SCHOOL STANDARDS AND QUALITY REPORT 2018/19

Context of the school: Avoch Primary serves a very large geographical area of the Black Isle, covering 3 villages and other outlying areas, with most children being transported by bus, minibus or taxi. It serves a mixed economical area with most families in work. There are no children in decile 1 or 2 of SIMD, and free school dinner numbers are low, although for a variety of reasons, this may not be a true reflection of the community. The school is to receive £16,800 of PEF for session 19-20, in line with the previous two sessions.

Over just a few years, the school’s rising roll, from 8 classes and 1 nursery class to 11 classes and 2 nursery classes currently, has resulted in accommodation becoming very tight. As predicted the school will have outgrown its capacity for the start of the new school term in August 2019.

For the past two years, the school has been faced with the considerable challenge of being allocated a very large number of new teachers (12), almost all of whom were newly qualified or probationers; plus 5 EYPs, 2 new clericals and 2 PSAs. Within the SMT, the depute left mid- year and an acting Depute put in place to work alongside an already acting PT. Whilst the staff have shown a real commitment to the school and have worked hard to minimise the impact on learning, there has been significant pressure on the SMT to lead the school forward in the manner in which was planned. Some aspects of the SIP were started later than planned, resulting in the impact not being able to be measured until this coming session, and a few planned improvements will be required to be carried forward. The HT was accurate in the evaluation that there would be an impact on the school’s capacity for continuous improvement.

In term 1, a full QIO team visited the school over 3 days. They agreed with the school’s evaluations across the QIs and complimented the staff on the large number of strengths. As would be expected with the number of new teachers, the main improvement suggested was to ensure continuity of teaching between classes. With stability in staffing we are confident this will continue to improve and we will be able to return to the strong continuity that was evident in previous years.

School: Avoch Primary School

Head Teacher: Lorna Sim

Date submitted: June 2019

School Vision, Values and Aims:

Our vision

To work in partnership to nurture every pupil of Avoch Primary and nursery to be happy, healthy and achieving ~now and in their future life.

[vision created by parents, pupils and staff May 2017, reviewed May 2019]

Aims (the vision is embodied in our aims)

~nurture happy, healthy children

~work in partnerships within school, with parents and with the wider community

~create a safe, welcoming and positive learning and teaching environment where achievement is promoted and celebrated

~promote an ethos of inclusion, equality, fairness and mutual respect

~develop a shared culture of ambition; with high expectations of attainment and achievement for all

~promote a rich, experimental curriculum that enables our children to engage in high quality learning activities

~inspire life-long learning in our pupils, parents and staff; equipping pupils with skills for life, learning and work.

[Aims created in line with the new vision in May 2017, reviewed May 2019]

Values

Hardworking honest respectful kind

[values created by the pupils of Avoch Primary for the pupils and staff]

Summary of Standards and Quality Report/School Improvement Plan engagement process:Participants Engagement detailsTeachers and other staff, including ELC staff

Collegiate school improvement- on 20.8.18, 21.8.18, 17.9.18, 18.9.18, 30.10.18 6.11.18, 27.11.18, 4.12.18, 15.1.19, 22.1.19, 29.1.19,12.2.19, 20.2.19, 12.3.18, 23.4.19, 30.4.19, 28.5.19(see collegiate activities agreement & Calendar) Staff session on self-evaluation of priorities/QIs –4.9.18, 17.9.18, 18.9.18 25.9.18, 8.1.19, 5.2.19, 20.2.19, 7.5.19, 3.6.19, 4,6,19Staff Peer observations and discussion- weeks beginning- 5.11.18/12.11.18; 29,4.19/ 6.5.19 plus ongoing, including walk- a- boutsSMT meetings re SIP- ongoing both formal and informalStage partners discussions- 18.9.18, 25.9.18, 2.10.19; 4.12.18, 26.2.19; 2.4.19, 11,6,19, 18.6.19, 20.6.19, 25,6,19, 27,6,19~GIRFEC teachers discussions - 9.10.18, 30.10.18, 5.3.19Fortnightly nursery meetings with DHTPSA additional meetings with PT~child protection training all staff- 19.11.18~mental health training- all staff invited- 4.3.19. 11.3.19.18.3.19. 25,3,19

Parents Council Meeting on 10.9.18, 12.11.18, 4.3.19, 29.4.19, 17.6.19Chair only- 7,9.18Parent Information Evenings on SIP [raising attainment]; how to help your P1 child at home 6.9.18,; Read, write count information session- 15.11.18; preparing your child for school-7.3.19, assessment info evening- 7.2.19, nursery info session- 17.6.19; introduction to Seesaw online tool 7.2.19open afternoon- 5.9.18, 31.1.19Parental survey- at open days and progress eveningsProgress information evenings- 20.11.18, 22.11.18, 26.3.19, 28.3.19Parent improvement group (tea and talk)- 19.11.18, 7.3.19Input to QIV- 3/4/5.10.18

Pupils Pupil Council meetings-4.9.18, 2.10.18. 3.12.18, 14.2.19 27.2.19. 28.3.19, 8.5.19Pupil survey carried out (by Pupil Council)house captains- informal captains conversations about school improvement-21.9.18, 20.11.19, 24.1.19, 20,3,19, 17.5.19learning meets- 7.9,18, 26.9.18, 19.11.18, 3.12.18, 21.1.19eco group- 27.9.18, 10.11.18, 4.12.18, 24.1.19, 5.2.19, 14.5.19walk about (self-evaluation)- 1.2.19Input to QIV- 3/4/5.10.18

Volunteers Input to QIV- 3/4/5.10.18

working in school Informal discussionsvisitor/volunteer survey sheets

Other partners ~QIV sharing and discussions- 3.10.18. 4.10.18 and 5.10.18~Monthly meetings with Primary mental health and Educational psychologistInput to QIV- 3/4/5.10.18~transition meetings with secondary staff and health visitors- ongoingInformal discussionDiscussion as part of GIRFEC meetings

Associated Schools Group

moderation priority meeting- 5.9.18, 14.11.18reading for information moderation – all teachers 13.9.18, 20.2.19Other meetings which include school improvement- 10.10.18, 19.1.19, 22.1.19, 5.3.19, 21.5.19, 19.6.19

Review of School Improvement Work (session 2018/19) against the National Improvement Priorities

What have we done to close the attainment gap?Priority 2-Raising attainment in literacy and numeracy/closing the attainment gap and priority 2- The Learners’ journeyWe identified the ‘gap’. As whole a cohort FSM were slightly below the school attainment levels. However, individually most were on track and a few were doing very well. SIMD is at least 6 for our catchment area.This meant that we took account of FSM and SIMD but needed to look at all the other factors which may influence attainment.Absence- This is a contributing factor for a number of our pupils. We tracked absence and discussed this with parents at regular points throughout the year. Additional appointments were made at parents nights to try to help the parents to improve their child’s attendance.Emotional well-being- this was identified as a factor –See below ‘what have we done to improve young people’s health and well- being?’ (£7000 of PEF allocated)Attainment in literacy and numeracy- We tracked children progress and highlighted those just below attaining a level. We targeted these children for additional small group or one to one support (‘Springboard group’).Family learning- opportunities were created for joint family learning to help parents support their children. We held maths workshops for parents and their children, and we taught parents alongside their children in open doors sessions in the class- this year was reading for information.Family engagement- We increased our family engagement through the development of seesaw online sharing tool (£2000 of PEF allocated). We embedded high quality key assessments which were shared with parents and we created early level story sacks ( £2200 of PEF allocated). We organised a wide variety of parental information sessions (£800 of PEF allocated)

In addition we looked at what else could be done to raise attainment - The learners Journey-we embedded learning conversations in a more structured way across the school and nurseryliteracy- from previous data we knew we needed a focus on the tools for reading, comprehension and reading for information. We moderated this across the ASG.(£800 of PEF allocated)Early years- We had identified from nursery to P2/3 that in order to improve T&L and writing, imagination skills needed to be developed for a large proportion of our children. We therefore created more opportunities for imaginative development through play (£3000 of PEF allocated)

What have we done to raise attainment, particularly in Literacy and Numeracy? Priority 2-Raising attainment in literacy and numeracy/closing the attainment gapThis session we~We provided additional opportunities for the Early years to enhance their imagination skills in order to

improve both story writing and spoken vocabulary by Providing a range of additional resources specifically designed to fuel imagination Continuing the soft start approach and increasing opportunities for imaginative exploration Introducing a daily poem, song and story in the infants and ELC

~We interrogated the school’s data to target identified groups of children for individual or small group extra support eg

o The ‘Springboard’ group which consisted of children ‘not quite’ achieving the appropriate levelo The fine motor skills group for those who were not showing signs of being ready to writeo Pupils with dyslexia who did daily computerised programme ‘ Speedy Reader’

~ We had a whole school focus on improving comprehension skills and did this mainly through ‘Reading for information’ lessons. Teachers peer moderated within the school before taking part in an ASG moderation project.~We introduced staff buddies to help support all the new teachers in order to improve consistency in expectations in literacy and numeracy across the school. This was supported by inhouse training by the SMT. The ongoing discussions about expectations and HT/CT progress discussions helped support this.~ in maths we

o Trialled new maths books provided by the associated secondary school for P6 and P7o Introduced number of the day in P1o Continued with the Highland Numeracy programme in Early yearso Continued with a focus on basic maths skills from P2-P7 and play based learning in infants.

~ We worked hard to involve parents in supporting their child to learn, through Concise GIRFEC targets developed during supportive teacher/parent meetings Sharing ‘how can I help my child’ via class curriculum letters, newsletters, key assessments,

workshops~we offered joint family learning through

Continuation of our open doors project (each year has a new focus based on SIP- this year was ‘Reading for information’)

Our new parent/child maths learning after school sessions

For a number of reasons (see context of the school), we did not do all that we planned to do, or started it later than planned, meaning that it is too soon to evaluate the impact of some aspects.We want to continue to build consistency between classes and to ensure all staff have equally high expectations. This is corroborated when interrogating the 18/19 school data. The progress image in literacy and numeracy is mixed (see 3.2) at this stage, but is it expected that the interventions will have a more notable impact over the next 6 months when they become more embedded.

Through feedback we know that impact on parent/child learning has been very positive especially at the open doors sessions.

What have we done to improve children and young people’s health and wellbeing?: Priority 3-Continue to improve Health and well Being We believe that in order to have the best outcomes for the pupils and Avoch Primary and ELC, HWB needs to be a focus year on year. In the past session -~We promoted the HWB indicators in a more memorable format ie ‘Sunshine over Avoch’. The large Logo, displayed at both at the school and nursery entrances, has increased the way in which pupils, parents, staff and members of the community interact with them, and in a more meaningful way. Family learning has been boosted by the fridge magnets sent home and almost all pupils are beginning to be able to make connections between the indicators and aspects of school and home life. Our older pupils are tracking their HWB and this has shown increased personal awareness.~Emotional check-ins are now taking place in all classes. Although the method is not the same in each class, as suggested by QIV, staff believed that there needed to be a variety of formats to keep it relevant and engaging. Through this, children have developed a growing awareness of how to improve their own, and others’, wellbeing.~Circle time is more established across all classes, and the introduction of standardised but progressive well-being boxes has helped the teachers to structure the lesson to get the best outcome for pupils. Pupils tell us that regular circle time, ‘helps us to talk about difficult things and find solutions’ (P7 pupil) and 2 x teacher peer observations have been very positive with evaluative ratings as good ( 26%) or very good (57%)~94% of teaching staff, most EYPs and a few PSAs, opted in to do mental health training over 4 sessions, in their own time. This shows a high level of professionalism and desire to improve well-being

the outcomes for all. This will be introduced as a whole school programme over the session 19/20.~The HT created a safe and regular talking space for 7 bereaved children to share their experiences and begin to heal through an informal art therapy class. The parents, pupils & Educational Psychologist say it is a positive experience.~The whole school Equalities learning week has increased the staff and older pupils’ knowledge of the law behind the act. For almost all children their acceptance of others has been without question. However, across the school, all children have now increased their understanding, but at an age and stage appropriate level.~The creation of a sensory garden is a calm place for pupils with ASD. We can tell this is making a difference by their facial expressions and by observing their engagement.~We have continued with all the initiatives that have been in place for a number of years, for example, Fruity Friday, high use of outdoors, an all weather playtime policy, a very large number of after school sports clubs, run by teachers, non- shouting school policy, positive behaviour policy based on de-escalation and respect, effective use of GIRFEC, many extra-curricular opportunities, buddy support , a high focus on both internet safety and internet well-being etc. We believe it takes a ‘suite’ of interventions to best meet the needs of our pupils.

Our strong emphasis on putting HWB at the centre of the life and work at Avoch Primary and nursery has helped to build a successful and nurturing school for our pupils.

What have we done to improve employability skills and help our children and young people achieve sustained, positive school leaver destinations?Relevant Improvement Priority title/ school project: No direct project in session 208/19Improving employability skills, we believe, permeates throughout our curriculum. This session

~We continued to build the children’s STEM skills through taking part in the Young Engineers award, though our whole school monthly mixed-age STEM projects; through partnership working, for example, truck building with Jacob Construction and through inviting engineers to talk to pupils~We created a number of opportunities for pupils to learn through real life activities such as-

All pupils in the ELC and school created & evaluated a class business plan for their enterprise stall

Pupils ran community cafes, led a sibling creche at a 3x family learning sessions and organised and ran the school book Fayre to raise commission.

P5 organised and ran a family Beetle Drive for families and the other pupils organised an ran a successful fund- raising day for World book/Red Nose days

Pupils developed life/work skills by being part of the ECO group, Pupil Council, JRSO, librarian etc~Further skills, such as confidence and social, are being developed through opportunities such as

o pupils teaching younger pupils reading and number skills and buddying those with ASNo Each class leading their own citizenship project and presenting their findings at a sharing

assembly with pupils and parents. They taught others how to make a difference and this difference is evident within the community.

~Skills for work (and life) learning has been supported by teachers and other staff leading a whole school ‘money week’, equalities week, multi-cultural day and safer internet week

~Teachers have become better at pointing out explicit links between learning and employability and this is helping the children to see the connections~Pupils have been encouraged to think about their life and work skills within their homework and in

their key assessment evaluations, and older pupils are plotting their skills in their achievement books~visitors to the school have been interviewed by the pupils about their jobs and the P1s interviewed school staff about the skills they need for their job.

All of the above has increased the knowledge the pupils have about the world of work, has helped them build the skills they will need and has given them the confidence to be ambitious about their future career.

Our overall evaluation of the school’s capacity for continuous improvement:

* We are confident in our capacity for continuous improvement ☒

* We have some concerns about our capacity for continuous improvement ☐Comment:

QI 1.3Leadership of change

Themes (HGIOS?4) Developing a shared vision, values and aims

relevant to the school and its community Strategic planning for continuous improvement Implementing improvement and changeThemes (HGIOELC?) Developing a shared vision, values and aims

relevant to the ELC setting and its community Strategic planning for continuous improvement Implementing improvement and change

Question 1How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners? What are the features of effective practice in our school/ELC setting?

a) The whole school community had collectively developed a shared vision which now underpins all that we do. The aims support the vision. The values, created by the pupil body, are child friendly and therefore relevant to them in their school life. The vision, aims and values are promoted regularly and are linked directly to school improvement and pupil development. They have created, and now underpin a very positive and inclusive school ethos.The introduction of our ‘Sunshine over Avoch’ has added another layer to which pupils, parents, staff and the local community can fully relate. Throughout the school, pupils know these well -being indicators well and can explain how they enact them in their daily life at school and at home.

b) Staff at all levels fully understand the community in which the children live, and as a result, support families well to reduce potential barriers to learning. The SMT is particularly proactive in supporting identified families as and when required. This pastoral approach is evident within the school’s improvement agenda.

c) Senior management lead the school well, with high expectations for all permeating throughout the school, and they demonstrate that they are able to take a solution focused approach to deal with the many potential barriers to whole school improvement such as staffing, recruitment and budget restraints. The introduction of peer buddies has successfully supported new staff and empowered existing staff.

d) This continuous school improvement is based on sound evaluation, and up to date educational understanding sits at the heart of what we do. This is supported by the Hts work as an associate Assessor for HMIe. The quantity and quality of professional dialogue is high. All staff play an integral part of this process, which is planned strategically, and which focusses on improved outcomes for our children.

e) Teachers and most early years practitioners support staff are keen to lead aspects of school improvement. They work reflectively in groups or individually, and can offer further initiatives to support identified school improvements.

f) All pupils are involved in improving life for themselves, the school and wider afield through their class citizenship groups. As a result, their knowledge and understanding of world-wide issues is increasing and they inform others at each class’ sharing assembly. In addition, pupil groups such as Pupil Council, house captains, Eco group and JRSOs help to identify and take forward improvements that are important to them.

g) The parent council and parent improvement group identify and lead aspects of school improvement such as nutrition, and the whole parent body contributes to other aspects such as evaluating the work of the school and bringing suggestions forward for discussion.

h) There is a strong planned PDR process for all staff which encourages and supports further professional development. Almost all teachers are very able to reflect against the GTC standards. Links are also made to identified school improvements. The HT directs staff to additional international studies, data and initiatives, and shares up to date thinking directly from her work as an AA for HMIe. Opportunities are created for staff to share practice, both within and outwith the school, and to learn from others. Moderation is also undertaken as an ASG which is supporting a professional understanding of standards.

i) Staff have a high level of professional integrity, with almost all teachers, EYPS and some support staff regularly embarking on further reading, learning and study, some for additional qualifications and professional recognition.

Question 2 How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our learners?

a) Almost all older pupils are able to talk about the impact of the school’s vision, aims and values on themselves and others; with younger pupils relating more to the ‘Sunshine over Avoch’

well- being indicators. Each family received a fridge magnet and the sunshine is on display in every class, in newsletters and at both the school and the nursery entrances. The vision, values and indicators are used in assembly and form the basis for circle time class lessons. When asked, pupils, parents and staff can articulate what the school is all about, where it’s going and the part they play in this. A concise, pupil/parent friendly version of the SIP has helped to engage them further.

b) The recent survey indicated that parents and pupils feel well supported at school. Families facing health and other issues say they appreciate that they can discuss sensitive matters in confidence with the HT and feel supported. Parents highlighted how much they value this additional type of support to the QIO team

c) Last session’s survey indicated that 97% of parents believe the school is well led. This is also evident by observing the excellent pupil behaviour and their very positive attitude to school. Further information can be gleaned from parental and community feedback and from the ethos of the school, which is often the aspect most visitors comment on first.

d) Continuous school improvement can be tracked through the paperwork in place to support it, such as current and previous standards and quality reports and improvement plans, the annual CPD calendar, the staff and the management plans, class observations, monitoring of pupil work, parent/staff/pupil evaluations and feedback etc. A wide range of data is interrogated.

e) INSET and staff minutes indicate opportunity for individual and group improvement, leadership and action taken. The impact on learners is evidenced within each teacher’s own CPD evaluations and in the detail of other QIs in this S&Q report. In addition, Peer observations and teacher buddy support have helped improve practice and have started to impact on more continuity across classes and the ASG. The introduction of a staff buddy system has been supportive and helped to minimize the impact on the SIP of having a large number of new staff.

f) The pupils have their own PIP (Pupil Improvement Plan) into which every pupil in the school has a say. The impact of the PIP is evaluated and next steps formed. Each class’s citizenship group, in addition to the ECO group, helps them to make a difference to the school, the community and further afield. As a result, they now understand how their voice and actions can and do make a difference. A solution focused approach is taken during HT/house captain meetings which has empowered these pupils to make school improvements themselves. The SMT also gathers evidence through mixed age pupil learning meets. This is shared with all teachers and a mini action plan formed.

g) Parental views directly inform practice. This session parents were asked about the impact of the open doors, seasaw and maths learning together opportunities, and what they would like to see in next session’s school improvement plan.The parent improvement group attracts small numbers so giving the whole school body opportunities to give opinions works better eg at parents’ evenings. We encourage input from grandparents to get a wider view on school improvement. Visitors evaluations are used to widen our sources of evidence.

h) /I) The impact of staff integrity and professional development can be observed in almost all class lessons and within the evaluation section of each teacher’s CPD profile. ASG Moderation of teaching, learning and the impact on pupils of the reading for information lessons this session has resulted in teachers refining what they do. In--school moderation has focused primarily on social and emotional support for our pupils and this has been boosted recently by most staff collectively opting into and engaging with additional learning delivered by mental health practitioners out with school hours. This 4 week course, based on cognitive behaviour therapy is designed to help us to support our most vulnerable children. This priority had been identified via the evaluation process last year by staff and will be built upon in our next SIP.

Question 3 What could we do now? What actions would move us forward?~ Working with the pupil body, consider if the Sunshine Over Avoch should replace our current values~ build consistency across the school in promoting the vision, values and sunshine; making stronger links with learning~ Look for ways to increase participation face to face with parents & other stakeholders re school improvement Group. Consider a video link at information sessions.~build a staff improvement group (opt in) and nursery leadership group~Redo whole school in-depth survey in 2020 (3 year cycle)~Find ways to Include secondary in ASG moderation more often~ Create further leadership opportunities for newer staff and support staff to support improvement activity~further encourage staff to visit other schools outwith ASG~consider having a 3- year SIP to help manage challenges such as new staff

What is your current evaluation of this QI using the How good is our school? (4th edition) and How good is our early learning and Childcare? six-point scale?

very good

QI 2.3Learning, teaching and assessment

Themes (HGIOS?4) Learning and engagement Quality of teaching Effective use of assessment Planning, tracking and monitoringThemes (HGIOELC?) Learning and engagement Quality of interactions Effective use of assessment Planning, tracking and monitoring

Question 1How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners? What are the features of effective practice in our school/ELC setting?

a) There is a very welcoming ethos and nurturing environment which is built on positive relationships and a shared respect across the school community. The school values, created and promoted by the pupils themselves, underpin the culture of the school. Our pupils feel valued, safe and secure, and as a result, are full participants in their learning. They are highly motivated learners who are given many opportunities to develop leadership and build resilience.

b) Despite the number of new staff over the past session, almost of our school staff have developed high expectations, and this has impacted positively on engagement, learning and behaviour. Our teachers are motivated, they approach their teaching in creative ways and work effectively as a team in order to fully engage the children in their learning. They provide extensive opportunities for wider learning in a variety of contexts and environments, including outdoors. Lessons are relevant and help build skills for learning, life and work. Now that the school has a considerably higher number of devices, digital technology is increasingly enriching learning.

Almost all teachers are able to get the best from their pupils, through clear explanations, robust use of success criteria and high- level questioning.

c) Our pupils are successful learners, both in and out of school, and through which they show developing independence and confidence. They play an active role in the life of the school and are effective contributors in the local community and wider afield.

d) In most classes, learning is well match to pupils’ needs, providing support and challenge, and pupils are encouraged to make increasing choices about how and what they learn.

e) Pupils understand and can talk about their learning, their strengths and their next steps through teacher/pupil feedback and discussions. They mostly receive high quality feedback from teachers which impacts on their learning. From nursery to P7, pupils are progressively building the skills needed to be able to give effective feedback to their peers.

f) There is a robust Learning, Teaching and Assessment cycle policy which drives a whole school approach. Re-visiting the policy regularly promotes high quality staff discussions and allows our teaching, learning and assessment to stay relevant and progressive. Its use plays a fundamental part in ensuring a joined up approach to planning, teaching, learning, assessing and reporting.A wide range of assessment approaches and contexts are used to support learning and to build skills, knowledge and understanding. Effective Key assessments have become embedded are being used in a summative and diagnostic way and as a tool to support pupil/teacher/parent discussions.

g) Almost all teachers are skilled at working collaboratively to build an accurate picture of learning by cross referencing evidence from a variety of sources, such as observing, and other formative assessment, diagnostic testing and tracking, and use this to plan further learning, to report to parents and also in professional discussions.

h) Staff moderate pupil learning through a planned programme including - whole school discussion, planning and tracking with stage partners, sharing of pupil work both in school and from Educational websites and professional reading. A successful moderation of teaching, learning and assessment of Reading for Information was initiated this session with the staff across the ASG. Staff observed teaching and learning in other schools and this work has impacted on their understanding of standards.

i) To best meet the needs of our pupils, we use reflective planning on an on-going basis. This is effective in ensuring planning is part of the Learning, Teaching and Assessment cycle. Alongside this, our pupils benefit from a wide range of other types of planning across the curriculum, which take account of the 7 principles of curriculum design. Pupils are involved in many aspects of planning and are more able to take responsibility through planning their individual learning through the self-evaluation and setting of literacy, numeracy and HWB targets, as well as IDL, and by reflecting on progress in their folio of work.

Question 2

QI 3.1Ensuring wellbeing, equality and inclusion

Themes (HGIOS?4) Wellbeing Fulfilment of statutory duties Inclusion and equalityThemes (HGIOELC) Wellbeing Fulfilment of statutory duties Inclusion and equality

Question 1How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners? What are the features of effective practice in our school/ELC setting?

a) Relationships between pupils, staff, parents and the wider community are strong, and are underpinned by mutual respect. The school actively promotes the wellbeing of the children and supports them to feel safe, healthy, achieving, nurtured, respected, responsible and included. Our parents are full partners in the support of the HWB of their child.

b) Parents feel comfortable bringing HWB concerns to the attention of the CTs or SMT or vice versa through a robust GIRFEC approach. SMT are skilled at supporting both parents and pupils directly or through referral, to help minimise personal difficulties, and this has made a positive difference to the wellbeing of their child. Teachers and other staff support each other well to ensure best practice is consistent for our pupils.

c) Pupils at Avoch make good development progress in HWB. We track each child’s social, emotional and mental well-being pathway, supporting them where required and we help them to set and reflect on their own HWB targets. In addition, regular formal/informal discussions between EYPS or CTs and SMT about children’s HWB and progress results in timeous intervention and an extensive programme of support is devised making the best use of the resources available.

d) The school’s positive behaviour policy, which includes a unique adult ‘non shouting’ clause, was devised by all stakeholders and is supported by all. As a school community, we all have the same values and high expectations of pupil behaviour. Everyone shares the responsibility for promoting positive behaviour and consideration for others, and as a result, behaviour is very good. Where difficulties arise for pupils, all staff work together following the same de-escalation protocol, to best support pupils. The SMT take the lead where more serious incidents occur. They successfully use strategies to ensure all children’s views are heard and that joint solutions are found. Parents are fully involved.

e) We have a variety of initiatives in place to help our children to continue to build self- help skills such as, through Resilience Kids, safer internet week with ‘Safe, strong, Free’ in the nursery. Internet use has been highlighted as impacting of the wellbeing of our pupils so we have continued with both set teaching time eg internet safety week and ongoing education for both pupils and parents. Individual issues have been discussed directly with pupils and their parents.

f) The school takes a proactive approach to educating the children and their families in matters such as healthy eating, exercise, keeping safe in the sun and keeping our teeth healthy. There are a wide range of opportunities to promote health such as the newly introduced daily skip [in place of the more well-known daily mile]; being creative in order to ensure at least 2 hours of PE when facilities are tight; making best use of the extensive outdoor space; through a vast range of extra-curricular sporting experiences led by staff etc. We also follow a unique ‘all weather’ policy to ensure children experience outdoor play every day.In the nursery there is also regular teeth brushing, teaching through preparation of healthy snacks and a third of their time is spent in the extensive grounds, where risk taking is encouraged, as well as having free flow inside/outside system.

g) We believe that seeing success impacts on well- being and we therefore do much to ensure all children feel success. See achievement section in 3.2

h) Staff understand and, with support from the HT, fulfil statutory requirements to ensure the wellbeing, and safety of our children and each other.

i) Staff work well together to ensure inclusion and to prevent discrimination. The learning environment is used creatively to support inclusion and to ensure dignity and privacy in personal care. Although space and resources are not without challenge, staff are committed to provide a fair and inclusive environment. We find non- intrusive ways of supporting children and families where deprivation is a factor.

Question 2How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our learners?

a) The ethos of the school is very positive, and this is recognised by visitors, members of the community, parents and grandparents, staff and pupils, through emails, letters, verbal comments and through the school’s Facebook page. It is also evident by talking to pupils and staff and visiting any part of the school. In the 17-2018 survey*, 97% of parents state their child is treated with respect, 98% say the school encourages their child to treat others respectfully and 98% say their child likes being at Avoch school and nursery. Through discussion, observations and because of the very low number of behaviour incidents, we know our pupils are happy at school. The introduction of the school’s ‘sunshine over Avoch’ logo has created a focus against which pupils can be guided to make good choices and understand their entitlements. We share it in assembly and with families through displays, newsletters and in gifting a family fridge magnet, all of which is to encourage joint use of language. The sunshine is used as a basis for social emotional learning and within circle time in classes which is ensuring continuity throughout the school.

b) Parents and staff together are successful at resolving or reducing concerns through additional targeted support, and this can be seen through the management of the GIRFEC approach, including child plans which include parents and pupil voice. For example, specific school interventions this session include the regular art therapy group has allowed our bereaved children to share their experiences with each other, in a safe and supportive environment. Attendance for our bereaved pupils is above the school average (97% compared to 95.8%). Our educational psychologist speaks very highly of the impact this initiative is having on these pupils.We help families where deprivation is a factor through for example monetary support for trips and recycled uniform.

c) Pupils have individualised pathways in both school and nursery, which goes with them from class to class. They also have their own personal HWB tracking and targets, located within their folios and which are sent home for sharing and discussion. At least one key assessment this session was HWB. We use transition passports for our most vulnerable children. Targeted support implemented by CT, EYPs, PSAs and peers is supporting pupils at risk of missing out, to progress in both learning and HWB. This, however, has had less of an impact than in previous years due to a greater % of pupils requiring the highest level of support but with the same human resources available.

d) The impact of the school’s nurturing yet robust positive behaviour protocol can be seen in the pupils themselves both in school and when representing the school. There has been a significant reduction in exclusions over time to 0% in the last two years. Communication from visitor and members of the community support our judgement. As a result, pupils are ready to learn, and their emotional needs better met. Class teachers and PSAs keep records of incident action taken as does the SMT with more serious incidents. If of a racial or bullying nature, these are noted in the Seemis system, taking into consideration age, intent and understanding. This session, there have been one such incident. In the 17-2018 survey, 96% of parents and 90% pupils say that they/their child has either not experienced bullying or that it has been dealt with well.

e) This session’s work on building social and emotional skills within the circle time approach has built confidence and is providing additional opportunities to help the children to take a solution focused approach to issues, and the implementation of the ‘Decider skills’ next session will enhance this further. Parents report that they use the ‘sunshine’ home/school tool to discuss issues with their child.

f) Almost all our children are fit and healthy and want to be outdoors. Their good fitness levels have been commented on by visitors and specialist PE teachers. They do particularly well in stamina competitions such as cross country and orienteering. Almost all children have good interpersonal skills developed through free play such as den building and football. There is high uptake of places in extra-curricular sports, including a very successful P1-3 outdoor adventure club which catered for 80 children over the winter. We track participation levels, both in and out of school, and specifically target those at risk of missing out. Year on year there is a small % reduction in those at risk from &.6% in 2015 to 7% in 2019.There has been an improvement in teeth care in P7, rising from 80% in low risk category to 89% but a significant fall in P1 from 85% to 72% in the low risk category.

g) See achievement section in 3.2h) To keep children at Avoch safe from harm:

~all staff follow our safe guarding policy~all staff receive regular training in child protection and understand their responsibilities within this. SMT record CP concerns securely, passing them onwards as deemed appropriate.~all staff follow the school’s care and welfare policy, which is revisited annually~a robust medicine policy is adhered to by all staff, ensuring that children are safe, and all PSAs and EYPs are up to date in their 1st aid training.~to give the best care, all staff receive additional information and/or training to best support

children with higher levels of medical requirements~all staff undergo annual training in asbestos management, fire regulations, emergency evacuation and lock down procedures, confidentiality, data protection, anti-racism/anti bullying.

i) Teachers, EYPs and PSAs are highly trained in the best approaches to ensure inclusion for those with complex needs and most show a commitment to further understanding through professional reading/learning. Those at the early stages of their career or who lack confidence are supported well to fulfil their responsibility. Through a strong school example, pupils are developing a fair and inclusive approach towards each other and this can be seen across the school community. Participation in Dyslexia awareness week and assemblies led by a secondary pupil with autism and by downs syndrome Scotland has helped children to better understand other pupil’s needsLatterly this session, work has been done with the school’s equities and diversity policy, and a focused

learning week for both pupils and staff has helped to ensure that all stakeholders fully understand and comply with the law. *49% return for parental survey

Question 3What could we do now? What actions would move us forward?

~ ensure that the positive impact of circle time is consolidated over the next session~introduce the ‘Decider skills’ as whole school strategy~offer Parent resilient training (from last year SIP) with educational Psychologist~ Build on work begun on equalities and diversity and update policy~empower all staff to ensure the learning environment is conducive to the best possible outcomes for all our pupils~create more opportunities for energetic physical play in the nursey, and build independence and risk taking through this.~ensure that by P7, pupils understand can talk about the United Nations ‘Rights of the Child’~Continue to Look at ways to create and staff a nurturing space for our early years pupils with highly complex learning needs~Pull together all that we do into a HWB policy~Across the school community, find ways of evidencing the impact of HWB input, equality and inclusion.

What is your current evaluation of this QI using the How good is our school? (4th edition) and How good is our early learning and childcare? six-point scale?

very good

QI 3.2Raising attainment and achievement/Ensuring children’s progress

Themes (HGIOS?4) Attainment in literacy and numeracy Attainment over time Overall quality of learners’ achievement Equity for all learnersThemes (HGIOELC?) Progress in communication, early language,

mathematics, health and wellbeing Children’s progress over time Overall quality of children’s achievement Ensuring equity for all children

Question 1How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners? What are the features of effective practice in our school/ELC setting?

a) Where are we now? ~There is an increased number of children in P1 with specific high level identified learning difficulties (GIRFEC levels 2-4), from 7% in 2017-18 to 23% in 18-19 and this has impacted on the achievement of a level in the 2019 data. P4’s range is between 79% and 98% and P7 range is closer at 85%-88%.~Snapshots of pupil individual progress in reading, writing, maths, numeracy and Listening & talking paint the same picture as both the standardised assessments (SNSA) and the achievement of a level data.~Looking a SNSA, the evidence supports teacher judgements in almost all children. Where there have been discrepancies, further evidence has been sought.~All pupils in Primary 1 have made progress in emerging literacy~Overall, our pre-school nursery 4 year-olds are doing well. There are particular strengths in gross motor skills, which could be attributed to the increase in outdoor play.

b) Where are we now? Comparison against Highland and Nationally ~ The school compares well when looking at achievement of a level in P4 and P7, against Highland and Scotland as a whole. P1 is above in listening and talking and numeracy against Highland but below the Scottish average.(This is 2018 data (highland) & 2017 (Scotland) as the 2019 comparison data has yet to be published)~ Looking at SNSA (2019 standardised assessments), P7 are doing particularly well across all aspects; P4 shows a wider range but is on par in all. Overall P1 is doing less well.

C) Attainment over TimeFrom 2016-2019, it is a mixed picture when looking at achievement of a level. The following cohorts- P21 in 2016 and now P4, and P4 in 2016 and now P7, show some significant improvements in children achieving age and stage in all aspects except P1 to 4 numeracy. Writing from p4 to p7 indicates a strong improvement.

~Tracking of individuals over time~Teachers track skills termly in reading, writing, maths, numeracy, L& T and HWB and this shows an improvement over time for our learners.

~ Pre-school development of skills are tracked for each child in nursery 4 and into P1. As a result, individual children are targeted for support.~In addition, the whole year group’s skills development is collated to look for trends with additional experiences being offered to all in aspects where the general % is lower.

d) specific cohorts of pupils

~EAL~Our older EAL pupils are progressing very well against the general cohort of pupils in all

aspects, however our Early pupils are doing less well with only 25% are on track.

SIMD band 13-14 (Avoch’s lowest currently)~pupils in our lowest SIMD band are not disadvantaged in terms of achieving a level. This may be because bands 13-14 are not particularly low(universal band 7).

Care Experienced (LAC)~ We are vigilant with care experienced children to ensure appropriate support, where identified.

Bereavement, separation and lossA significant number of young pupils have experienced the death of a parent over the past 24 months. A further group of children have suffered a family break up.They are well supported through school interventions, crocus, CSW and their families.

~ Tracking in HWB shows that almost all children are achieving appropriate levels.

e)Achievements - ~Across the school and nursery, children are able to talk about their personal achievements, which are promoted, shared and celebrated.~96% (an increase of 2%) of children have opportunities for out of school achievements. Through monitoring, identified children who are at risk of missing out are given additional in-house opportunities and/or we look for ways to support these children to take part in after school activities.

f)Attendance and Impact~ Attendance currently and over time, is just above both highland and nationally. However we believe that this could and should be improved, taking account of our catchment area.Over time our attendance has slowly increased.

~our FSM children have good attendance averaging 95% which is the average for the school.~Our bereaved children sit just below the school average at 94.6% which is more in line with Highland and Scotland

~Unauthorised-There is a high number of lost learning days due to parental holidays and other unauthorised absences

Question 2How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our learners?Please see Data filea)May 2019% L&T Reading Writing NumeracyP1 86 60 60 74P4 98 81 81 79P7 88 85 88 85School average

91 75 76 73

~ Pupils keep best and latest work, marked against success criteria in their folios. In addition, teachers create a summary of pupil progress and performance which is reported to parents. Standards are in line across all evidence.~POLAAR (primary one literacy assessment action resources) indicates that 100% have made progress over the previous 6 months. However, a large number have not yet reached the appropriate level. The very high level of significant ASN has resulted in less additional support being available for the general cohort of P1, many of whom has been identifies the previous year as being developmentally delayed. These findings are supported by the school’s other evidence.

~nursery track skills for every 4 year-olds and target the areas that need developed. Although social/emotional continues to be an aspect that requires further input, it has improved year on year.

b)Against Highland-~ The average achievement of the appropriate level in L&T and numeracy is higher in Avoch compared to Highland. In P4 and P7, it is above Highland in reading & writing but in P1 both reading writing sits below the Highland average.HIGHLANDMay 2018%

L&T Reading Writing Numeracy

P1 72 69 65 72P4 72 63 58 65P7 77 70 62 65

~ against Scotland (SNSA 2019 data)P7 sits well above the national norm in reading and numeracy and significantly above in writing. The range sits a higher level than Scotland. The middle 50% is in line in numeracy but above generally in reading. Our highest attainers do better than nationally.P4 Reading has a wider range than nationally meaning Avoch as more pupils at the top and more at the bottom. The top 20% do better than the top 20% nationally but there are a few children attaining a minimum standard. These pupils have identified ASN (dyslexia). In writing P4 fits the national picture but with fewer high attaining pupils.Numeracy in P4 is in line with the norm, but with a slightly wider range. P1 in literacy average is below the national norm. We have a bigger range with our best pupils matching the national standards. Just over 5% of our pupils achieved the starting level of band 1, compared to 0 pupils in the National group. However we need to consider the high level of ASN levels (27% are GIRFEC level 2 and above). Children with no or low level ASN are doing very well against the National standard. As a school we made the decision this year to only give minimal support and less than was suggested in the Guidelines as we felt last year’s data did not truly reflect the ability of our whole cohort of children.Numeracy again has a wider range with our top 5% doing better than the norm. However our middle 50% sit below.

c)~achievement of a level over time

% L&T Reading writing numeracy

2018-19P1 86 60 60 74P4 98 81 81 79P7 88 85 88 85

2017-18P1 90 80 80 87P4 94 82 70 67P7 89 84 82 82

2016-17P1 100 97 87 90P4 97 84 84 81P7 89 83 78 78

2015-16P1 95 72 67 86P4 89 85 59 74P7 74 84 81 67

There has been a decline in in listening and talking across all three cohorts; a decline in reading in P1 & P4; and in P1s writing.There have been increases in reading, writing and numeracy by P7, with pupils in P4 showing a dip last year and a recovery this year in writing and numeracy.However, taking account of where P1 were at the beginning of the year, there has been a significant improvement, especially in listening and talking.

~Tracking shows that almost all our children make good progress from their prior levels.~ Through tracking of progress and attainment levels and ongoing class observations and assessments, teachers intervene timeously where pupils show a dip in their learning or that their progress is at a slow pace. This is supported through planned discussions between SMT & teachers and evidenced across the work of the school, in CT/SMT minutes and in the resulting plans of action.

~ An average of 83% of nursery 4 children are individually on track in their development of skills. This is a increase from 2018 when there was a significant number of children with a high level of ASN (4 children on level 4) who are now in P1.~In 2019, the tracking shows a similar trend across all aspects, with social/emotional and imaginative as the most significant aspects to develop. General achievement in routines is impacted by only 47% being able to focus on one activity until completed. Communication is particularly strong.

d) specific cohorts of pupilsFSM93% of FSM have achieved the appropriate level in writing, 87% in reading and 93% in numeracy in comparison to 76%, 75% and 73% (June 2019 school data- whole school) However when looking ahead, 53% are at risk of not meeting their next target in one or more aspect. 60% of FSM have ASN compared to 32% as a school and 17% of FSM have suffered the death of a parent. All are higher than SIMD band 13 (national SIMD band 6)

~ EAL % is at 99.28% in L&T, 98.21% in writing, 98.28% in reading and 99.28% in numeracy (June 2019 school data- whole school) which is above the whole school average. However EAL pupils do less well in infants.

~SIMD 12-14 pupils are performing exactly the same in writing , reading and numeracy (June 2019 school data- whole school)

Bereaved/Trauma~ Although, at times and as expected, they have shown signs of distress, none of the children have shown a dip in their achievement/attainment.

E)~ All our children have at least 2 hours of physical exercise per week. A snapshot of this is taken twice a year.~In addition, the school’s all-weather policy ensures that all children are experiencing free outdoor exercise and play twice a day.~The nursery policy facilitates at last one hour of outdoor learning and play per day, in all weathers plus free play in an outdoor area on most days.~Our outdoor whole school policy helps develop our children’s HWB.

~ The pupils, parents, staff and the local community are proud of the school. At Golden assemblies the children demonstrate that they are proud of others as well as themselves. They encourage each other at events such as sports, and~Pupils of all ages share their achievements in their achievement books, in the golden book and in their weekly homework.~Monthly challenges are set for each class and displayed in the main corridor. These include Super Star writer’s, perfect Punctuation People, Magic Maths Champions and Golden pencil awards for handwriting. Other challenges such as the annual 1st Minister’s reading challenge are also in display. These displays encourage others to do their best.

~Non-academic achievements are celebrated and displayed prominently which include charity work, helping in the community, sporting trophies and a large number of photos.~Other opportunities for experiencing achievement come through a large amount of both in school and out of school opportunities. There are also buddies, tutors and volunteer groups such as Junior librarians.~achievements both in and out of school are tracked and gaps ‘plugged’~There are 19 children (7%) who at May 2019 did not have any opportunities for out of school achievements. FSM children are additionally tracked to ensure they have increased opportunities. 3 of 19 children at risk of missing out are FSM (15%)

f)~ 21 children have attendance rates of below 90% (May 2019). This represents 7.5% of our children. This has decreased from last year (9%) 6 (down from 7) children have attendance of between 70-85%. Of these only 50% (up from43%) are achieving the appropriate level in reading, writing and numeracy. 0% of these children are performing beyond their expected age/stage in any of the aspects

~two of our FSM children fall into this category.

~at the time of writing (28.4.19), 20% (down from 33%) of our children have taken family holidays during school term time and 26% (down from 37%) have had other unauthorised days (eg family days)A total of 430 days (1.02%) have been lost through unauthorised absence (this has decreased slightly from 453 in year 2017/18 and 444 in 16/17). It is also below both Highland and Scotland.

Action currently taken-Currently the HT sends home letters to make parents aware, we give information about the impact of good attendance in newsletters and seek advice from other agencies eg health.The HT also speaks to parents at parent’s night to make plans to help them be at school more often.

SCHOOL% Actual Attendances

% Authorised Absences

% Unauthorised Absences

No of Exclusions and Rates per 1000 Pupils

No Pupils Excluded and Rate per 1000 Pupils

AVOCH Primary 2017-18 95.32% 3.61% 1.07% 0 0

AVOCH Primary 2018-19 95.88% 0 0

Highland Primary (2017-18) 94.5% 4.3% 1.2% 5/1000 3/1000

Scotland Primary (2016-17) 94.9% 3.4% 1.6% 11/1000 5/1000

Question 3What could we do now? What actions would move us forward?

In nursery target overview areas per weekTarget P2 to close the gap.Hop on for P1 into P2EAL group youngesttarget those ‘just not’ achieving a levelsee also actions in 2.2 and 2.3

What is your current evaluation of this QI using the How good is our school? (4th edition) and How good is our early learning and childcare? six-point scale?

good

KEY THEMEfrom QI 2.2Curriculum

Theme 3 (HGIOS?4) Learning pathways Rationale and design (extra choice theme) Development of the curriculum (extra choice theme) Skills for learning, life and work (extra choice theme)

Theme 3 (HGIOELC?) Learning and development pathways

Question 1How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners? What are the features of effective practice in our school/ELC setting?

a) The children of Avoch experience a broad curriculum, across all curriculum areas and contexts, and one which is based on the 7 principles of curriculum design. Planning for learning is reflective and therefore creates ideal conditions for flexible pathways. Most teachers have embedded the good practice of building new learning on the foundations of previous learning, and have created opportunities for child directed learning to help to tailor the curriculum to best meet needs. Further pathways are created through the individualised tracking of skills in literacy, numeracy and health & well- being.In nursery and early years, developmental tracking, and the gathering of the data from this, directs future opportunities to improve skills.Children with the highest level of ASN access a flexible curriculum through individualised educational programmes, whilst others have an adapted and/or supported curriculum.

b) To continue to raise attainment, literacy, numeracy and HWB have a higher focus and time allocation, and there is an emphasis on promoting skills in these areas across all learning. Across all subject areas, progression frameworks have been used as a reference of national standards, which still allows for flexible routes for learners. There is an increase in the use of bench marks to match national expectations. Learning is enhanced by using a variety of environments, especially outdoors, which is planned for and is a strong feature of our curriculum. An all-weather policy, coupled with extensive and varied sporting opportunities, has impacted on children’ health and wellbeing.

c) Our children experience a relevant curriculum which aspires to continually improve outcomes for learners, firmly rooted on high attainment and achievement for all. Our rationale, created with input from staff, pupils and parents, is embedded within our vision and is both creative and informed by National guidance. It takes account of today’s learners and learners of tomorrow.

d) The 4 contexts for learning are embedded in our curriculum with the Ethos and ‘life of the school’ being at the very centre of what we do. Children’s high-quality experiences are as a result of the strong ethos, which is founded on respect, inclusion and equity. Teachers and EYPs take account of the local area and capitalise on our school setting. Outdoor learning and learning outdoors is a key strength of the school and ELC. Creativity is embedded across the curriculum.

e) The involvement of the pupils in the life of the school contributes to the positive ethos. Pupils are involved in decision making and taking responsibility is a key aim for all. They contribute successfully as leaders of learning and as role models, and play a key role in supporting others. Shared opportunities to learn together, across ages/stages enhance learning.

f) Teachers and ELC practitioners plan work to ensure the curriculum is fully covered; that entitlements are met and to avoid duplication for composite classes. The Reflective Medium-term planning is effective as it allows for adjustments to pace, challenge and support to best meet the needs of all learners. Assessment is highlighted at the planning stage.

g) In the early setting the learning is led by the children and is based on play. Across the school a mix of interdisciplinary learning and learning within curriculum areas creates coherence; allows for the development of progression, breadth and depth of learning; and gives opportunities for personalistaion and choice, challenge and enjoyment. Additionally, children learn within planned contexts, such as world of work or equalities week or World Earth day which help to make learning more relevant.

h) Many aspects of learning for sustainability are entrenched within the school, and others, such as Fairtrade form part of our citizenship learning where each class, including nursery, take responsibility to make a difference to their lives and the lives of others. Addressing current world wide issues, such Ocean plastics, add to the flexibility of the curriculum.

i) Our children are knowledgeable about the world of work and can articulate this well. They have enhanced opportunities to develop their knowledge and skills further such world of work week, money education, partnerships with UHI and employers. Our STEM learning is highly motivational and involves all children across all stages. Through this we demonstrate anti-bias towards gender at work. Older pupils reflect on their progress in skills for life, learning and work, whilst the younger ones focus on their achievements under the ‘Sunshine Over Avoch’ well-being indicators.

Question 2How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our learners?

a) The effective learning, teaching and assessment policy promotes flexibility. Evidence of this can be seen in teacher’s planning folders and in collegiate meeting minutes, including nursery. The joined up approach to gathering evidence, which directs further learning, is organised in

KEY THEMEfrom QI 2.7Partnerships

Theme 3 (HGIOS?4) Impact on learners (focus on parental engagement)

Theme 3 (HGIOELC?) Impact on children and families (focus on parental

engagement)

Question 1How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners? What are the features of effective practice in our school/ELC setting?

a) The school has worked hard to build strong partnerships with parents and other partners and this is impacting positively on the children and on the whole ethos of the school. We recognise the important value that grandparents and former pupils offer and actively encourage their involvement.

b) There are a large number of social and informal opportunities which engage all parents, especially those more reticent in engaging with formal learning or those who are new to the school or area. Through this we have increased the number of parents attending more formal occasions.

c) There are good arrangements in place to seek the views of parents and communication between home/school/home is well established.

d) Although this was already strong; over the past two sessions we have introduced many more ways of involving parents in their child’s learning, and these have been met with enthusiasm from both parent and child.

e) The school follows the GIRFEC process efficiently and effectively. All identified pupils have a staged plan which is reviewed twice annually with parents. The interventions put in place are measured. Where these are not making a difference to pupils, the staged approach is revisited.

Question 2How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our learners?

a) Almost all parents are now positive about the school and its ability to provide both a good education and a caring environment. This can be seen on the school in Facebook page, in talking with parents, in parent council minutes, a reduction in parental complaints and in last session’s broad-brush survey. Issues raised about pupil welfare and behaviour are dealt with quickly, with appointments offered to parents within two days. Details of this can be found in the school system. The input from parents and other partners about their work and in the delivering aspects of the curriculum has benefitted the children across the school and in the ELC setting. This was recognised by the QI team.

b) Transition into P1 and nursery create a number of opportunities for parents to attend such as class visits, stay and play and sampling a lunch, where they can meet other new parents and see what the school has to offer their children. An informal survey was very favourable. During the last session, there were opportunities to help on trips and in the class, to take part in a family Beetle Drive and St Andrews concert, to attend sports events, community cafes, a joint Nativity, and be part of the Christmas enterprise fayre.

c) The variety of ways of seeking views is ensuring more parents get involved. The reduction in phone calls querying organisational procedures in vastly reduced, showing that the increased ways of providing information is working- Facebook page, website, newsletter, information letters, home/school/home communication books, email etc. The QI team indicate that parents and other partners feel that communication with the school is open and effective and that it is very easy to engage with SMT and other staff in the school and ELC setting,

d) Although it is difficult to measure the impact of parent involvement, teachers do report when a pupil’s learning has improved as a result of parental support. In addition, pupils talk positively about parental involvement and 92% of parents say they receive helpful information about how to support their child’s learning at home (survey 17-18)100% parents attend parents’ evenings, or the alternative date offered. this is up from 96% in previous year.P4-7 pupils also attend. This means that the meetings, as reported by parents, pupils and teacher, are more productive and have a direct influence on pupil learning.Other ways of offering opportunities to parents to support their child’s learning can be seen in termly class learning letters; ’How to help your child at home’ sections in monthly newsletter and on the website; information leaflets; via homework and suggested apps and websites, some working jointly in and out of school.Pupils themselves share learning with their parents through: home/school learning packs for Nursery up to P4; 2 pupils’ self-written reports per session; through a very robust homework framework; sharing learning folios at open days and via the GIRFEC process. The strengthening of key assessments this session has facilitated a 3-way discussion about learning- pupil/parent and teacher. Seesaw has just been introduced so impact cannot yet be measured.Direct contact with parents has helped to sustain positive and two-way support for children and we continued our open doors project for the third session, where parents learned alongside their child in class- feedback showed this to be very successful. We also hold parent/child

ADDITIONAL QI 3.3 Increasing creativity and employabilityThis section is optional – schools are reminded to cycle through the remaining QIs as part of the self-evaluation process

Themes from HGIOS?4 and HGIOELC? Creativity skills Digital innovation Digital literacy Increasing employability skills

HGIOELC developing creativity developing skills for life and learning developing digital skills

Question 1How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners? What are the features of effective practice in our school/ELC setting?

a) There is a vast array of opportunities for the pupils of Avoch Primary and ELC to experience, and in turn develop, their creativity skills. As a result, these skills are becoming increasingly embedded within and across the curriculum. The very strong teacher/pupil relationships encourage open mindedness and curiosity, for example in the high- level questioning used in reading, reading for information and in writer’s craft etc which challenges the children to reason, to hypothesise and to justify their thinking in a welcoming learning environment.

b) The pupils are building their problem-solving skills through for example, the school’s active science programme, and through the whole school STEM focus. This includes taking part in engineering projects such as Young Engineers and technology partnerships eg Jacobs, UHI.The circle time programme has been further developed across the whole school and has been successful in supporting the skills of problem solving and open mindedness.

c) Developing imagination for our youngest pupils has been a key focus in the past session and was an action priority in the improvement plan.

d) The outdoor environment is used extensively and has a major impact on developing creativity. Pupils learn outdoor at least twice weekly in the winter, increasing in the better weather. The all- weather policy ensures that the pupils have the freedom every day, even in the rain, to problem solve, imagine, invent and negotiate, in their play. We encourage den building. The nursery children have free flow outside and in addition spend a minimum outside doing a variety of activities such as trike riding, climbing and learning about bugs in the woodland trail.There are opportunities for outdoor learning (as opposed to learning outdoors) eg ‘The creeping Toad’ outdoor storyteller is invited back every 2 years and every class takes part.

e) Pupils and teachers understand the strengths of a digital world to solve problems and talk about technology past and present. They imagine what the future technological world may be and can discuss the digital skills needed for life and work.

f) The school takes very seriously the responsibility of online learning and has a robust protocol in place. Pupils are consistently taught and reminded about staying safe online, the digital footprint they leave and the impact their online behaviour may have on others. Parents are full partners in this and are invited to attend workshops led by ourselves and outside agencies, such as Police, RSPCC. We have expanded the National Internet Safety Day to a whole week of learning.

g) The recent acquisition of one to one devices for our oldest pupils and an increased allocation across the school has opened up significantly increased opportunities for enhancing their digital literacy and the teachers and pupils have embraced this. It has provided opportunities for digital leaders who are adept at supporting others. The school has purchased tablets for each class to digitally capture learning and to share it with parents through the Seesaw app.

h) Promoting the world of work is strong in the ELC and school, and has grown and become embedded over a number of years. Most of the children can explain how their learning is building skills for their future work life. At every stage, they have a large number of opportunities, through strong partnerships, to gain knowledge and to learn directly from a variety of invited visitors to the school and nursery. Our curriculum is flexible to allow whole week enriched learning such as money week. Informal opportunities are seized such as questioning adults who arrive to do a job in the school, eg electricians. Through many aspects of the curriculum and the recent Equalities week, pupils have a good understanding of equality in the workplace. The older pupils are aware of the law surrounding the protected characteristics. Pupils experience the real world of work by going out on work experience during our 3-yearly world of work week and through opportunities such running community cafes, books sales and an enterprise fayre.

Question 2How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our learners?

A) The pupils have proved themselves to be creative learners; they demonstrate a clear progression of these skills as they move from nursery to P1 and through the school. They work collegiately and successfully in groups, including cross age groups, and are confident to explain