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NATIONAL PRIORITIES IN EDUCATION PERFORMANCE REPORT 2003
EDUCATION AUTHORITY INFORMATION

RENFREWSHIRE COUNCIL

This report summarises some of the key points set out in Renfrewshire Council's Education and Leisure Services' Service Plan for 2002-2005, incorporating the Annual Statement of Improvement Objectives, 'Celebrating Achievement - Meeting the Outcomes of the Service Plan 2001-2002', and the authority's annual report on Standards and Quality in Renfrewshire Schools 2000/2001. The documents will be placed on Renfrewshire Council's website in the near future.

For a full understanding of the position in this education authority and its plans for improvement you should refer directly to these documents. The documents may be accessed by contacting Gordon Morton (0141 842 5882;gordon.morton@renfrewshire.gov.uk).

The summary is presented here under individual National Priority in Education outcomes for simplicity but the actions and programmes referred to may often relate to more than one National Priority.

NATIONAL PRIORITY 1 - ACHIEVEMENT AND ATTAINMENT

To raise standards of educational attainment for all in schools, especially in the core skills of literacy and numeracy, and to achieve better levels in national measures of achievement including examination results

Outcome 1 - Increased levels of numeracy and literacy

Renfrewshire Council's Education and Leisure Service has promoted a range of initiatives to further improve its pupils' literacy and numeracy. These initiatives are grounded in its Early Intervention Programme and have developed to 'maintain the impetus' through the primary stages. Teaching and learning materials, which include programmes of study and guidelines for mathematics, writing and reading have been produced. This has been supported by a wide range of in-service training and other professional development opportunities for staff. The curriculum has been developed further in, for example, science, technology and social subjects; such developments are seen as having general as well as specific and positive impact on achievement within Renfrewshire's schools.

Achievement in the 5-14 curriculum learning outcomes is subject to regular reviews. Differences in the achievements of boys and girls have been a particular focus of these reviews and there is a continued emphasis on the identification and implementation of strategies which will raise the achievement of boys.

To support and raise awareness of teaching strategies to raise attainment, every teacher in Renfrewshire has been involved in staff development activities. Implementation plans for raising achievement have been included in school development plans.

The charts below provide information on the attainments in reading, writing and mathematics achieved by pupils in Renfrewshire Council's primary schools and in the first two years of secondary school. They also provide information on the targets which the education authority has set in respect of these aspects of pupils' learning.

Chart 1. Percentage of pupils in P3, 4, 6 and 7 meeting or exceeding age appropriate 5-14 levels in reading, writing and mathematics in Renfrewshire Council, its comparator authorities and nationally at end June 2002.

Renfrewshire Council has set targets with its primary schools to raise levels of attainment between now and the end of school session 2004/2005.

Chart 2. Levels of attainment at end June 2002 compared with anticipated percentage of pupils in P3, 4, 6 and 7 who will meet or exceed age appropriate 5-14 levels in reading, writing and mathematics in Renfrewshire Council and nationally by the end of school session 2004/2005.

Chart 3. Percentage of pupils in S2 meeting or exceeding their age appropriate 5-14 level, level E, in reading, writing and mathematics in Renfrewshire Council, its comparator authorities and nationally at end June 2002.

Renfrewshire Council has set targets with secondary schools to raise these levels of attainment between now and the end of school session 2004/2005.

Chart 4. Levels of attainment at end June 2002 compared with anticipated percentage of pupils in S2 who will meet or exceed their age appropriate 5-14 level, level E, in reading, writing and mathematics in Renfrewshire Council and nationally by the end of school session 2004/2005.

The percentage (averaged over 3 years from 1999/2000 to 2001/2002) of the original S4 cohort who by the end of S6 had attained SCQF level 3 or better in English and mathematics was 93.6%. Nationally 92.6% did this and 93.3% of pupils did this in comparator authorities. Renfrewshire Council has set a target that 95% of its pupils should achieve these levels of attainment by 2005. The equivalent national target is 94%.

Outcome 2 - Improved examination results

The introduction and further development of National Qualification courses continued, including the introduction of a wider range of Intermediate and Access courses. Links between schools and the local FE college have been further developed with increased take up of vocational programmes as well as psychology and sociology courses.

Differences in the performance of girls and boys have been a focus for work in the authority. Work on boys' expectations and their perceptions of themselves as learners have been a feature of this ( see National Priority 1, Outcome 1). This work has included encouraging young people to become involved in sports and the arts ( see National Priority 5, Outcome 1).

The charts below provide information on the attainments in National Qualifications achieved by pupils in Renfrewshire Council's secondary schools. They also provide information on the targets which the authority has set in respect of these aspects of pupils' learning.

Chart 5. Levels of attainment (a three-year average for 1999/2000 to 2001/2002) of pupils in Renfrewshire Council's secondary schools in National Qualifications (post-appeal) compared with attainment in comparator authorities and nationally.

Renfrewshire Council has set targets with its secondary schools to raise levels of attainment in National Qualifications by the end of school session 2004/2005.

Chart 6. Levels of attainment (a three-year average for 1999/2000 to 2001/2002) of pupils in Renfrewshire Council's secondary schools in National Qualifications (post-appeal) compared with anticipated levels of attainment (a three-year average for 2002/2003 to 2004/2005) locally and nationally by the end of school session 2004/2005.

NATIONAL PRIORITY 2 - FRAMEWORK FOR LEARNING

To support and develop the skills of teachers, the self-discipline of pupils and to enhance school environments so that they are conducive to teaching and learning

Outcome 1 - Continuing professional development of teachers' skills

Renfrewshire Council publishes catalogues of continuing professional development courses and activities annually for the pre-5, primary and secondary sectors with special schools and services having access to all relevant courses and activities. Included in the CPD programme are staff development opportunities, courses and training in management development for senior promoted staff, a training programme for probationer teachers, networking meetings for guidance staff and curriculum co-ordinators. Specific training on child protection, legal issues and DMR is also offered.

95% of the authority's teachers and school librarians signed up for NOF ICT training with 37% successfully completing the training. 25% of public librarians have been awarded the European Computer Driving Licence (ECDL). In addition to this an extensive programme of staff development opportunities in ICT is offered to teachers and classroom assistants. These courses are always very well attended and often oversubscribed.

Almost all headteachers and a significant number of teaching staff have participated in the authority's arrangements for Professional Review and Development.

Outcome 2 - Increased self-discipline of pupils

The focus of the authority's work in this aspect of National Priorities is the promotion of the self-esteem of young people and the development of a positive sense of their self-worth. Within that general concern there is a focus also on the need to do this for vulnerable, disadvantaged and disaffected young people. A number of programmes and projects have been developed to support their needs.

Innovative approaches are being promoted, for example Working with Parents for Change, an Emotional Intelligence project in a primary school and a Framework for Intervention pilot in one secondary, as well as extending the range of sporting and cultural activities. ( See National Priority 2, Outcome 3 and National Priority 3, Outcome 5.)

The authority set up a working group to review its existing strategy on social, emotional and behavioural difficulties and to consider the full range of issues raised in the report by the Discipline Task Group. This resulted in a strategy entitled Promoting Better Behaviour and Learning in Renfrewshire. The strategy sets out core principles, recommendations and an action plan for tackling the recommendations made. Associated funding has been used to establish pupil support bases in selected primary and secondary schools and to provide training for appropriate staff. This development will be based on the good practice that already exists in Renfrewshire.

Joint assessment teams have been further developed to promote more effective multi-disciplinary working, and the development of the New Directions Project, which offers provision for disaffected students and a meaningful transition between school and college, has been established.

The levels of attendance and exclusions in Renfrewshire Council's schools are shown in the tables below.

Levels of attendance

The authority has set itself the targets of raising percentage attendance in its primary schools to 95.3% by the end of session 2004/2005 and in raising percentage attendance in secondary schools to 90.4% within the same timescale. The national target for attendance by the end of session 2004/2005 is 95% for primary and 90% for secondary. These figures have been rounded to the nearest whole number.

Exclusions from schools

The figures in the above table are drawn from the Scottish Executive National Statistics Publication Exclusions from Schools, 2000/2001.

Renfrewshire has set itself the targets of reducing the number of days lost per 1000 pupils in primary schools to 12 by the end of session 2004/2005 and reducing the number of days lost per 1000 pupils in secondary schools to 120 within the same timescale.

The authority reviewed its policy and the management of exclusions in schools to improve Renfrewshire's current performance. The Council's Scrutiny Board took the lead in this review which included input from schools in all sectors and key agencies. Recommendations will inform an implementation plan which will be progressed in future sessions.

Outcome 3 - Enhanced school environments which are more conducive to teaching and learning

All schools have Internet access and all pupils have an individual or class email address. National targets for numbers of modern computers per primary or secondary school pupil have been met.

The council's outline business case for a PPP project was approved. The project involves the building of six new schools and the refurbishment of 16 schools and a nursery. One of the new buildings will be a joint campus including two primary schools, a family centre and a community education centre.

Following its closure in June 2001, pupils from St Mirin's High School were successfully inducted into St Andrew's Academy. In conjunction with the closure of Merksworth High School in June 2002, a 2.7 million extension and refurbishment programme was successfully completed at Paisley Grammar School in time for the new session.

In May 2002, the authority played a major part in the inauguration of the Renfrewshire Vandalism Forum, a major initiative also involving police, fire and business partners. In a major development of its DSM programme, a scheme to devolve expenditure on property repairs and maintenance was piloted in two secondary schools and three primaries.

The authority uses a range of quality models to assure the quality of its service delivery. It completed Best Value Reviews of the Specialist Peripatetic Services and a review of provision for pupils with special educational needs in special schools, specialist units and placements outwith Renfrewshire. The authority refocused the work of its advisory service to emphasise quality assurance. The authority has extended its management information system to include modules relating to placing requests and complaints. Two secondary, one primary and one nursery school achieved the Charter Mark Award; the Psychological Service, one primary and one special school achieved IIP status.

Schools developed further their systems for tracking the progress of their pupils and in managing data about their performance. Further development of SEEMIS has led to improvements in managing data and support for school administration. All appropriate senior staff in secondary schools have been trained in the use of SEEMIS Vision and in the use of Standard Tables and Charts (STACS) analysis. In moderating the self-evaluation processes in schools one third of schools and pre-5 establishments are reviewed on an annual basis, and a revised format of the production of Standards and Quality reports has been developed.

The authority deployed additional support staff in schools in response to the recommendations of A Teaching Profession for the 21st Century, and training was provided for classroom assistants including training in health and safety and disability.

A wide range of initiatives was undertaken to promote health and welfare in schools. These included the establishment of breakfast clubs, the introduction of healthy eating and physical activity promotions through the 'Have a Heart Paisley' programme and the introduction of 'Drinkwise' and 'Firewatch' programmes. The existing 'Quality of Life' project was extended.

The pupil:adult ratio in the education authority's primary schools is 15.9:1 currently. (As a result of misinterpretations of the census guidelines a number of peripatetic staff working in primary schools were omitted: the correct ratio for 2001 was 15.4:1.) Renfrewshire has set itself the target of 14.2:1 by the end of school session 2004/2005. The ratio nationally is 14.2:1.

NATIONAL PRIORITY 3 - INCLUSION AND EQUALITY

To promote equality and help every pupil benefit from education with particular regard paid to pupils with disabilities and special educational needs, and to Gaelic and lesser used languages

Outcome 1 - Every pupil benefits from education

The attainments and achievements of children looked after by Renfrewshire Council are monitored and tracked. Resources have been invested in improving information exchange between the services who have a shared interest in looked after children. The range and scale of educational resources available in children's units have been extended; the provision of enriching experiences has been supported. ICT hardware and software has been made available to foster carers along with other resources. Foster carers have been trained in the use of ICT. Training programmes have been run on promoting the education of looked after children.

The percentage of children looked after by Renfrewshire Council aged 16 or 17 who left care with qualifications in English and mathematics at SCQF level 3 or above in school session 2001/2002 was 22.2%. Nationally, the percentage of pupils was 29%. The authority has set itself the target of raising the percentage of looked after children who achieve these qualifications to 50%.

The authority's New Community Schools Programme continued to develop in West Johnstone, where the pilot involved two primary schools and an early years establishment, and in the North Paisley pilot project which involved three secondary schools and five associated primaries. The pilot projects were jointly funded by the Scottish Executive and Renfrewshire Council. Funding from Renfrewshire Council supported further development in South Paisley and involved one secondary school and its five associated primaries. The programme places greater emphasis on the further development of home-school links, the promotion and development of partnership working, the provision of breakfast clubs and a wider range of sporting and cultural activities. The good practice that has been established provides a sound context for the authority's roll-out of the New Community School which involved all Renfrewshire schools from 2002 to 2003.

The success of the Parents as Educators project was recognised through a national award.

The authority developed further its team of outreach teachers to enable children whose learning is interrupted through illness or particular family circumstances to benefit from education. Home tuition supported by teachers in schools complements this provision.

The average score of the lowest attaining 20% of pupils in the authority's secondary schools is 67.5. The average tariff score of the lowest attaining 20% of pupils nationally is 58 and in Renfrewshire's comparator authorities it is 53. Renfrewshire aims to increase the average tariff score of its lowest attaining pupils to 71 by the end of school session 2004/05.

23.2% of primary pupils are entitled to free school meals; 70.4% of these pupils actually take a school meal. 20.0% of secondary pupils are entitled to a free school meal with 50.0% of these pupils actually taking up their entitlement. Nationally, the uptake percentages for primary and secondary are 79.2% and 59.1% respectively.

Outcome 2 - Every pupil benefits from education, with particular regard paid to pupils with disabilities and special educational needs

Renfrewshire Council, along with all other education authorities, has prepared and published an action plan setting out how it will improve access to school buildings and the formal and informal curriculum for people with disabilities over the next few years.

Key strategic documents, the 'Inclusion and Social Justice Strategy: the Education and Leisure Dimension' and an 'Evaluation Framework for Social Inclusion', were consulted on and approved by Council. A major consultation exercise was undertaken to establish the Council's statement of Principles for Inclusion for Education.

Pupils who face significant barriers to learning have an Individualised Educational Programme (IEP). In these programmes, targets are set with and for individual pupils; these targets structure and focus the pupils' learning. Pupils' progress in achieving their targets is monitored and the targets are the subject of regular review. In 2002 97% of schools achieved all of the IEP targets which they had set with and for their pupils.

A unit addressing the needs of pupils with complex and specific learning difficulties was opened in a secondary school.

Of mainstream primary pupils with special educational needs in Renfrewshire, 91.9% receive all of their education in a mainstream class. 0% of primary mainstream pupils with special educational needs in Renfrewshire receive all of their education in a special unit attached to a mainstream school. For secondary, the figures are 97.8% and 0.2% respectively. Nationally the percentages for the primary sector are 83% and 3%; for secondary they are 73% and 4%. For its comparator authorities the percentages for the primary sector are 79.9% and 4.6%; for secondary they are 60.4% and 9.2%. Renfrewshire has four special schools which accommodated 335 pupils in 2001/2002.

It should be recognised that the collection of this SEN data in 2000/2001 may not have been universally robust.

Outcome 3 - Every pupil benefits from education, with particular regard paid to Gaelic and lesser used languages

It is the policy of Renfrewshire to provide Gaelic medium education for every pupil for whom a request to have access to this is received. This is achieved by transporting these pupils to Gaelic medium facilities in Glasgow City Council. In 2001/2002, 19 pupils requested and were granted access to this facility.

NATIONAL PRIORITY 4 - VALUES AND CITIZENSHIP

To work with parents to teach pupils respect for self and one another and their interdependence with other members of their neighbourhood and society and teach them the duties and responsibilities of citizenship in a democratic society

Outcome 1 - Increased respect for self and others

The pupils in the education authority's schools are involved in a wide range of activities which encourage them to work with others and which are designed to promote their personal and social development ( see section on Quality Indicators). Increasingly, they are involved in out of school activities such as backpacking expeditions and sailing; some pupils are able to take part in an Outward Bound programme.

Mentoring schemes operate in all secondary schools and involve pupils and representatives of local industry in conjunction with the Careers Services and Renfrewshire Education Business Partnership. Buddying and paired reading schemes continue to develop in primary and secondary schools and are beneficial to both the mentors and the younger pupils receiving support. Buddying schemes make a contribution to tackling bullying in schools. The Council's Scrutiny Board has conducted a review of bullying of pupils in schools. The findings will contribute to self-evaluation procedures by identifying good practice and highlighting areas for development.

All secondary schools and 51 out of 52 primary schools have a pupil council. The remaining primary school has developed a structured system of monitors which promote respect for self and one another. All primary, secondary and special schools have School Boards. In some secondary schools pupil council representatives participate in meetings of the School Board on a regular basis.

Ferguslie Park Primary School and Springbank Nursery were used as good practice case studies by Learning and Teaching Scotland to promote curriculum support for citizenship.

The authority has established a Review Group on Citizenship. In the context of its remit it is looking at what further role community education services can play in complementing and extending work undertaken in schools. A number of youth forums operate, including Buddies Youth Voice, and there are youth councils in Linwood, Bishopton and Erskine; Renfrewshire pupils were involved in the Scottish Youth Parliament.

The involvement of older people in arts and other festivals and events for young people was promoted.

Outcome 2 - Increased awareness of interdependence with other members of their neighbourhood and society and teach them the duties and responsibilities of citizenship in a democratic society

All pupils in Primary 5 participate in an environmental education programme; this programme allows the pupils to take part in an out of school activity related to the environment. The link between sustainability and citizenship is being developed through the Eco Schools Programme. Two schools and nurseries expressed an interest in being involved in this programme. The authority continued to promote this programme with a pre-5 conference on 'sustainable development' in the autumn of 2002.

The authority uses a range of approaches to encourage the further engagement of parents in their children's education and to gather information about the effectiveness of its education and other services. These approaches include citizens' panels, the use of customer surveys and complaints procedures. See also National Priority 2, Outcome 1.

Capacity in the community has been developed further through, for example, adult basic education provision for literacy and numeracy and the up-grading of community learning centres. The well established Buddies for Learning project was nominated for a COSLA Excellence Award.

NATIONAL PRIORITY 5 - LEARNING FOR LIFE

To equip pupils with the foundation skills, attitudes and expectations necessary to prosper in a changing society and to encourage creativity and ambition

Outcome 1 - Pupils are equipped with the necessary foundation skills, attitudes and expectations to prosper in a changing society

The authority has supported the further development of its provision for science, technology and modern languages in 5-14. Resources to support the development of the use of ICT in the curriculum were developed.

Pupils in schools throughout Renfrewshire participate annually in a wide range of arts activities; these include a Festival of the Arts for primary school pupils, the Culture Counts initiative and projects such as the SubUrban Arts programme which are focused on engaging disadvantaged and disaffected young people, particularly boys, in the arts.

The authority's schools, supported by leisure and cultural services, provide opportunities for out of school learning. The NOF supports the Out of School Learning project which has engaged young people in sports, arts and cultural activities after the school day, at weekends and as residential experiences. Library services provide homework clubs for pupils.

Renfrewshire secondary schools were involved in phase 1 of the School Sports Co-ordinator programme. Almost all secondary schools were successful in appointing School Sport Co-ordinators. TOP Sport and TOP Play activities have been offered to all authority schools. 43 schools are involved in this activity. An Active Primary School Co-ordinator was appointed to one of the authority's clusters.

All primary schools participate in projects such as Enterprising Infants and Go for Enterprise. The activities undertaken by schools include visits, guest speakers, fund-raising events and running tuck shops. All secondary schools participate in work and enterprise projects including a work experience programme and Young Enterprise as well as charity and community work. Many young people are involved successfully in the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme.

Chart 7. School leaver destinations; percentage of pupils leaving Renfrewshire Council's secondary schools in 2002 and going on to Higher Education and other destinations compared with comparator authorities and the national position.

Renfrewshire has indicated that it expects that the percentage of school leavers going on to Higher Education in 2005 will be 32%.

Outcome 2 - Increased levels of creativity and ambition in young people

The Cognitive Acceleration through Science Education (CASE) programme is well established in all Renfrewshire secondary schools and a pilot Thinking Skills project based on the principles and ideology of CASE has taken place in the early stages of two primary schools. There are plans to introduce this to all primary schools and support it through a programme of staff development. All teaching staff in the authority have attended staff development sessions on Thinking Skills. Plans for implementation, including support for teachers, are included in school development plans.

The initiatives referred to immediately above and, indeed, throughout this report contribute to this outcome.

QUALITY INDICATORS

Renfrewshire Council's schools have used HGIOS in their regular self-evaluations to reach informed judgements on where they stand currently in relation to these processes. School self-evaluations are externally moderated by the authority's School Review Team and are compared, for consistency, with HMIE inspections in the same session. The authority is confident that 11 of the self-evaluations reported are robust but are less confident regarding the promotion of 'pupils' learning experiences' which is at present not concordant with HMIE external evaluations.

These judgements are summarised below:

• almost all schools judged that the 'overall quality of attainment' was good or very good
• all judged that they were good or very good at promoting 'expectations and achievement'
• almost all judged that they had good or very good arrangements for 'staff review and development' and all judged that they had good or very good 'accommodation and facilities'; all judged that the 'climate and relationships' within their schools were good or very good
• all judged that the arrangements which they employed to promote 'equality and fairness' were good or very good; almost all judged that they had good or very good arrangements for 'learning support'; all judged that they were good or very good at the 'implementation of SEN and disability legislation' and the 'placement of pupils with SEN and disabilities'
• all judged that they made good or very good arrangements for promoting the 'personal and social development' of pupils and that they had good or very good 'partnership with parents, the School Board and the community'
• almost all judged that the provision which they made overall to promote 'pupils' learning experiences' was good or very good.

Authorities and schools will be continuing to build up their expertise in self-evaluation and moderation of progress with the National Priorities over the period to the end of school session 2004/2005. Some self-evaluation in this report is therefore provisional at this stage. HMIE are undertaking independent and robust external evaluation of how well Scottish schools and education authorities are delivering the National Priorities in Education and their report will be published after the end of school session 2004/2005.

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