4 - School Attainment Results 2023 - Cabinet - 4 June 2024
North Ayrshire Council · 4 June 2024
Back to Cabinet — 4 June 2024 and its agenda
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NORTH AYRSHIRE COUNCIL 4 June 2024 Cabinet (Education) Title: School Attainment Results 2023 Purpose: To update Cabinet on: (i) Curriculum for Excellence attainment levels in literacy and numeracy for 2022-23; and (ii) the overall performance of the 2022-23 North Ayrshire Council school leavers as highlighted in the INSIGHT benchmarking tool. Recommendation: That Cabinet: a) Notes the content of the report, including the progress being made by learners, specifically in literacy and numeracy; b) Notes the achievements of school leavers in SQA examinations in 2023; and c) Notes the measures being taken to make further improvements to attainment and achievement levels across all schools. 1. Executive Summary 1.1 North Ayrshire Council has high aspirations for all and is committed to securing improved educational outcomes for all children and young people. Two of the current five strategic priorities for the Education Directorate are directly linked to raising attainment: • Improvement in attainment, particularly in literacy and numeracy • Closing the attainment gap between the most and least disadvantaged children and young people This report provides an update on ACEL data in 2022-23 and Insight School Leavers data published in February 2024 for 2022-23. 1.2 Highlights include: North Ayrshire Council ‘reducing the poverty-related attainment gap’ data for Literacy has improved by 4 % points between 2021/22 and 2022/23 and for Numeracy by 2 % points. 1.3 North Ayrshire school leavers recorded their highest ever positive destination figure in the last 5 years with 96.5% achieving an initial positive destination. 1.4 At 94.9%, the percentage of S4 leavers achieving Level 3 Numeracy is the highest in the last 5 years
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1.5 The lowest 20% of S4 school leavers have achieved the highest amount of tariff points in the last 5 years and is above the Virtual Comparator. 1.6 NAC School leavers from SIMD 3 and 4 are exceeding the performance of school leavers from similar backgrounds nationally. 2. Background 2.1 The current cost of living crisis and other post-covid factors may have impacted young people’s decisions of when to leave school and their subsequent destinations and may continue to do so for a number of years. 2.2 All key benchmarking data is now available for schools and local authorities as they move into the improvement planning cycle and look ahead to session 2024-25. Improvement plans for next session will take full account of the messages found from analysing and reflecting upon ACEL and Insight data, with a view to seeking improvements in outcomes for children and young people annually until they leave school. 2.3 Attainment in Broad General Education – Attainment of Curriculum for Excellence Level (ACEL) in P1, P4, P7 and S3 (These highlights are supported by charts in Appendices….) 2.3.1 In 2016, the Scottish Government began to collect statistics on the Curriculum for Excellence level achieved in Literacy (Listening and Talking, Reading, Writing) and Numeracy by learners in the Broad General Education stages P1, P4, P7 and S3. This is based on teacher judgement about each pupil’s achievement of expected level made at the end of June each session. This data collection by the Scottish Government was suspended in 2020 for all schools due to the impact of the pandemic. Data collection was resumed in 2021 for stages P1, P4 and P7 though not S3. In 2022 all stages were once again collected. Schools submit data for the following learner stages: • Primary 1 • Primary 4 • Primary 7 • Secondary 3 The submitted school level data is aggregated by the Scottish Government to produce a Local Authority aggregate and it is this dataset that forms the basis for this report. 2.3.2 For the purposes of this paper, *Primary data combines Primary 1, 4 and 7 CfE attainment. Expected levels, relevant to stage: - CfE Level Stage Description
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Early P1 The final two years of early learning and childcare before a child goes to school and P1, or later for some. First P4 To the end of P4, but earlier or later for some. Second P7 To the end of P7, but earlier or later for some. Third/Fourth S3 To the end of S3, but earlier or later for some. *Learners who have been entered as ‘Not Assessed’ are not included in the percentage calculations. Pupils recorded as ‘Pupils following Individual Milestones’ are included in the percentage calculations. 2.3.3 Achievement of a level of CfE levels is judged based on a holistic view of a child’s achievements by their teacher across a range of evidence throughout their journey through the level. As part of a school’s quality assurance process, teacher judgement levels are moderated internally and, in some cases, externally across school clusters, for example. 2.3.4 Raising attainment is an ongoing priority for the Education Directorate with a number of initiatives already in place to support schools. During session 2022/23, schools were supported in their recovery journey through the offer of professional learning in key areas to support raising attainment in literacy and numeracy. Improvement projects included: • Launch of new NAC Learning & Teaching policy to all establishments • Delivery of training & CLPL by our professional Learning Academy to class teachers and classroom assistants to support high quality learning & teaching in listening & talking, reading, writing and numeracy. • Implementation of the ELC Outdoor Learning Strategy across NAC • Working in partnership across the local authority, SWEIC and national networks to support sharing of highly effective practice that reduces the poverty related attainment gap. 2.3.5 Developing pedagogy was another area of focus to develop the robustness of data and teacher professional judgement (TPJ). Specific input was provided on: • Extension of play pedagogy from early years into Primary 1 and 2, through a pilot programme in identified schools. • Refresh & facilitation of a new Head Teacher/Head of Centre induction/ mentoring programme • Enhancement of our probationer mentor support programme to include coaching approaches to the leadership of probationers • Evaluation and update of the PRD process and paperwork 2.3.6 Summary of results Appendix 5 presents the detailed attainment of each stage in each of the Literacy components and in Numeracy, for the past 5 years minus 2020 which was not recorded. 2.3.7 Primary Literacy • In 2022/23, 68.45% of children in North Ayrshire Council achieved the appropriate attainment level in Literacy. • North Ayrshire Council performance has improved by 1.16 percentage points between 2021/22 and 2022/23. • At national level, 72.7% of children achieved the appropriate level of Literacy, with an increase of 2.2 percentage since points2021/22.
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• North Ayrshire Council ‘reducing the poverty-related attainment gap’ data for Literacy has improved by 4 percentage points between 2021/22 and 2022/23. 2.3.8 Primary Numeracy • In 2022/23, 75.8% of children in North Ayrshire Council achieved the appropriate attainment level in Numeracy. • North Ayrshire Council performance has improved by 0.33 percentage points between 2021/22 and 2022/23. • At national level, 79.6% of children achieved the appropriate attainment level in Numeracy, with an increase of 2.3 percentage points since 2021/22. • North Ayrshire Council ‘reducing the poverty-related attainment gap’ data has improved by 2 percentage points between 2021/22 and 2022/23. Data shows that those Local Authorities where there are higher levels of deprivation demonstrate lower increase in attainment in Literacy and Numeracy since 2020/21. 2.4 School Leavers – Insight – 2022-23 North Ayrshire Council Education Directorate Data Team sends all 9 Secondary schools their Insight Analytical Data set each year which empowers schools to inspect their leavers’ data at a learner level. The contextual and circumstantial understanding that schools possess regarding their learners coupled with this dataset can allow patterns and trends for groups of leaners to be identified that is not possible by solely using Insight. Consequently, schools can utilise this information for future improvement planning. The most recent update of Insight affords the opportunity to explore how well young people leaving school have attained, in the five years to 2023. 2.4.1 The time period covered by these statistics means that the results will be affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. In particular, the cancellation of exams and external assessment of coursework in 2020, and the use of the Alternative Certification Model in 2021, will have affected the attainment of many 2020-21 school leavers. It is also likely that the pandemic will have continued to affect the destination choices made by, and opportunities available to, some school leavers in 2022-23. 2.4.2 The impact of these different approaches to certification upon school leaver attainment means that care should be taken when making comparisons over time, particularly when comparing 2019/20 and 2020/21 with previous or subsequent years. Any comparisons between the attainment levels of these two cohorts with other session cohorts should not be seen as an indication that performance has improved or worsened, without further evidence. A brief explanation of why this is the case can be found in 2.7. 2.4.3 Levels of attainment by 2020-21 school leavers are also likely to have been affected by any changes to learners’ decisions on staying on at school related to the pandemic. The relative size and make-up of the 2019-20 school leaver cohort indicated that fewer S4 or S5 learners left school in 2019/20 than might have been expected. These pupils, many of whom are likely to have left in 2020-21, will have had opportunities to gain more qualifications, and/or to gain qualifications at a higher level, than had they left at the end of the 2019/20 academic year. This is likely to have affected the total number of passes, and the highest level of qualification, attained by some school leavers in 2020-21.
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2.5 National Benchmarking Measures One of the functions of Insight is to provide an analysis of four national benchmarking measures showing the performance of pupils at the point of exit from school. This provides a consistent benchmark and emphasises that attainment and achievement in S4 to S6 are cumulative. These measures are connected and should be looked at together when considering the performance of a school or local authority and the next steps to be taken in seeking further improvements. 2.5.1 The four National Benchmarking Measures are: - Improving attainment in literacy and numeracy Our aim is for all our school leavers to be highly literate and numerate, increasing their life chances greatly. Curriculum for Excellence stresses the responsibility of all teachers for developing literacy and numeracy skills. This reflects the importance placed on these crucial skills which unlock learning in all other areas of the curriculum and are vital for success in learning, life and work in the modern world and workplace. - Improving attainment for all The overall aim for this measure, along with tackling disadvantage, is to have our pupils attain as highly as possible 'across the board'. Attainment is an individual’s passport to personal, social, cultural and economic opportunities. Raising attainment means improving life chances. This does not mean just focusing on exam results, but instead looking at attainment in its widest sense. It is this rich attainment which enables all of our children and young people to make good progress and develop the skills, ambition, and know-how they need to improve life chances. - Tackling disadvantage by improving the attainment of lower attainers relative to higher attainers The overall aim for this measure, together with improving attainment for all, is to have our pupils attain as highly as possible 'across the board'. This measure is aimed at reducing the gap in attainment associated with the incidence of higher and lower deprivation and has the same aspirations for our learners as improving attainment for all. - Increasing post-school participation Considering the destinations of our leavers is a vital part of ensuring that Curriculum for Excellence is a success in our schools. The measure focuses on initial destinations and is linked with Skills Development Scotland's information. 2.5.2 This briefing considers the position of North Ayrshire Council over time and, where possible, in relation to a ‘virtual’ comparator authority and the national position for each of the measures. Additionally, where available, data relating to performance in the South West Educational Improvement Collaborative has been included for comparison.
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2.5.3 Virtual comparator (VC) data is constructed from the performance of individual pupils with similar characteristics from schools in other local authorities. For every pupil in a North Ayrshire school, 10 similar pupils are identified from across all schools in other local authorities to be part of the virtual comparator’s data. This allows a comparison based on some key pupil characteristics (gender, deprivation (SIMD decile), additional support needs and stage of leaving) that are linked to educational outcomes. 2.5.4 The following terms of quantity are used in this report: Other quantitative terms used in this report are to be understood as in common English usage. 2.6 Summary of School Leavers’ results 2022-23: Improving attainment in literacy and numeracy All Leavers Achieving Literacy (appendix 3) Level 4 - 94.5% of NAC school leavers achieved Level 4 literacy, the lowest percentage since 2019 but still above the VC - Almost all school leavers achieved Level 4 literacy Level 5 - At 81.5%, NAC is above the VC by nearly 2 percentage points - NAC remains above the VC for the 5th year since 2019 - Most leavers achieved Level 5 Literacy. 2.6.1 Percentage of S4 Leavers Achieving Literacy Level 3 - 94% of S4 leavers achieved Level 3 Literacy – this is the highest percentage in the last 5 years - North Ayrshire has improved by 5 percentage points since 2021-22 and is 6.8 percentage points above the VC which is the highest since 2019 - Almost all S4 leavers achieved Level 3 Literacy Level 4 - At 84.3%, North Ayrshire Council is above the VC and is 3.5% points above the last highest % in 21-22 (80.8%) - Most S4 leavers achieved Level 4 Literacy
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Level 5 - At 45.8%, North Ayrshire Council is above the virtual comparator which has been the case since 2019 and is the second highest percentage in the last 5 years - Less than half of S4 leavers achieved Level 5 Literacy 2.6.2 Percentage of S5 Leavers Achieving Literacy Level 5 - At 71.9%, North Ayrshire Council is above the virtual comparator which has been the case since 2019 - This is the second lowest percentage since 2019-20 - The majority of S5 leavers achieve Level 5 Literacy 2.6.3 Percentage of All Leavers Achieving Numeracy (Appendix 3) Level 4 - 91.5% of all leavers achieved Level 4 Numeracy and this is the second highest percentage since 2019-20 - North Ayrshire Council has been above the VC for the past 2 years - Almost all leavers achieved Level 4 Numeracy Level 5 - 69.3% of all leavers achieved Level 5 Numeracy, which is above the VC, but is the second lowest percentage since 2018-19 - North Ayrshire Council has been above the VC for the past 5 years - The majority of leavers achieved Level 5 Numeracy 2.6.4 Percentage of S4 Leavers Achieving Numeracy Level 3 - At 94.9%, the percentage of S4 leavers achieving Level 3 Numeracy is the highest in the last 5 years and has been consistently above the VC - This represents a 3-year trend of improvement since 2020-21 with an increase of 10.5percentage points. - Almost all S4 leavers achieved Level 3 Numeracy Level 4 - 79.2% of S4 leavers achieved Level 4 Numeracy which is the highest percentage in the past 5 years - With the exception of 2020-21, NAC has been above the VC - Most S4 leavers achieved Level 4 Numeracy Level 5 - At 38.4%, the percentage of S4 leavers achieving Numeracy at Level 5 is the highest percentage in the last 5 years - This figure is almost 10 percentage points above the VC - Less than half of S4 leavers achieved Level 5 Numeracy 2.6.5 Percentage of S5 Leavers Achieving Numeracy
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Level 5 - 52.3% of S5 leavers achieved Level 5 Numeracy which is above the VC - This is the second lowest percentage since 2019-20 - The majority of S5 leavers achieved Level 5 Numeracy 2.7 Improving attainment for all (Appendix 4) This measure provides information on the average complementary tariff score of school leavers in three groups: the lowest 20%, middle 60% and highest 20% based on attainment. The total tariff score sums all tariff points awarded to a candidate across all of their courses for that academic year. The complementary tariff score sums tariff points awarded to a candidate across their 5 best performances (courses) for that academic year. There follows an analysis of this benchmark for each stage-based leaver cohort subdivided into the three attainment groups based on complementary tariff points awarded. 2.7.1 Improving attainment for all – S4 Leavers Summary Lowest 20% 2022-23 Average Complementary Score Course Awards Equivalent 49 1 x SCQF Level 4 & 1 x SCQF Level 3 4 x SCQF Level 3 - At 49 tariff points NAC is above the VC by 17 tariff points - NAC has been above the VC in this measure almost every year, except for 2020 - Highest number of tariff points achieved over the last 5 years Middle 60% 2022-23 Average Complementary Score Course Awards Equivalent 175 2 x SCQF Level 5 “C” 1 x SCQF Level 4 5 x SCQF Level 4 - At 175 tariff points NAC is below the VC by 7 tariff points - NAC remains below the VC for the 3rd year since 2020 - Number of tariff points steadily increasing year on year with the exception of 2020. Highest 20% 2022-23 Average Complementary Score Course Awards Equivalent 331 2 x SCQF Level 5 “B”
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2 x SCQF Level 5 “C” - At 331 tariff points NAC is below the VC by 17 tariff points - NAC remains below the VC for 3rd year since 2020 - Number of tariff points steadily increasing year on year, with tariff points back to same number as 2020 2.7.2 Improving attainment for all – S5 Leavers Summary Lowest 20% 2022-23 Average Complementary Score Course Awards Equivalent 103 2 x SCQF Level 4 courses 3 x SCQF Level 3 courses - At 103 tariff points NAC is above the VC by 23 tariff points - NAC has been above the VC in this measure for the last 5 years - Slightly lower number of tariff points from 2022 Middle 60% 2022-23 Average Complementary Score Course Awards Equivalent 316 1 x SCQF Level 6 “C” 2 x SCQF Level 5 “C” - At 316 tariff points NAC is below the VC by 6 tariff points - NAC was above the VC in this measure in 2022 - Same number of tariff points achieved in 2019 Highest 20% 2022-23 Average Complementary Score Course Awards Equivalent 745 3 x SCQF Level 6 “A” 4 x SCQF Level 6 “B” - At 745 tariff points NAC is above the VC by 29 tariff points - NAC has been above the VC for the past 3 years - Number of tariff points gained lower than 2021 and 2022 2.7.3 Improving attainment for all – S6 Leavers Summary
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Lowest 20% 2022-23 Average Complementary Score Course Awards Equivalent 339 1 x SCQF Level 5 “A” 3 x SCQF Level 5 “B” - At 339 tariff points NAC is below the VC by 15 tariff points - NAC below VC in this measure for last two years - Number of tariff points achieved has decreased since 2021 Middle 60% 2022-23 Average Complementary Score Course Awards Equivalent 839 5 x SCQF Level 6 “C” - At 839 tariff points NAC is below the VC by 36 tariff points - NAC below VC in this measure for last 5 years - Lowest number of tariff points since 2019 Highest 20% 2022-23 Average Complementary Score Course Awards Equivalent 1328 2 x SCQF Level 7 “C” 3 x SCQF Level 6 “C” - At 1328 tariff points NAC is below the VC by 32 tariff points - NAC above VC in this measure in 2022 - Lowest number of tariff points since 2019 2.8 Tackling disadvantage by improving the attainment of lower attainers relative to higher attainers The Average Total Tariff Score (ATTS) for all 2023 leavers decreased slightly both nationally and for North Ayrshire compared to previous years, returning to pre-pandemic levels. While ATTS performance for pupils from SIMD deciles 1 and 2 has decreased slightly compared to last year (as did the national performance), the overall performance of North Ayrshire leavers from SIMD deciles 1 and 2 remains higher than the national ATTS. (670 compared to 655). With 43% of school leavers in North Ayrshire living in SIMD decile 1 and 2 areas (compared to 22% nationally) – the performance of pupils from more deprived areas has a much higher impact on the overall performance of leavers from the entire authority. The absolute and the percentage gap between the performance of school leavers from Quintile 1 (SIMD deciles 1 and 2) and the rest of the leavers from other – least deprived – areas has decreased slightly, both in North Ayrshire and nationally, but the North Ayrshire gap remains lower than the national gap.
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In relation to the virtual comparator, what is apparent is that, while school leavers from SIMD Quintile 1 are performing in line with what is happening across similar areas in the rest of Scotland, leavers from SIMD 3 and 4 are exceeding the performance of school leavers from similar backgrounds and the pupils in least deprived (Quintiles 4 and 5) are underperforming according to their peers from similar backgrounds across Scotland. In general, the best performing SIMD group is SIMD 4, and the weakest performance is in SIMD 10 – where the number of pupils is particularly low. 2.9 Increasing post-school participation All Leavers In North Ayrshire Council in 2022-23, the percentage of all school leavers in a positive destination is 96.5% which: - is at the highest level recorded in the last 5 years - is above the virtual comparator, South West Educational Improvement Collaborative and national level - has increased for 5 consecutive years - is above all comparators for the most deprived 20% of young people S4 Leavers At 96.8%, the percentage of S4 school leavers in a positive destination: - is at the highest level recorded in the last 5 years - is above the virtual comparator, South West Educational Improvement Collaborative and national level. - is above all comparators for the most deprived 20% of young people for the fifth year in a row. S5 Leavers At 93.8%, the percentage of S5 school leavers in a positive destination: - is at the highest level recorded in the last 5 years - is above the virtual comparator and the national level - is above all comparators for the most deprived 20% of young people S6 Leavers At 97.9%, the percentage of S6 school leavers in a positive destination: - is at the second highest level recorded in the last 5 years - is above the virtual comparator and the national level - is at the second highest level recorded in the last 5 years for the most deprived 20% of young people
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2.10 Stretch Aims As part of raising attainment and closing the poverty-related attainment gap, the Scottish Government has asked all 32 Local Authorities to set stretch aims for August 2026 (see appendix 7). The core stretch aims linked to ACEL and Insight February update data are: - The proportion of learners in North Ayrshire who achieve the expected levels of attainment in literacy at P1, P4 and P7 will increase. - The proportion of learners in North Ayrshire who achieve the expected levels of attainment in numeracy at P1, P4 and P7 will increase. - The proportion of school leavers who achieve 1 or more awards at SCQF level 5 or better will increase. - The proportion of school leavers who achieve 1 or more passes at SCQF level 6 (grades A-C) or better will increase 2.10.1 ACEL Literacy The North Ayrshire Council stretch aims and data for 2022-23 for P1/4/7 Literacy are: - The performance of all learners at 68.5% is an increase of 9.9 pp since 2020-21 - This is 4.3 pp below the national figure - Q1 learners have had an increase of 13.3pp since 2020-21 to 62% Numeracy The North Ayrshire Council stretch aims and data for 2022-23 for P1/4/7 Numeracy are: - The performance of all learners at 75.9% is an increase of 8.5pp since 2020-21 - This is 3.7pp below the national figure - Q1 learners have had an increase of 12.9pp since 2020-21 to 71% 2.10.2 Senior Phase The proportion of school leavers who achieve 1 or more awards at SCQF level 5 or better will increase. Performance Measure 2023 Stretch aim (2026) All learners 68.5% 75% Q1 62% 72% Q2-5 74.3% 80% Gap 1 (Q1 vv Q2-5) -12.3pp -8pp Performance Measure 2023 Stretch aim (2026) All learners 75.9% 80% Q1 71% 76% Q2-5 80.3% 84% Gap 1 (Q1 vv Q2-5) -9.3pp -8pp
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• The stretch aim for this measure is 90% • In 2022-23, 88.5% of NAC school leavers left with a minimum of 1 qualification at SCQF level 5 • This is above the virtual comparator The proportion of school leavers who achieve 1 or more passes at SCQF level 6 or better will increase. • The stretch aim for this measure is 72% • In 2022-23, 66.2% of NAC school leavers left with a minimum of 1 qualification at SCQF level 6 • This is above the virtual comparator 2.11 Closing the Poverty Related Attainment Gap Raising attainment cannot simply mean a focus on excellence but must also focus on equity. Schools will therefore continue to be supported through our Service Improvement Plan actions and the use of the training and professional learning by the PLA. The Education Directorate and schools will be required to continue to focus on and interrogate data to increase the pace of change in closing the poverty related attainment gap. As a local authority we will be required to continue to set ambitious locally identified stretch aims based on a three-year trajectory (2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25) for progress towards reaching our stretch aim target in 2025-26. These aims will be set for both excellence and equity. Equity targets will be focused on the gap between learners in SIMD quintile 1 (Q1) and SIMD quintiles 2-5 (Q2-5). 2.12 Proposed Improvement Actions The following improvement actions are proposed in respect of the key performance measures in learner attainment: Improving attainment in Literacy & Numeracy: the service improvement plan includes specific actions to improve attainment in literacy and numeracy, including: the revision of our existing literacy and numeracy frameworks; the design and implementation of a 3-year raising attainment strategy and a further focus on effective moderation across and within schools. In parallel to this, schools will continue to be supported through school improvement planning processes, quality assurance processes and the work of the Professional Learning Academy. Improving Attainment for All: There will be a continuation of the focus on the middle and highest achieving learners to ensure that our performance continues to reduce the gap between North Ayrshire and the National performance. Part of our work will include a further exploration of the development of learner pathways to ensure attainment and the most appropriate initial leaver destinations for our young people. The re-designed senior phase curriculum structures in many schools will also enable further targeted programmes to be developed for the lowest achieving learners, particularly in S4. Attainment versus Deprivation: North Ayrshire’s Attainment Challenge and Pupil Equity Fund will continue to implement interventions for pupils living in the most deprived areas
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to improve their levels of attainment and achievement. Increasing Post-School Participation: To continue and enhance partnership working with Skills Development Scotland, Ayrshire College, and the Local Employability Partnership. 3. Proposals 3.1 It is proposed that Cabinet: a) Notes the content of the report, including the progress being made by learners, specifically in literacy and numeracy; b) Notes the achievements of school leavers in SQA examinations in 2023; and c) Notes the measures being taken to make further improvements to attainment and achievement levels across all schools.
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4. Implications/Socio-economic Duty Financial 4.1 None. Human Resources 4.2 None. Legal 4.3 None. Equality/Socio-economic 4.4 None. Climate Change and Carbon 4.5 None. Key Priorities 4.6 NAC Council Plan 2023-28: Wellbeing: To transition to a wellbeing economy, delivering prosperity, wellbeing and resilience for local people: • Improving educational attainment and achievement and closing the attainment gap • Developing the Young Workforce and ensuring positive destinations for school leavers This work relates to the following priorities in the Education Service Plan 2023-26: • Improvement in attainment and achievement, particularly in literacy and numeracy • Closing the attainment gap between the most and least disadvantaged children and young people. Community Wealth Building 4.7 None. 5. Consultation 5.1 There is a robust Quality Improvement Framework in place to support schools to evaluate and analyse their performance and plan future improvements. This quality improvement process features regular evaluative visits to schools by Senior Officers. These visits feature evidence-based, challenging discussions to explore how schools are using the analysis of their attainment as a mechanism to inform targets for improvement. Furthermore, as part of our annual review process, we have consulted staff across the service on the improvement priorities for the coming session, and
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schools have in turn engaged with their school communities on their own priorities for improvement. Andrew McClelland Head of Service (Education) For further information please contact Kathleen McCormick, Executive Manager, on 01294 324443. Background Papers 0
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Appendix 1
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English Reading English Writing English Listening & Talking English Literacy Numeracy SIMD Quintile 1 - most deprived 71% 65% 80% 62% 71% SIMD Quintile 2 74% 72% 83% 69% 75% SIMD Quintile 3 83% 77% 90% 76% 81% SIMD Quintile 4 85% 82% 90% 79% 85% SIMD Quintile 5 - least deprived 87% 85% 92% 82% 88% % 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% P1,P4,P7 combined performance by SIMD Quintile - 2022/2023 Appendix 2a
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0.0 2.0 4.0 6.0 8.0 10.0 12.0 14.0 16.0 18.0 20.0 22.0 24.0 26.0 English Reading English Writing English Listening & Talking English Literacy Numeracy Attainment Gap between the 20% most SIMD Deprived and 20% least SIMD deprived areas in North Ayrshire compared to National (Percentage Points) P1, P4, P7 pupils combined 2018/19 North Ayrshire 2020/21 North Ayrshire 2021/22 North Ayrshire 2022/23 North Ayrshire 2018/19 National 2020/21 National 2021/22 National 2022/23 National Appendix 2
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45.00 47.00 49.00 51.00 53.00 55.00 57.00 59.00 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 Percentage of school leavers attaining SCQF level 6 or better in Literacy North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National Appendix 3 90.00 91.00 92.00 93.00 94.00 95.00 96.00 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 Percentage of school leavers attaining SCQF level 4 or better in Literacy North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 78.00 79.00 80.00 81.00 82.00 83.00 84.00 85.00 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 Percentage of school leavers attaining SCQF level 5 or better in Literacy North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 87.00 88.00 89.00 90.00 91.00 92.00 93.00 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 Percentage of school leavers attaining SCQF level 4 or better in Numeracy North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 63.00 64.00 65.00 66.00 67.00 68.00 69.00 70.00 71.00 72.00 73.00 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 Percentage of school leavers attaining SCQF level 5 or better in Numeracy North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 22.00 23.00 24.00 25.00 26.00 27.00 28.00 29.00 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 Percentage of school leavers attaining SCQF level 6 or better in Numeracy North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National
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2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 North Ayrshire 1665 1797 1860 1907 1869 South West Collaborative 1770 1858 1920 1916 1895 Virtual Comparator 1749 1865 1910 1876 1866 National 1830 1921 1982 1950 1931 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000 Attainment for All ‐ Average total tariff score of the highest attaining 20% 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 North Ayrshire 697 780 840 812 744 South West Collaborative 769 821 875 827 780 Virtual Comparator 733 821 873 804 766 National 821 880 939 871 832 650 700 750 800 850 900 950 1000 Attainment for All ‐ Average total tariff score of the middle attaining 60% 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 North Ayrshire 145 139 160 155 133 South West Collaborative 151 144 163 154 144 Virtual Comparator 120 126 157 140 127 National 151 151 164 154 141 110 120 130 140 150 160 170 Attainment for All ‐ Average total tariff score of the lowest attaining 20% Appendix 4
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0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S4 Leavers ‐ Average total tariff score of the highest attaining 20% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 0 50 100 150 200 250 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S4 Leavers ‐ Average total tariff score of the middle attaining 60% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S4 Leavers ‐ Average total tariff score of the lowest attaining 20% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S5 Leavers ‐ Average total tariff score of the highest attaining 20% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S5 Leavers ‐ Average total tariff score of the middle attaining 60% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S5 Leavers ‐ Average total tariff score of the lowest attaining 20% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 1650 1700 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 2100 2150 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S6 Leavers ‐ Average total tariff score of the highest attaining 20% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S6 Leavers ‐ Average total tariff score of the middle attaining 60% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S6 Leavers ‐ Average total tariff score of the lowest attaining 20% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National Appendix 4a Appendix 4b Appendix 4c
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280 290 300 310 320 330 340 350 360 370 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S4 Leavers ‐ Average complementary tariff score of the highest attaining 20% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 0 50 100 150 200 250 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S4 Leavers ‐ Average complementary tariff score of the middle attaining 60% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S4 Leavers ‐ Average complementary tariff score of the lowest attaining 20% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 600 650 700 750 800 850 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S5 Leavers ‐ Average complementary tariff score of the highest attaining 20% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S5 Leavers ‐ Average complementary tariff score of the middle attaining 60% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S5 Leavers ‐ Average complementary tariff score of the lowest attaining 20% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 1200 1250 1300 1350 1400 1450 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S6 Leavers ‐ Average complementary tariff score of the highest attaining 20% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 700 750 800 850 900 950 1000 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S6 Leavers ‐ Average complementary tariff score of the middle attaining 60% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National 310 320 330 340 350 360 370 380 390 400 410 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 S6 Leavers ‐ Average complementary tariff score of the lowest attaining 20% North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National Appendix 4a Appendix 4b Appendix 4c
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628 691 763 937 901 1022 1073 1115 1173 1150 634 676 736 793 873 922 998 1078 1168 1350 350 550 750 950 1150 1350 1550 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11SIMD Decile Average Total Tariff Score by SIMD decile ‐ All School leavers 2023 North Ayrshire National Trend line ‐ North Ayrshire Trend line ‐ National Appendix 5
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94.0 92.5 95.2 96.0 96.5 94.4 94.3 95.8 96.7 96.4 94.0 92.3 95.1 94.9 95.31 95.1 93.4 95.5 95.7 95.9 90.0 91.0 92.0 93.0 94.0 95.0 96.0 97.0 98.0 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 2022/23 Comparative Performance on % of School Leavers Moving into Positive Destinations North Ayrshire South West Collaborative Virtual Comparator National Appendix 6
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Stretch Aims Summary: The stretch aims are listed in summary format here. CORE OUTCOMES FOR IMPROVEMENT Performance up to 2023 Stretch Aim (by August 2026) Actual Progress Summary (updated annually) Description of improvement Performance Measure 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 Core Stretch Aim 1 The proportion of learners in North Ayrshire who achieve the expected levels of attainment in literacy at P1, P4 and P7 will increase. All learners 74% n/a 59% 67% 68% 75% Q1 67% n/a 49% 60% 63% 72% Q2-5 79% n/a 67% 74% 74% 80% Q5 89% n/a 70% 83% 82% 88% Gap 1 (Q1 vv Q2- 5) -12pp n/a -18pp -14pp -11pp -8pp Gap 2 (Q1 vv Q5) -22pp n/a -21pp -23pp -19pp -16pp Core Stretch Aim 2 The proportion of learners in North Ayrshire who achieve the expected levels of attainment in numeracy at P1, P4 and P7 will increase. All learners 79% n/a 67% 75% 76% 81% Q1 74% n/a 58% 69% 71% 78% Q2-5 84% n/a 75% 81% 80% 86% Q5 91% n/a 82% 87% 87% 91% Gap 1 (Q1 vv Q2- 5) -10pp n/a -17pp -12pp -9pp -8pp Gap 2 (Q1 vv Q5) -17pp n/a -24pp -18pp -16pp -13pp Core Stretch Aim 3 The proportion of school leavers who achieve 1 or more awards at SCQF level 5 or better will increase. All learners 87% 86% 90% 89% n/a 92% Q1 80% 79% 83% 82% n/a 89% Q2-5 93% 92% 95% 93% n/a 95% Q5 98% 97% 99% 96% n/a 98% Gap 1 (Q1 vv Q2- 5) -13pp -13pp -12pp -11pp n/a -6pp Gap 2 (Q1 vv Q5) -18pp -18pp -16pp -14pp n/a -9pp Core Stretch Aim 4 All learners 65% 67% 71% 68% n/a 74%
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CORE OUTCOMES FOR IMPROVEMENT Performance up to 2023 Stretch Aim (by August 2026) Actual Progress Summary (updated annually) The proportion of school leavers who achieve 1 or more passes at SCQF level 6 (grades A-C) or better will increase. Q1 52% 55% 61% 56% n/a 62% Q2-5 75% 76% 78% 77% n/a 80% Q5 89% 87% 87% 86% n/a 90% Gap 1 (Q1 vv Q2- 5) -23pp -21pp -17pp -21pp n/a -18pp Gap 2 (Q1 vv Q5) -37pp -32pp -26pp -30pp n/a -28pp CORE OUTCOMES FOR IMPROVEMENT Performance up to 2023 Stretch Aim (by August 2026) Actual Progress Summary (updated annually) Description of improvement Performance Measure 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 Core Stretch Aim 5 The proportion of 16-19 year- olds who are participating in education, employment or training will increase. All learners 90.5% 90.6% 90.1% 90.8% 93.9% 95% Q1 87.8% 86.9% 85.3% 88.0% 90.6% 92.5% Q2-5 92.4% 93.5% 93.9% 93.0% 96.2% 97.5% Q5 94.7% 96.7% 96.1% 96.4% 98.1% 99% Gap 1 (Q1 vv Q2- 5) -4.6pp -6.6pp -8.6pp -5pp -5.6pp -5pp Gap 2 (Q1 vv Q5) -6.9pp -9.8pp -10.8pp -8.4pp -7.5pp -6.5pp Core Stretch Aim 6 School attendance levels will increase. All learners 92.1% 91.6% 91.4% 89.4% 88.8% 93% Q1 90.7% 90.1% 89.9% 87.7% 86.7% 92% Q2-5 93.2% 92.8% 92.8% 90.8% 90.5% 94% Q5 94.6% 94.1% 94.0% 91.7% 91.6% 95.5% Gap 1 (Q1 vv Q2- 5) -2.5pp -2.7pp -2.9pp -3.1pp -3.8pp -2pp
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CORE OUTCOMES FOR IMPROVEMENT Performance up to 2023 Stretch Aim (by August 2026) Actual Progress Summary (updated annually) Gap 2 (Q1 vv Q5) -3.9pp -4pp -4.1pp -4pp -4.9pp -3.5pp