Continuing Engagement
Continuing engagement with Learning Communities and primary, secondary and special schools:
How do we continue to engage?
There are four broad continuing engagement activities, not all of which are mutually exclusive. The following are brief descriptions but there is flexibility to enable us to ensure we provide the best support for improvement to a school.
1. No further inspection activity
In this option we are satisfied with the overall quality of provision. We are confident that the establishment’s self-evaluation processes are leading to improvements. As a result, we will make no further visits in connection with this inspection. The local authority or Board of Governors will inform parents about the establishment’s progress as part of their arrangements for reporting to parents on the quality of their establishments.
2. Additional support for improvement
We are satisfied with the overall quality of provision. We are confident that most of the school’s self-evaluation processes are leading to improvement. With support from the local authority or Board of Governors, and possibly Education Scotland, the establishment will be able to make the necessary improvements. Our District Inspector or Independent schools link inspector, along with local authority or Board of Governors, will discuss the most appropriate support in order to build capacity for improvement and will maintain contact to monitor progress. Parents will be informed of the extent to which the establishment has improved.
3. Continued inspection
As a result of our inspection findings, we think that the establishment needs additional support and more time to make necessary improvements. Our District Inspector or Independent schools link inspector, along with the local authority or Board of Governors, will discuss the most appropriate support in order to build capacity for improvement, and will maintain contact to monitor progress. We will return to evaluate aspects of provision and the progress in improving provision within an agreed timescale following publication of the inspection letter. We will then issue another letter to parents on the extent to which the establishment has improved. In that letter, we will inform the school and education authority if we are going to carry out a further inspection visit.
4. Innovative Practice
We are satisfied with the overall quality of provision. We are confident that the establishment’s self-evaluation processes are leading to improvements. As a result, we will make no further evaluative visits in connection with this inspection. During the inspection, we identified an aspect or aspects of innovative practice which we would like to explore further in order to share the practice with others. As a result, we will work with the establishment and local authority or Board of Governors in order to record and share more widely the innovative practice. We will ask the establishment, in discussion with the local authority or Board of Governors, to let parents know the outcome of the innovative practice visit(s).
How do we report on continuing engagement?
Where further inspection activity is carried out, we will report publicly to parents and stakeholders. We will change to a letter format for all inspection activity carried out after August 2011. The letter will report on the three key questions being used in the School Inspection Framework. The MI will also report on continuous improvement and, to an appropriate extent, the school’s capacity for improvement. We will use the Record of Visit which is a technical report and this will be shared, as is our current practice. Other continuing engagement activities will be reported to parents and stakeholders using the local authorities’ normal procedures.