Mr A Blackie
Director of Education and
Community Services
East Lothian Council
Council Buildings
HADDINGTON
EH41 3HA
HM Inspectorate of Education
Eastern Division
Saughton House
Broomhouse Drive
Edinburgh EH11 3XD
Telephone: 0131-244 8437
Fax: 0131-244 8424
hmi.eastern@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/hmie
Our ref: GNR/JCC
9 October 2001
Dear Mr Blackie
FOLLOW-UP TO THE INSPECTION OF EAST LOTHIAN LEAVERS’ UNIT
EAST LOTHIAN COUNCIL
The report on East Lothian Leavers’ Unit was published in June 2000. HM Inspectors visited the Leavers’
Unit in May 2001 to evaluate progress made in responding to the main points for action in the report.
The education authority and the unit had made some progress in addressing the main points for action in the
report, but further work was required. More needed to be done to provide appropriate staffing, facilities and
resources to ensure that pupils were not disadvantaged in comparison to the entitlements provided to their
peers in mainstream schools. The education authority recognised that the needs of disaffected young people
required to be addressed more effectively. It was at the early stages of reviewing its provision for a 14+
service for pupils with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. In the light of these findings, HM
Inspectors will revisit the provision being made for disaffected young people in March 2002.
I attach an evaluation and brief account of the response made by the leavers’ unit and the education authority
to the main points for action in the report.
I am sending a copy of this letter to parents of children currently in the leavers’ unit and the other recipients of
the inspection report.
Yours sincerely
Dr Gill Robinson
HM Chief Inspector
Eastern Division
Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education
Headquarters • Saughton House, Broomhouse Drive, Edinburgh, EH11 3XD • Telephone 0131 244 0650 • Fax 0131 244 7124 • www.scotland.gov.uk/hmie
HM Inspectorate of Education
Follow-up to the Inspection of
East Lothian Leavers’ Unit
East Lothian Council
Main points for action
1.
The matters of safety and security of pupils and staff raised in this report
should be addressed as a matter of urgency. Steps should be taken to
ensure that the whereabouts of each pupil are known.
The unit and education authority had made good progress in addressing this
recommendation.
Staff had devised and implemented policies to ensure that the whereabouts
of each pupil were known. Pupils now understood the rules regarding
attendance and behaviour. Clear lines of communication had been put in
place with the authority’s Educational Welfare Service to ensure that
prompt action was taken to investigate unexplained absences. Risk
assessments were undertaken regularly. Appropriate systems were
operating for staff to summon assistance in the event of an emergency.
Authority guidelines were being used for pupils involved in work or college
placements. Staff visited pupils on work placements on a weekly basis.
Health and safety matters were systematically recorded. A child protection
log was now operating and relevant authority guidelines were being
followed.
2.
The specific roles and responsibilities of all those involved in supporting
these young people should be clarified and joint working strengthened.
While the education authority and unit had made some progress in
addressing this recommendation, further work was required.
The authority had created a new promoted post of co-ordinator with a clear
remit to provide leadership to the work of the unit. However, the post
holder had returned to his former post shortly after taking up appointment,
leaving an important gap in staffing. Interim arrangements had been put
into place and there were plans to recruit a new co-ordinator on a seconded
basis. A multi-disciplinary planning group had been established to provide
advice to unit staff on strategies to better meet pupils’ needs. This had only
started to meet in April 2001. There were a few examples of secondary
schools providing a better degree of support for pupils who had been placed
at the unit. Better lines of communication had been established with pupils’
social workers, where appropriate, and with carers of looked after children.
Pupils’ weekly progress reports were now sent to appropriate educational
psychologists. However, educational psychologists had not visited the unit
2
to observe pupils and had not attended review meetings to discuss pupils’
progress.
3.
Appropriate support should be provided to address the significant social,
emotional, behavioural and learning difficulties of these pupils.
The unit and education authority had made fair progress in addressing this
recommendation.
Staff had now developed individualised educational programmes (IEPs) for
all pupils and shared them with pupils and their parents. Currently, these
did not take sufficient account of pupils’ individual needs, nor address
learning difficulties in basic literacy and numeracy. Weekly pupil progress
reports were sent to a designated member of senior promoted staff in the
relevant secondary schools. These kept staff better informed about the
progress and behaviour of individual pupils placed in the unit. However,
secondary schools needed to take a greater degree of responsibility for the
academic progress and behaviour of pupils at the unit. Opportunities for
pupils to engage in regular one-to-one discussions with unit staff had been
planned. The regularity, purpose and effectiveness of these should be
subject to more regular review and evaluation. Further attention needed to
be given to providing pupils with more meaningful work in classes in order
to engage them more purposefully. Specialist support should be provided
to address pupils’ social, emotional and behavioural difficulties in a more
targeted way. There should be a particular focus on group interaction and
counselling support.
4.
The curriculum should be improved to allow the young people to achieve
the highest possible levels of attainment and enable them to be better
prepared for life beyond school. Appropriate staffing, facilities and
resources should be made available to deliver this.
The unit and education authority had taken some steps to address this
recommendation but curriculum provision remained unsatisfactory.
The two teachers at the unit had worked very hard to try to provide pupils
with a curriculum which took better account of their previous learning. The
pupils’ day had been extended to match that of their mainstream secondary
schools. All pupils had recently sat at least two Standard Grade
examinations. This was an improvement on previous provision. However,
most had discontinued their studies in the other courses they had been
following prior to placement in the unit. This was unsatisfactory and did
not prepare pupils well for future learning and job opportunities. Pupils had
some opportunities to engage in college and work placements to pursue
their particular interests. They also attended a local secondary school for
classes in craft and design technology (CDT) and art. The unit co-ordinator
had been in regular contact with the education authority’s quality assurance
team to discuss and receive guidance on curricular matters. Overall,
however, more needed to be done to provide appropriate staffing, facilities
3
and resources to ensure the delivery of a curriculum which could meet the
needs of pupils placed in the unit.
5.
Rigorous procedures should be put in place for assessing and reviewing the
progress of individual pupils and acting promptly on the findings of
reviews.
The unit and education authority had made fair progress in addressing this
recommendation.
Plans to have the progress and placement of individual pupils reviewed
every six weeks had not been realised in practice. Unit and secondary staff
needed to work together to improve the assessment of pupils’ skills,
knowledge and understanding in each area of the curriculum prior to and at
the start of placement. This would allow pupils to make the best possible
progress. A delegated member of the senior promoted staff in secondary
schools was now alerted to any concerns regarding their pupils placed in
the unit. School Liaison Groups (SLGs) met to discuss the progress or
behaviour of any unit pupil giving cause for concern. However, the
effectiveness of links between the unit and SLGs should be improved.
6.
Steps should be taken to provide effective leadership and management for
the unit. The provision should be subjected to much more rigorous
monitoring and evaluation, and an effective development plan should be
drawn up to guide future developments.
The unit and education authority had made fair progress in addressing this
recommendation.
The creation of a co-ordinator’s post had helped to provide more effective
leadership and management at the unit. Despite the support of two
part-time seconded staff in the interim period, the departure of the post
holder had created a leadership vacuum. An action plan to address the
main points for action in the original inspection report had formed the basis
of the unit’s first development plan. The authority’s Principal Officer
(Pupil Support) had taken good steps to meet with the unit co-ordinator on a
weekly basis to monitor, evaluate and plan future developments. However,
effective delivery of the Action Plan had been restricted by a number of
factors, including the authority’s intention to radically reform provision for
disaffected young people.
7.
The education authority should use the findings of this report as the basis of
its planned review of provision for disaffected young people who are
reaching the end of their school careers.
The unit and education authority had made unsatisfactory progress in
addressing this recommendation.
The education authority had not discussed the report collectively with
secondary headteachers or guidance staff. Several more groups of pupils
4
placed at the unit experienced an unsatisfactory curriculum and support.
This further disadvantaged them in comparison to the entitlements provided
to their peers in mainstream schools. Greater attention should be given to
the re-integration of these pupils back into mainstream secondary schools in
line with the authority’s own inclusion policy. The education authority
should continue with its plans to provide more strategic direction and
develop more effective provision for disaffected young people.
The education authority and the unit had made some progress in addressing
the main points for action in the report, but further work was required.
More needed to be done to provide appropriate staffing, facilities and
resources to ensure that pupils were not disadvantaged in comparison to the
entitlements provided to their peers in mainstream schools. The education
authority recognised that the needs of disaffected young people required to
be addressed more effectively. It was at the early stages of reviewing its
provision for a 14+ service for pupils with social, emotional and behavioural
difficulties. In the light of these findings, HM Inspectors will revisit the
provision being made for disaffected young people in March 2002.