School Improvement Report

Review of Progress 2022-23

Context of the setting

Ayton Primary School is a small rural school in Berwickshire which is part of the Eyemouth Learning Community Schools. The catchment area includes Ayton village, Foulden village and the surrounding communities. We have some children who are placement requests from Burnmouth, Eyemouth and Chirnside. Pupils either walk to school or travel by car or school transport.

Up to August 2019 the school consisted of three composite classes, however since then there has been an increase in the school roll which resulted in the need to increase teacher capacity to four class teachers. This session the school roll has been eighty pupils and a large P1-4 class of thirty-six pupils have been taught by two class teachers in a team teaching situation. This has impacted on the space we have in the school and for some pupils they are taught in a learning area at the rear of the school hall.

In November 2022 the Head Teacher and Principal Teacher were both absent for a period of time. An Acting Head Teacher was put in place to lead and manage the school. She is the Head Teacher of another school within the learning community and splits are time between both schools.

The staff team consist of three class teachers, a Principal Teacher, a PE Curriculum Support Teacher, two additional needs assistants and a business support assistant. Outreach support is provided by an Inclusion and Wellbeing Teacher and teachers from Leader Valley School who support children with additional needs.

The school has a very supportive and proactive Parent Council who work hard to enhance the experiences we are able to offer. A number of volunteers come into school on a regular basis to help with the school library, assist with breakfast club and accompany the classes on school trips to local areas. Children who move on from Ayton Primary School usually attend Eyemouth High School.

SBC priority 1

Develop high quality learning, teaching and assessment that leads to improved levels of attainment and achievement for all in our schools and settings.

What improvements have you made this year?

• The Learning, Teaching and Assessment Framework has been embedded so that staff are consistent in their approach to Teaching, Learning and Assessment, including planning. This resulted in Head Teacher revisiting our Curriculum Rationale with all staff and children. We consulted with parents and carers about this and received evidence to show their understanding of our curriculum.
• The Inspire Learning Ipads helped ensure there was equity for learners in P4-7. The shared Ipads for children in P1-3 has helped increase pupil confidence using digital technology. The impact of progress in learning has ensured that most children across Early Level can use their Ipad to access digital applications to enhance their learning in the key areas of numeracy, literacy and learning linked to their social subjects.
• Teaching staff are more confident in their use of planning for relevant and meaningful learning experiences to ensure the majority of children can access learning which offers ways they can apply their skills to other area of their learning.
• The Acting Head Teacher consults on a regular basis with the Parent Council Forum. We have been able to ensure that key messages and views have been shared in a variety of ways. We invited parents and carers to attend parent consultations in person this session and provided two opportunities for this in October, March and May.
• All teaching staff are more confident implementing different methodologies to meet the needs of all learners in all learning environments, including outdoor learning using the outdoor learning space and in the local community and the wider learning community.

What has improved for learners? How do you know?

• In P1 almost all children are engaged and motivated in their play. Play to develop emergent literacy skills ensures the resources used have supported the development of early literacy skills. The development of numeracy and health and wellbeing experiences within the learning environments both indoors and outdoors is continuing to develop.
• The ongoing development of the outdoor learning space for learners in Primary 1 has allowed for a shared learning space to allow fluidity of learning through play at Early Level.
• The Senior Leadership Team to work closely consulting with class teachers and additional support needs staff to close the attainment gap for some identified learners. This allows for data gathering and planned literacy interventions with outcomes for individuals and small groups of learners across all levels.
• Professional judgement from class teachers and ongoing assessments by class teachers show improvements in attainment for pupils. From this next steps in literacy and numeracy across all levels have been identified.
• Teaching staff at second level have benefited from the development of a reviewed Critical Reading Pack produced at the end of last session by a class teacher from one of the other Primary Schools and the Principal Teacher of English and Literacy from Eyemouth High School. This was made by possible by the same funding associated with the COVID gap. From this we have begun to ensure that effective and consistent approaches to the teaching of key reading skills. This will continue to be developed further next session so we can fully assess the impact and will also be implemented at first level.
• Almost all learners across P4-7 are more confident in the use of digital technology and consistently use apps on their Inspire Learning Ipads to develop the skills, knowledge and understanding of planned learning activities.

Next Steps?

• To increase attainment in reading and writing for all children, ensuring that there is intensive support sessions for targeted pupils in writing and reading when it is needed.
• To use the digital platform Showbie consistently across the school as part of our practice.
• To increase attainment in numeracy for most pupils at First Level by utilising the support for learning teacher and an additional needs assistant to work with specific learners to develop their knowledge, understanding and skills across the four numeric skills.
• To ensure there is more progression of outdoor learning experiences for all children throughout the school. SBC priority 2: Develop inclusive practice with a focus on universal and targeted provision in all schools and settings. What improvements have you made this year?
• Within the school inclusion is organised so that it meet the needs of all learners and the funding PEF is used to support learners’ needs with planned interventions.
• Staff apply nurturing approaches in their interactions with children, following key learning from their training this session. They have reflected on what they learned in the previous session and have been able to confidently implement a methodology which allows for all children to be at the heart of decision making.
• A consistent approach to wellbeing and inclusion across the school has ensured that the majority of staff continue to have a better understanding of nurturing approaches and completed training in nurture principles.

What has improved for learners? How do you know?

• We have regular conversations to plan learning experiences for the children with our key partners from the wider school community. We consult with children through pupil voice. This enables us to gather the views of the children in learner participation and plan next steps in their learning by ensuring their voice is heard in school. Leadership groups have also provided opportunities for pupil leadership which has been a key feature of this session’s work, and has impacted positively upon the ethos and smooth running of the school.
• The inclusion and wellbeing teacher has worked with staff to support outcomes for some learners and this has resulted in a consistent approach for those learners.
• Emotional literacy resources for listening and talking activities and confident staff and confident children resources have enabled most learners to reflect on their own emotions. Staff have also started to use the Glasgow Wellbeing Tool to support inclusion and wellbeing across the school.

Next Steps?

• To continue to implement the Glasgow Health and Wellbeing tool as part of our equity and inclusion agenda, ensuring all remaining Nurture Principles are fully implemented and developed across P1 to P7.
• To consistently embed nurturing practices in all classes and for those children who require more support, ensure their timetables reflect what they need to reach their potential.

Evaluate the following QIs against the six-point scale:

• Excellent: this aspect of the school’s work is outstanding, high quality and sector-leading
• Very Good: major strengths, very few areas for improvement
• Good: important strengths, yet there remain some aspects which require improvement
• Satisfactory: the strengths within this just outweigh the weaknesses, basic provision for learners
• Weak: important weaknesses, there may be some strength, the important weaknesses, either individually or collectively, are sufficient to diminish learners’ experiences in substantial ways
• Unsatisfactory: major weaknesses within which require immediate remedial action

Our capacity for continuous improvement is: good

Attachments

• ayton-sbc-sir-2022-23