May 2006
Introduction
1. The aims, nature and scope of the inspection
2. Changes in the operational context of the Education Service
3. Continuous improvement
4. Progress towards the main points for action
5. Conclusion
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Definition of terms used in this report
The work of HM Inspectorate of Education
Section 9 of the Standards in Scotland’s Schools etc. Act 2000 charges HM Inspectorate of Education (HMIE), on behalf of the Scottish Ministers, to provide an external evaluation of the effectiveness of the local authority in its quality assurance of educational provision within the Council and of its support to schools in improving quality. Inspections are conducted within a published framework of quality indicators (Quality Management in Education) 1 which embody the Government’s policy on Best Value. Between 2000 and 2005, HM Inspectors completed a five year cycle of inspections of the education functions of each local authority.
Each inspection is planned and implemented in partnership with Audit Scotland on behalf of the Accounts Commission for Scotland. Audit Scotland is a statutory body set up in April 2000, under the Public Finance and Accountability (Scotland) Act 2000. It provides services to the Accounts Commission and the Auditor General for Scotland. Together they ensure that the Scottish Executive and public sector bodies in Scotland are held to account for the proper, efficient and effective use of public funds.
The inspection team also includes an Associate Assessor who is a senior member of staff currently serving in another Scottish local authority.
All inspections of the education functions of education authorities are followed up by inspection teams, normally around two years from the date of the original published inspection report. The extent of follow-through will vary according to the nature of the findings in the original inspection.
The education functions of The Moray Council were inspected during the period October to November 2003 as part of the national inspection programme of all education authorities in Scotland over a five-year period.
The local authority prepared and made public an Action Plan in May 2004, indicating how it would address the main points for action identified in the original HMIE inspection report published in February 2004.
An interim visit by an inspection team was carried out in December 2004 and a letter evaluating progress in implementing the action plan was published.
An inspection team revisited the authority in December 2005 to assess progress made in meeting the recommendations in the initial report.
Since the initial inspection of the education functions of The Moray Council in February 2004 there had been a number of changes within the Council and Educational Services.
The composition of the Council was unchanged since the initial inspection. The Council comprised 16 Independent, five Labour, three Scottish National Party, one Liberal Democrat and one Conservative councillor. The administration formed by the Independent group in November 2003, towards the end of the initial inspection, continued to lead the Council. The chair and vice-chair of the Educational Services Committee had changed since the initial inspection.
There had been a number of staffing changes within the central Educational Services’ team. A new Head of Educational Development Services was appointed in January 2004. This member of the senior team subsequently accepted a position elsewhere in July 2005. The current Head of Educational Development Services took up appointment in August 2005.
As part of the development of a revised quality assurance framework there had been an increase in the number of quality improvement officers (QIOs). These officers had a clear remit to support and challenge schools. In addition, several staff had been appointed as learning and teaching officers (LTOs) with a view to supporting and disseminating best practice in schools. The Council had also appointed research and information officers on a corporate basis. One of these posts had been deployed within Educational Services and provided officers with a detailed analysis of pupil, department and school performance.
Since the inspection report was published in February 2004 Educational Services had shown a much clearer, overt commitment to improvement. The increased focus on quality assurance had ensured that all schools were aware of the Council’s priorities for raising attainment. The revised systems of consultation and communication ensured that a wide range of stakeholders were involved in addressing important priorities focused on meeting the needs of children and young people in Moray.
Since the initial inspection of the education authority, HMIE had carried out 11 inspections of primary schools and two inspections of secondary schools. Within that same period eight schools which had been inspected received a follow-through inspection by HMIE. In addition to the school inspections, HM Inspectors, in partnership with the Care Commission, inspected pre-school provision in 43 centres. The results of these pre-school inspections identified many strengths. Educational Services analysed the results of each inspection and provided appropriate training and support. Inspections of primary schools identified strengths including the behaviour of pupils, meeting pupils’ needs and the support of parents and School Boards. Leadership was good or better in almost all of the schools. There were weaknesses in aspects of accommodation, monitoring attainment and the quality of learning and teaching in slightly under half of the schools. In both of the secondary schools inspected pastoral care was very good. The structure of the curriculum, the quality of teaching and learning and personal and social development were good. There were important weaknesses, however, in attainment, meeting pupils’ needs, self-evaluation and the effectiveness and deployment of staff. The quality of leadership was good in one school and fair in the other.
Educational Services’ staff prepared evaluations of progress in eight schools which had previously been inspected by HMIE. HM Inspectors visited five of these schools to verify the extent to which there had been improvements. In each school the progress report provided by Educational Services was found to be accurate. In two schools the Council’s reports were accepted without visits being carried out by HMIE. Almost all follow-through inspections resulted in good or very good progress on the main points for action. Only one school had required continuing engagement with HM Inspectors and, with very good support from a range of council staff, it also had improved.
Following the publication of the inspection report on community learning and development (CLD) in Keith, Buckie and Fochabers in October 2003 the Council had made good to very good progress in addressing the action points. There was now a shared vision and priorities for CLD which had resulted in improvement in staff morale and increased motivation. The service had been restructured with the formation of specialist teams for adult learning and youth work, and the appointment of two senior CLD workers to manage the teams. This had resulted in improved staff support, review and development, more effective planning and good progress in implementing self-evaluation procedures. The service had developed more focused learning opportunities for young people and adults. These included effective targeting of excluded groups such as Polish and Russian workers who were learning English, as well as young parents and unemployed men. The service played a clear role at a local level in community planning and had worked effectively with communities in the development of local action plans. There was still a need to develop effective systems for joint planning and evaluation of outcomes for young people engaged in CLD activities. Particular attention should be given to recording and celebrating their wider achievements. The Council was in a good position to take forward CLD and to continue to improve provision for the local communities in the area.
Since 2002 exclusions in both school sectors had increased. In primary schools exclusions were now above the rate of comparator authorities2 and broadly in line with the national average. In secondary schools the number of exclusions had increased considerably since 2002, but they were still well below comparator authorities and the national average.
Staff in schools were now very well supported through a comprehensive programme for continuing professional development (CPD). A number of conferences with speakers of high calibre had helped stimulate discussion and action on a range of fronts. The range and quality of courses provided staff with increased knowledge and skills designed to help improve classroom practice and pupils’ achievements. Subject groups for secondary school staff had been reenergised. Most groups now provided very good opportunities for sharing good practice and taking action on council priorities.
A number of initiatives were being developed which had the potential to have a beneficial impact on pupils’ health and achievement:
Educational Services had been very proactive in implementing new legislation related to additional support needs. Important decisions had been taken to work in very close partnership with other agencies to ensure that the needs of young people were met effectively. A steering group had been established involving a wide range of stakeholders, and Educational Services had funded staff posts in the Health Service and Social Work. In the development process staff had been well supported by external consultants with a specialism in inclusive principles and Additional Support for Learning legislation. A series of very well attended training events had taken place and partnership arrangements ensured consistency and the sharing of good practice.
The initial inspection report published in February 2004 identified six main points for action. This section evaluates the progress the authority has made with each of the main action points and the resulting improvements for pupils and other stakeholders.
4.1 The Directorate team should provide clearer strategic direction, improve the policy framework and increase their involvement in school improvement activities.
The Directorate team had made good progress towards meeting this main point for action.
The senior management team (SMT) had taken effective steps to ensure that there was a clear link between the key aims and priorities of the authority and school improvement plans. Following feedback from staff and other stakeholders, development work had been undertaken to update the statement of aims to make them more meaningful to all members of the community.
Each member of the SMT had been focused on driving forward the improvement agenda within the authority. A productive working relationship with the Convener of the Educational Services Committee and the introduction of detailed briefings for elected members ensured that they received comprehensive information on issues such as attainment and the progress of the Service Improvement Plan.
In the two years since the original inspection, integrated working to meet the needs of children and young people was much more established. While some secondary headteachers had yet to be convinced of the value of the Local Community Network (LCN) structure, overall, a shared sense of purpose existed. The establishment of the Children and Young People’s Partnership which replaced the For Moray’s Children group ensured that elected members and stakeholders were now directly involved in leading and monitoring strategic developments. The recently-produced Integrated Children and Young People’s Services Plan set out a clear agenda for the future development of integrated working and identified clear priorities to support the already well-established Local Community Network planning and review processes. In each locality, staff from a wide range of partners worked together to meet the needs of children and young people more quickly and effectively. Across the authority there were numerous examples where education, police, health and voluntary sector staff had been successful in using resources creatively to:
Effective steps had been taken to improve policy development within Educational Services. All members of the SMT had been allocated responsibility for leading specific areas of policy review. Clear guidelines ensured that authority and school procedures were consistent in identifying the rationale for any policy, its expected outcome, roles and responsibilities of staff and arrangements to monitor and evaluate the policy. A broad range of staff and stakeholders were now involved from the outset in policy development. This had increased the ownership of developments and had a positive influence on the culture within Educational Services.
Key policies on quality improvement, consultation and communication, devolved school management (DSM) and CPD had been improved and were being implemented very well. Consultation on a revised policy on learning and teaching was almost complete. A programme to update policies and address gaps in provision had been agreed.
The SMT had taken significant action to become more directly involved in supporting and challenging schools. The extent of involvement had been further increased following the appointment of the current Head of Educational Development Services. Each member of the SMT was now linked with two QIOs and their related schools. Visits to primary schools addressed issues such as improvement planning and inspection follow-through. These visits were used effectively to underline the expectation of improved performance. Following recent individual discussions with secondary headteachers, specific steps to bring about improvement in a number of schools had been agreed. Overall, the SMT had a very good knowledge of strengths and weaknesses in schools across the authority and were now able to intervene as appropriate.
Officers had provided elected members and the public with a thorough analysis of the condition of schools and presented a wide range of options to bring about improvement. Action to address over-capacity in the primary school sector had not been agreed by elected members. Senior officers had conducted challenging public meetings in a highly professional manner and provided effective leadership.
4.2 More focused steps should be taken to raise attainment, particularly in primary schools, and at S1/S2 and S5/S6 in secondary schools.
The directorate team and QIOs had made good progress towards meeting aspects of this main point for action. However, progress had been slow in raising attainment in secondary schools at S5 and S6. Overall progress was fair.
The education authority had introduced a wide range of constructive measures to support schools in raising attainment. There were good signs of improving attainment in primary schools and in some aspects in S1/S2. However, downward trends in attainment in the upper stages of secondary schools had not been reversed. Progress in raising attainment was fair overall.
All schools had ensured that their improvement plans placed an appropriate focus on raising attainment and had embarked upon a range of initiatives to improve specific aspects. The authority had set up a range of working groups to address factors which had a bearing on pupils’ attainment. These factors included the quality of learning and teaching, the role of parents, pupil behaviour, and the monitoring of pupils’ progress.
The education authority had increased its capacity to support schools. Education officers had been redeployed to place a greater emphasis on improving the quality of attainment and a number of additional posts had been created. The deployment of LTOs had improved since the initial inspection. Their work in schools, which included in-class support and modelling teaching, had led to improved attainment, better quality teaching and an increase in staff confidence in those schools which had received support.
A research and information officer made a very effective contribution to the authority’s procedures for identifying strengths and weaknesses in school performance. Five officers were deployed to support schools in literacy, numeracy, science and assessment. Improved programmes of study in English language and mathematics had been introduced for pupils in primary schools and at S1/S2. As a result of improved tracking procedures, schools had become more aware of when individual pupils had achieved national levels of attainment. Teachers had benefited from a range of seminars and other helpful initiatives to promote their professional development.
In primary schools, the percentage of pupils achieving appropriate national levels of attainment had risen significantly between 2003 and 2004 and was above national and comparator authority averages. These proportions had been broadly sustained in 2005, when most pupils achieved appropriate levels in reading, writing and mathematics. In the early stages of secondary school around two-thirds of pupils reached these levels in reading by the end of S2, and this proportion had shown some increase over the last three years. The proportion reaching appropriate levels in mathematics by the end of S2 had shown steady increase, and around three-fifths reached these levels in 2005. The proportion attaining appropriate levels in writing had dropped slightly between 2004 and 2005, when around half of all pupils reached appropriate levels.
Over the last two years the Director and other senior officers had undertaken a number of meetings with headteachers and senior management teams in all secondary schools to discuss how they could improve attainment. Partly as a result of these visits, guidance on good practice had been produced and some schools had received further focused support. QIOs played an important part in helping schools to identify areas in need of improvement and in supporting schools to improve. Officers were making an increasingly effective contribution to network meetings of principal teachers and others representing individual subjects in secondary schools. Good practice was being shared more widely, and support and advice from outwith the authority was sought when necessary.
The proportions of pupils achieving awards in English or mathematics at SCQF Level 34 by the end of S4 had risen over the last three years and were above the levels for comparator authorities in 2005. The proportion of pupils gaining five or more awards at Level 5 had been broadly steady but was below the level of comparator authorities in 2005. The proportions of pupils achieving three or more awards at Level 6, or five or more awards at this level by the end of S5 were not showing signs of improvement and were consistently below the level of comparator authorities. Several measures of attainment, including at Level 6 and 7 by the end of S6 had declined over the last three years and remained consistently below the level of comparator authorities.
The Directorate team and QIOs had provided schools with strong support and challenge with a view to raising pupil attainment. However, the measures introduced had yet to have a significant impact in the secondary sector. All members of staff in Educational Services, particularly those in secondary schools, needed to maintain their efforts to ensure that all young people achieved their full potential.
4.3 Arrangements for quality assurance should be improved to ensure better targeted support and challenge to schools and departments.
The education authority had made very good progress towards meeting this main point for action.
The SMT had reviewed and brought together all strategies for quality improvement into a helpful and comprehensive framework for schools. Stakeholders had been fully represented in the work, and headteachers had been closely involved. The framework for quality improvement set out clearly the roles and responsibilities of all teachers and officers and placed an appropriate emphasis on the importance of rigorous self-evaluation in schools.
All headteachers oversaw the production of annual audits of key aspects of their performance in their schools. The results of these audits were then discussed in a systematic way with QIOs who were closely involved in aspects of monitoring the school’s work. For example in their secondary schools they took part in a sample of reviews of departmental performance in SQA examinations, taking part in joint discussions between senior management teams and principal teachers. In this way they were able to support schools in improving the rigour of their own monitoring and evaluation.
The education authority had embarked upon a useful programme of additional audits of a wide range of aspects of individual schools, including the quality of leadership and teaching. The teams which carried out these audits included headteachers and staff from other schools and therefore helped in the dissemination of good practice. The education authority was planning to extend the scope of these audits to include the quality of pastoral care and other aspects of support for pupils. At meetings of primary and secondary school headteachers and secondary principal teachers, quality assurance matters and sharing of good practice were given appropriate and increasingly effective attention. Overall, the education authority was building up a very good knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of each of its schools.
In carrying out their work, QIOs were making a major contribution to challenging schools to improve and in supporting them on specific projects and initiatives. Their work was complemented by input from a number of LTOs. Headteachers had good opportunities to contribute to working groups which produced helpful advice on a range of issues. The identification and dissemination of good practice which already existed was an increasing strength of the education authority’s work in supporting schools and staff to improve.
4.4 Audit arrangements should be improved and clearly quantifiable improvement objectives identified in service planning.
Good progress had been made towards meeting this main point for action.
The approach to service planning had been reviewed and revised principally by a working group comprising elected members, officers and headteachers. The group considered the priorities and developed an action-planning framework. Wide consultation with stakeholders and good use of performance data helped inform the plan. An extensive stakeholder survey provided valuable information to inform the planning process and establish a baseline for future analysis.
The revised cycle for improvement planning ensured that all stakeholders had an early opportunity to influence priorities, comment on the quality of the service and consequently evaluate progress. The stakeholder involvement resulted in a commitment to ensure that future plans are disseminated widely and in a form which is understandable, especially to parents.
The service plan developed for 2005 to 2008 was structured around the aims of the service and took good account of external and internal factors which have a significant impact on the planning process. The ten priority areas in the plan were closely related to the department’s aims and the corporate development plan. The draft summary of the Integrated Children and Young People’s Services Plan for 2005 to 2008 included many references to the education service plan as a means of delivering improved services.
The successful implementation of the service plan was being given high priority. The plan was backed by detailed and costed action plans. Each member of the Directorate team was rigorous in overseeing the progress of specific action plans which included clear timescales. A good start had been made to identifying measurable outcomes and the SMT recognised that there was scope to develop these further in future planning cycles.
The SMT was now in a better position to monitor the impact associated with each priority. The increased attention given to the use of attainment information within the authority and the recent progress towards a performance management framework provided the opportunity to identify clear outcomes for learners and other stakeholders. A helpful leaflet summarising the plan had been issued to stakeholders.
4.5 The management of resources should target areas of need and improvement more effectively.
The Directorate team had made good progress in addressing aspects of this point for action. However, the Council had made slow progress in addressing over-capacity in the primary sector and adopting principles of Best Value with a view to improving service provision. Overall progress was fair.
Since the interim inspection officers had led a full review of the scheme for DSM. This included a review of existing formula and comparisons with other authorities. As a result salary budgets for non-promoted posts were now based on actual costs. This had improved equity of funding to schools and freed up resources to support the delivery of authority-wide priorities.
Effective arrangements were in place to inform the allocation of budgets to Educational Services. Detailed reports by the Chief Financial Officer provided the Council’s Service Development Committee with the information required to make decisions on future funding levels for each service. Committee members made good use of a recently introduced scoring system to determine whether additional resources should be allocated to specific areas or other adjustments made to funding levels. Requests for additional funding will be reviewed by this committee. Elected members were more involved in the decision-making process.
The procedures for monitoring budgets with colleagues in the finance department had improved. QIOs had an emerging role in budget monitoring which had resulted in appropriate interventions and early alerts to potential overspending. However, there was still a number of schools which carried substantial under spends at the end of the financial year. Officers should investigate such cases in order to ensure that pupils are not being disadvantaged by the non use of these funds. Helpful support and training had been instigated for newly-appointed headteachers in this area.
Senior staff in Educational Services had invested substantial time and effort in order to provide councillors and members of the public with an accurate overview of the condition and capacity of the school estate. A working group identified the maintenance work required to bring buildings up to a good standard of repair. Funds were allocated to address priority health and safety matters but the Council had not made sufficient inroads into the backlog of maintenance.
A suitability survey of property had provided accurate working capacity figures. Roll projections for 2011 identified that 19 primary schools will be operating at less than 60% of their functional capacity. A very well produced leaflet summarising the findings and presenting the challenges of initiating improvement was widely disseminated. Several meetings were organised across the authority to give members of the public the opportunity to express their views on a wide range of possible options to address over-capacity. These included:
Initial public events were poorly attended and the options of using spare capacity for other purposes were unpopular with those in attendance.
Following detailed briefings of councillors and headteachers a second major public consultation was organised. This outlined a range of options for the future of the school estate in Moray. Despite the best efforts and professionalism of the officers involved to communicate options the exercise was not well received. Following the consultation, elected members withdrew the options offered as part of the consultation and delegated the Chief Executive to develop a strategy which took into account corporate and joint service options for the use of surplus capacity.
The Chief Executive had prepared a report summarising written views and identifying the main issues arising from consultation meetings and responses. The report highlighted that the Council had a duty to all its stakeholders to ensure:
These issues reflect the concerns identified in the initial HMIE report. The consultation exercise was very successful in raising public awareness of the extent of over-capacity in primary schools but the Council had not made progress in reducing over-capacity in its schools. Council members will be faced with increasing challenge as they are required to meet efficient government targets set by the Scottish Executive. The new exercise should be pursued with speed and vigour.
In the two years since the initial inspection minimal progress had been made in completing Best Value reviews in order to secure improvements in efficiency and the delivery of services.
4.6 Further steps should be taken to develop consultation with a wider range of stakeholders.
The authority had made very good progress with this main point for action.
The authority had made a number of significant improvements to its system of consultation. The Council had established a strategy group and a series of nine working groups to oversee the implementation of the action plan, prepared in response to the initial inspection. These groups comprised a wide range of stakeholders including a member of the SMT, representatives of headteachers, teaching staff, support staff, parents, elected members and trade unions. A group developed a new policy on consultation and communication which was approved at the Educational Services Committee in December 2004. The group structure proved so successful that such representation has been mirrored in other groups established since then. A range of stakeholders were strongly supportive of the Council’s actions in this respect. They believed the authority had now taken a strategic lead in the process and they felt valued through being involved. They also believed that the authority was genuinely listening to their views.
An annual programme of consultation had been developed to seek stakeholder views on, for example, service planning, budget planning and policy development. Meetings had proved effective in gathering views which had influenced policy making. Consultation on policies such as learning and teaching ensured that all those involved played a key role in helping ensure that pupils’ needs are met more effectively. Educational Services also used an external provider to conduct extensive surveys to seek the views of parents, staff and pupils on aspects of school provision. While such surveys have value if they stimulate action for improvement the Council needed to determine whether or not they provided best value for money.
Pupils had been involved in consultation in different forums across the Council. All schools had developed pupil councils to ensure pupils have a say in discussing aspects of the school’s provision. In some secondary schools there was evidence of pupil councils being effective in suggesting school improvements. The authority should now ensure that the good practice evident in some schools is shared amongst all to improve the contribution pupils can make to development. A youth strategy had been developed within the Council which detailed the planned participation of young people. Plans were also in hand to develop a range of youth forums across Moray. In establishing these forums Educational Services staff, including headteachers and CLD staff, have a good opportunity to involve young people more fully in planning future developments. As before, few pupils were aware of the fact that there was a pupil representative on the Educational Services Committee. There were no systems in place to allow the representative to seek the views of other pupils or share with them the views of elected members. While consultation with pupils had developed since the initial inspection there was still room for improvement.
A major programme of consultation had taken place with regard to the Council’s estate management strategy. Comprehensive briefings took place with headteachers and elected members prior to the consultation process beginning. The Head of Educational Resource Services outlined the Council’s options at a series of public meetings. The consultation process allowed members of the community to express their views, and to that extent, the consultation was successful. At the time of the inspection further consultation was on-going regarding the provision of secondary education in Elgin.
As part of the Council’s response to the Additional Support for Learning Act5 consultation took place with a wide range of stakeholders. Activities included establishing a steering group with wide representation and organising seminars with over 400 participants. The wide range of consultation, which also included involving young people in developing an advertising campaign, allowed key views to be included in the development of the Council’s policies in this area. Members of School Boards indicated that they had found the regular briefings by members of the SMT very effective and this had provided a useful mechanism for board members to express their views on a range of issues such as service planning, school improvement and celebrating success.
As part of an overall strategy to involve members of the wider community and communicate educational issues more effectively Educational Services held an extremely successful open day at Elgin library. Over 600 participants attended and, such was the success of this initiative, that similar events are planned in other areas of the Council.
The main points for action identified in the 2004 report set The Moray Council and Educational Services a demanding agenda for improvement. Over the last two years staff across the authority had pulled together to meet the challenge. This had resulted in a shared sense of purpose and the development of an improvement culture.
The Director and his team had led from the front and each had made an effective contribution to raising the profile of education within the authority. They had been successful in:
These measures had improved the operation of the department and the support offered to pupils and staff in schools. Headteachers and staff in schools now needed to ensure that the high-quality support and training opportunities resulted in improved attainment outcomes, particularly for young people in the upper stages of secondary schools.
Officers of the Council had been very thorough in presenting to councillors and the public the issues surrounding the condition of the school estate and the extent of over-capacity in primary schools. However, there remained important weaknesses in the management of the school estate. The lack of progress in agreeing steps to address over-capacity in the school estate impacted on every pupil regardless of the school they attended. Elected members now needed to act with urgency to ensure that all pupils benefit from a suitable learning environment and Best Value is provided in the use of available resources.
The District Inspector will monitor the progress made by the authority in raising attainment in secondary schools and addressing the issue of over-capacity in primary schools. The Council should provide a report on progress by February 2007. Any future inspection of the Council will include the evaluation of attainment and the school estate.
Annette Bruton
HM Chief Inspector
Directorate 5
May 2006
If you would like an additional copy of this report
Copies of this report have been sent to the Chief Executive of the local authority, elected members, the Head of the Education Service, other local authority officers, Members of the Scottish Parliament, Audit Scotland, heads of the local authority educational establishments, chairpersons of the local authority School Boards/Parents Associations and to other relevant individuals and agencies. Subject to availability, further copies may be obtained free of charge from HM Inspectorate of Education, Directorate 5, Denholm House, Almondvale Business Park, Almondvale Way, Livingston EH54 6GA or by telephoning 01506 600 380. Copies are also available on our website: www.hmie.gov.uk .
If you wish to comment about education authority inspections
Should you wish to comment on any aspect of education authority inspections, you should write in the first instance to Annette Bruton, HMCI, at HM Inspectorate of Education, Directorate 5, Denholm House, Almondvale Business Park, Almondvale Way, Livingston EH54 6GA.
Our complaints procedure
If you have a concern about this report, you should write in the first instance to Hazel Dewart, Business Management Unit, HM Inspectorate of Education, Denholm House Almondvale Business Park, Almondvale Way, Livingston EH54 6GA. A copy of our complaints procedure is available from this office or by telephoning 01506 600 258 or from our website at www.hmie.gov.uk .
If you are not satisfied with the action we have taken at the end of our complaints procedure, you can raise your complaint with the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman. The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman is fully independent and has powers to investigate complaints about Government departments and agencies. You should write to The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman, 4-6 Melville Street, Edinburgh EH3 7NS. You can also telephone 0870 011 5378 or e-mail enquiries@scottishombudsman.org.uk . More information about the Ombudsman’s office can be obtained from the website: www.scottishombudsman.org.uk .
Crown Copyright 2006
HM Inspectorate of Education
This report may be reproduced in whole or in part, except for commercial purposes or in connection with a prospectus or advertisement, provided that the source and date thereof are stated.
HM Inspectors use published criteria when making judgements about the work of a school. These performance indicators relate judgements to four levels of performance. This report uses the following word scale to make clear the judgements made by Inspectors:
| very good | major strengths |
| good | more strengths than weaknesses |
| fair | some important weaknesses |
| unsatisfactory | major weaknesses |
This report also uses the following words to describe numbers and proportions:
| almost all | over 90% |
| most | 75-90% |
| majority | 50-74% |
| less than half | 15-49% |
| few | up to 15% |
HM Inspectors undertake first-hand, independent evaluations of the quality of education. We publish our evaluations in clear and concise reports. Our inspections and reviews monitor how well schools, colleges and other providers of education are performing, and promote improvements in standards, quality and attainment in education.
We ensure that inspection and review activities include the full range of pupils or students in an educational establishment, giving due regard, without unfair discrimination, to disability, gender, religious persuasion, racial origin and cultural and linguistic background.
Each year we also investigate and publish reports on key aspects of education. Our collation, analysis and publication of the evidence and conclusions from all evaluations identify and promote best practice in improving standards and quality. We draw on the results of our evaluations, and our overall knowledge of the system, to provide independent professional advice to the Scottish Ministers, relevant departments of the Scottish Executive and others.
Further information on the work of HM Inspectorate of Education and its role in Scottish education is available on our website. You will also find easy access to our inspection and review reports and wide range of other publications. http://www.hmie.gov.uk
1. Quality Management in Education (HM Inspectors of Schools, 2000) is a framework of self-evaluation for Local Authority Education Departments.
2. The term ‘comparator authorities’ refers to the group of education authorities which are comparative to each other in terms of socio-economic and demographic factors.
3. Hungry for Success: A Whole School Approach to School Meals in Scotland,
Scottish Executive, November 2002.
4. Level 1 = Access 1. Level 2 = Access 2.
Level 3 = Standard Grade at Foundation Level or Access 3.
Level 4 = Standard Grade at General Level or Intermediate 1 at A — C.
Level 5 = Standard Grade at Credit Level or Intermediate 2 at A — C.
Level 6 = Higher at A — C. Level 7 = Advanced Higher at A — C.
5. Additional Support for Learning Act, SEED May 2004.