners and partnership working to drive positive change. e) Agree the attainment funding for Care Experienced Children and Young People will support the continued input from the Care Experienced Education Team (Virtual Head Teacher and Health and Wellbeing Liaison Officers). f) Agree that the Chief Education Officer continues to provide updates on the improved outcomes for Care Experienced Children and Young People to the Corporate Parenting Board and Business Continuity Committee/Community Services Committee. 4.0 DETAIL 4.1 In 2018, as part of the National Improvement Framework for Scottish Education and Attainment Scotland Fund (a targeted initiative focused on supporting young people affected by poverty and deprivation across Scotland), specific funding was directed towards supporting Care Experienced Children and Young People (CECYP). The term 'care experienced' is now a widely used term within the sector to describe any person who has experience of being in care, regardless of their placement length or type, or their age; this term is used (as opposed to the statutory term ‘Looked After Children') to ensure that our practice is inclusive and provides for all groups of young people who experience care. Our work aligns to ‘The Promise’ – a cross party commitment to ensure that Scotland’s children grow up loved, safe and respected (The Promise Scotland | Transforming how Scotland cares for children, families, and care-experienced adults). 4.2 As at September 2025, we have 283 Care Experienced pupils in our education settings (2-18). 145 are “Currently Looked After”. Of those, 107 are looked after by Argyll and Bute and 38 children have been placed in Argyll and Bute from other Authorities. The additional 138 Care Experienced children and young people in our settings have a status of “Previously Looked After”. These figures refer to pupils in Early Years, Primary, Special and Secondary settings. Argyll and Bute Education Service also connects to education
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providers in relation to any young person placed in other authorities through residential, kinship or foster placements. 4.3 Argyll and Bute Council was awarded a specific grant of up to £131,075 payable over the academic year 2024/25. As previously agreed with the Scottish Government, the Council has used earmarked reserves to supplement the 2024/25 specific grant. Below is a breakdown of the spend for session 2024/25: ITEM AMOUNT Staffing £146,903 Support Activities/Resources £5196 Travel and Subsistence £1998 Total expenditure £154,097 Funded by: 2024/25 Scottish Government specific grant £131,075 Earmarked Reserves £21,732 Funded from Other Grants £1290 Total funding £154,097 4.4 Data on attendance, progress and achievement and exclusions has been provided throughout the last session to the Corporate Parenting Board. The Community Services Committee summary outline is found below: 4.4.1 EXCLUSIONS Argyll and Bute continue to prioritise inclusion for our CECYP and align to upholding the rights of children and ending exclusions. This commitment is a key area of focus in The Promise. In line with the draft Scottish Government ‘Improving Educational Outcomes for CECYP’ framework, we used exclusion data to set a 2024 – 25 baseline target which was to have less than 2 exclusions across the academic year. Due to a range of strategic and operational approaches, we are delighted to have exceeded our target. For the second academic year in a row, zero CECYP were excluded from our settings. Senior Leader commitment to Keeping the Promise has ensured that our settings have high aspirations for our CECYP and are supported to meet the needs of each CECYP.
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The Virtual School has seen an increase in early intervention calls for support. This has allowed us to work in partnership with young people, their parents/carers, Corporate Parents and wider agencies to offer bespoke supports. These have included Firefighter Experience Days, work experience, enhanced nurture provision and HWBFLO input. 4.4.2 ATTENDANCE Subject to census checks, CECYP Primary attendance was 92.5% compared to 93.7% of all primary children. CECYP secondary attendance was 80.9% compared to 87.6% of all secondary children. Overall attendance of our CECYP was 86.2% compared to an authority overall figure of 90.9%. The difference between our CE and all pupil attendance is similar to last year. Argyll and Bute have been trialling the draft Scottish Government ‘Improving Educational Outcomes for CECYP’ framework. Using baseline attendance data from session 2020/21 to date, we set a target of 86.4% which matched the national aspiration for a 0.66% increase in the attendance of CECYP. Based on the 2023-24 overall attendance figure of 85.8%, our target was 86.4%. Our actual overall attendance was 86.2%. The Education Outcomes for Looked After Children 2023-24 statistics notes that attendance continues to be an area of focus and notes a national gap between looked atter learners and all pupils has increased in both primary and secondary with an overall gap of 6.6%. For comparison our authority gap for the same period was 4.8% The Education Outcomes for Looked After Children 2023-24 show an increase attendance gap compared to 2022-23 for secondary pupils as 9.3%. In 2023 - 24, the gap between our authority young people cared for at home and away compared to all pupils was 7.6%. In primary, the national gap was 3.3% and our authority comparative figure was 1.3%. 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 2020/21 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25 CECYP Exclusion Data No of CECYP in session (incl ELC) No of CECYP Excluded
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Our 2024 – 25 secondary attendance date for CECYP shows a 0.1% increase for all CECYP on the previous year and primary showing an increase of 1%, shown in the charts below. PRIMARY SECONDARY Please note these figures are subject to change due to the Attendance, Absence and Exclusions census. Attendance of our CECYP remains a priority, particularly for those children cared for at home. As an authority, Argyll and Bute are continually working to support our learners attend school. The Addressing Non-Attencace (ANA) programme continues to focus on improving pupil attendance and engagement. To date, 70% of secondary schools have engaged with this training. Across the whole authority for all young people, the overall rate of persistent absence has fallen 4 percentage points against 2023 -24. A new data dashboard and CECYP database application are enhancing attendance data scrutiny, enabling deeper tracking and real-time monitoring. 4.4.3 PROGRESS AND ACHIEVEMENT DATA 2024-25 CECYP, P1 – S3, BROAD GENERAL EDUCATION Progress and Achievement data is uplifted at three points across the school year. Care Experience Data is then extracted and used in focused attainment meets between the Virtual School and Designated Manager for CECYP in each education setting. By combining cohorts, we can compare Care Experienced (CE) and non- Care Experienced pupils at an authority level. The table below evidences the four-year positive progress for our CE learners in P1, 4, 7 and S3. This is a positive picture with attainment for CE pupils showing an increase in every area in the 2024 – 25 session, and, illustrating a closing of the gap between
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CE and non-CE pupils in every area with CE pupils, who themselves have also improved. For information: to achieve the level in Literacy 3 components must be achieved at that level – listening and talking/reading/writing. We continue to identify and address themes, ensuring required interventions are specific and personalised to individual children and young people. This includes attendance, alternative to exclusion and transition supports, which all impact on attainment. SCOTTISH QUALIFICATION AUTHORITY ATTAINMENT DATA 2024- 25 ALL COURSES Please note this attainment data is prior to the appeals process and to full attainment data being published by Insight. Attainment data for CECYP was shared within the SQA Examination Results paper, presented to Committee on 28th August 2025 in Section 4.13. We include these again in this CECYP focused paper. The table below provides an overview of presentations for our CEYP by stage: Number of Presentations Stage Number of Pupils National 2 National 3 National 4 National 5 Higher Grand Total S3 2 5 1 6 S4 29 1 28 48 40 1 118 S5 15 1 6 22 13 42 S6 9 3 4 11 18 Totals 55 1 34 58 66 25 184
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The table below shows the number of CEYP pupils who presented for National Qualifications from each CE type: Care Experience Type Number of Pupils Number of Awards Awards per Pupils Away 28 88 3.1 Home 3 9 3.0 Previously 24 87 3.6 Grand Total 55 184 3.3 • In 2025 there were 93 completed awards from National 2 to National 4. These 93 awards came from 36 different pupils, meaning that on average each CEYP who sat one of these awards completed 2.6 awards. • In 2025, there were 91 presentations at the graded National 5 and Higher courses. These presentations came from 33 different pupils, meaning that on average each CEYP who sat one of these awards completed 2.8 awards. Pass rates for the National 5 and Higher awards are provided in the table below: Presentation Type A-C Pass Rate D Awards No Award A-D Pass Rate National 5 62.1% 19.7% 18.2% 81.8% Higher 72.0% 4.0% 24.0% 76.0% The table below provides the underlying numbers of pupils and presentations as well as a comparison of pass rates against 2024 data: National 5 Year Number of Pupils Number of Presentations Presentations per Pupil A-C Pass Rate A-D Pass Rate 2025 27 66 2.44 62.10% 81.80% 2024 29 70 2.41 45.70% 74.30% Change: 0.03 16.40% 7.50% Higher Year Number of Pupils Number of Presentations Presentations per Pupil A-C Pass Rate A-D Pass Rate 2025 12 25 2.08 72.00% 76.00% 2024 12 24 2.00 33.30% 70.80% Change: 0.08 38.70% 5.20% • The number of pupils presenting for National 5 and Higher awards has remained similar across the two-year period. The presentation per pupil rate has increased very slightly across both measures. • The A-C pass rate at National 5 has increased by 16.4% points against 2024. This means in 2025, 27 pupils achieved 41 A-C awards compared to 29 pupils achieving 32 awards in 2024. As such, the National 5 awards per pupil increased from 1.1 in 2024 to 1.5 in 2025.
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• The A-C pass rate at Higher has increased by 38.7% points against 2024. This means in 2025, 12 pupils achieved 18 A-C awards compared to 12 pupils achieving 8 A-C awards in 2024. As such, the Higher awards per pupil increased from 0.66 in 2024 to 1.50 in 2025. • The A-D pass rate at National 5 has increased by 7.5% points, whilst an increase of 5.2% points also occurred at Higher level. ACHIEVEMENT IN LITERACY / NUMERACY - NATIONAL COMPARISON The tables below evidence a national comparison of ‘looked after’ learners in S5 in relation to literacy and numeracy at SCQF levels 4 and 5, cumulative attainment by the end of S5 based on original S4 roll. They present a positive picture for most years, rather than a singular year. Caution should be given due to the extremely small cohort numbers in the authority.
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The tables below show a national comparison of ‘looked after’ school leavers in S5 in relation to achievement of SCQF Level 6 (Higher) and Level 7 (Advanced Higher) Awards. Level 6 shows an improvement against 2023 leavers cohort and is now ahead of the national figure for all looked after leavers.
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Level 7 shows a small decline but remains ahead of the national figure for the fifth year in a row. Across our settings, we aim to support each CECYP to achieve their potential and access learning in a way which works for them. Some of our young people experience significant transitions during their senior phases and we support them to celebrate success, however that looks for them. Some examples of learner success: • A learner facing significant challenges in their home environment demonstrated consistent engagement with their education, supported by a tailored package of pastoral and academic interventions. Daily attendance was sustained through access to safe spaces, structured routines, and therapeutic support provided by the school’s Pupil Support and Guidance teams. These measures were instrumental in supporting both wellbeing and attainment. The transition from temporary care arrangements into the stability of the school setting was managed with sensitivity and care. The learner’s academic outcomes and continued progress reflect the impact of effective multi-agency support and their own resilience in overcoming adversity. • Learner who experienced significant transitions was supported to regain confidence and build positive relationships in school – with staff and friends. This resulted in increased attendance, in turn, leading to increased attainment, self-belief and sense of belonging. The young person has gone on to a positive destination and is able to share her views confidently. • Young person who could not access school due to a situation change was supported to engage with learning in way that worked for them. A bespoke timetable and a dedicated hand-picked staff team worked alongside the young person to ensure they achieved the necessary qualifications to enter further education. • Guidance Team connected with Virtual School to upskill their knowledge in how best to support a young person in their care. Their commitment resulted in the young person remaining in school for longer. Whilst this
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did not lead to increased national qualifications, the young person gained a wide range of holistic skills and increased their resilience. This additional time in education helped them remain safe, included and enter the world of work. • Young person left authority school mid-way through final study year. School were able to maintain a connection, leading to achievement of a national qualification, robust transition and continued sense of belonging. They are now supported by their new authority and have qualifications to build on. • Many of our young people continue their journey in education. We are very proud of all our CECYP and are delighted to have a pupil from one of our school’s Senior Pupil Leadership Team’s join us today. This pupil was appointed as Depute Head Girl following a rigorous and competitive interview process. Pupil Voice on how the Education Service has supported their learning journey. 4.5 The profile of our CECYP continues to be actively promoted and elevated across the Education Service and wider colleagues in the authority. This includes the voice of this cohort being reflected in our refreshed Education Service vision ‘Our Children, Their Future – Thriving Together.’ Our Care Experience Education Team continue to deliver Keeping the Promise training and the VHT participates in the Keeping the Promise Awards Steering Group, strengthening strategic leadership for care experienced learners. We continue to deliver ‘Raising Awareness of our CECYP’ to partners and now have an established relationship with the University of the Highlands and Islands to provide this training as part of their Initial Teacher Education Programme. Care Experience information has been integrated into mandatory Child Protection training. The CEET continues to respond to the increased requests from settings for support and training, reflecting the growing awareness and commitment to CECYP. 4.6 The Virtual School continues to build and strengthen partnership work, particularly with Health and Social Work. This helps to ensure that our young people and their families feel heard and supported, particularly during time of challenge. Wider links with Skills Development Scotland, Developing the Young Workforce and MCR Pathways are helping to ensure our CECYP are accessing bespoke supports throughout their learning journey. 63 CECYP are supported by the mentoring programme with pupil voice evidencing the positive impacts of this relational support. This programme is expanding across our secondary schools and the number of CECYP receiving support will increase. The Virtual School were supported via Argyll Community Housing Association (ACHA) and the Communities Partnership Team to create ‘Always Belong’ welcome bags. CECYP voice directed this project and we now have bags
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across the authority to be shared as appropriate with our young people ages 2 – 18. Feedback on this to date has been wholly positive. The Virtual Head Teacher represents the Education Service/Care Experience Education Team by reporting and participating in working groups directly related to CECYP or the services around them. This includes the Corporate Parenting Board, Regional Promise Group, Kinship Panel, and CELCIS Virtual Head Teacher Network. 4.7 The Care Experienced Education Team consists of the VHT and four Health and Wellbeing Family Liaison Officers (HWBFLO). The HWBFLO work operationally across the authority on a referral basis, working directly with our CECYP. The team continually show their commitment and dedication to Keeping the Promise and are highly adaptive whilst working towards defined outcomes. During this academic year over 33 CECYP have benefited from the Care Experienced Education Team input. Our referral process has been refreshed to ensure we are supporting young people at the right time, for the appropriate length of time. Increased awareness of the positive impact of the HWBFLO’s has led to an increase in referrals. We work closely with both the Education and NHS Wellbeing Teams, aiming to ensure each young person receives bespoke support. Intervention themes include transition support, wellbeing and whole family support, emotional regulation, positive role modelling and connection to school community. The positive impact of this service is evidenced through increased school attendance, greater sense of inclusion and increased self-esteem amongst wider impacts. Recognising the need for consistency around transitions, particularly in times of crisis, we have reprioritised resourcing to facilitate greater support in this area across the 2025 – 26 academic year. 4.8 Feedback from our young people, their parents/carers, education colleagues, and partnerships continues to shape how the CEET executes their support. Our CECYP voice tells us the importance of positive relationships and being able to access a range of supports in a way which works for them. Learners tell us they feel heard and supported by their HWBFLO and describe the impacts on learning and social connections. Families reflect on feeling heard and supported, particularly during periods of challenge. o “I feel good, good, good!” P3 pupil o “I get it, you are just trying to help me.” S2 pupil o “I cannot believe I just done that! Thanks!” S4 pupil o “Supporting X with her learning has made a massive difference. We can see her confidence grow and she is now happy about going to school.” Carer. Education colleagues surveyed at the end of the 2024 – 25 academic year identified the following Virtual School impacts:
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A survey shared with partner agencies evidenced an increased range of partnership working to support young people and their families, including family support, cross-border working and bespoke approaches for individual young people. The survey also evidenced an increased awareness of the role of the Virtual School across a range of partners. Argyll and Bute Education Service have demonstrated their continued commitment to Keeping the Promise through creation and continued support of the Virtual School. The Virtual School continues to evolve and adapt to the needs of our young people, both operationally and strategically. 5.0 CONCLUSION 5.1 The Education Service continues to maintain momentum and make significant improvements for our Care Experienced Children and Young People across Argyll and Bute in line with our Corporate Parenting Board and Education Service targets. Our commitment to ensuring all our CECYP have what they need to thrive is unwavering. We will continue to address raising attainment and closing the gap for Care Experienced Children and Young People in session 2025/26.
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6.0 IMPLICATIONS 6.1 Policy – None 6.2 Financial – Appropriate allocation of the Care Experienced Children and Young People Fund Grant 6.3 Legal – The statutory duties of the Children (Scotland) Act 2020 and all previous relevant acts will be met. 6.4 HR – None 6.5 Customer Services – Improvements in service to meet individual needs are being sought 6.6 Risk – Ongoing scrutiny and audit will provide better outcomes for Care Experience Children and Young People. Sustainability and future-planning will mitigate future risk. 6.7 Climate Change – None 6.8 Fairer Scotland Duty: Providing equity and inclusion to meet the needs of all young people. 6.9 Equalities - protected characteristics – All legislative requirements will be met 6.10 Consumer Duty – None 6.11 Islands – No differentiated impact. 6.12 Children’s Rights and Wellbeing – This report links to Article 29 (goals of education). Douglas Hendry - Executive Director with responsibility for Education Councillor Kieron Green - Policy Lead for Education Jen Crocket, Head of Education: Lifelong Learning and Support (Chief Education Officer) For further information contact: Jen Crocket, Chief Education Officer/ Head of Education- Wellbeing, Inclusion and Achievement jennifer.crocket@argyll-bute.gov.uk