S o u t h A y r s h i r e C o u n c i l

2.
3.
4.
Contents
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Introduction
1. The aims, nature and scope of the inspection
Page i
The Education Service: operational context
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Strategic management of the service
Consultation and communication
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6.
7.
8.
9.
Resource and financial management
Performance monitoring and continuous improvement
How well does the authority perform overall?
Main points for action
Appendices
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47
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53
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The education functions of each local authority in
Scotland will be inspected between 2000 and
2005. Section 9 of the Standards in Scotland’s
Schools Etc. Act 2000 charges HM Inspectorate of
Education, on behalf of the Scottish Ministers, to provide an external evaluation of the effectiveness of the local authority in its quality assurance of educational provision within the Council and of its support to schools in improving quality.
Inspections are conducted within a published framework of quality indicators ( Quality
Management in Education ) which embody the
Government’s policy on Best Value.
Each inspection is planned and implemented in partnership with Audit Scotland on behalf of the
Accounts Commission for Scotland. Audit
Scotland is a statutory body set up in April 2000, under the Public Finance and Accountability
(Scotland) Act 2000 . It provides services to the
Accounts Commission and the Auditor General for Scotland. Together they ensure that the
Scottish Executive and public sector bodies in
Scotland are held to account for the proper, efficient and effective use of public funds.
The external auditor member of the inspection team carries out a performance management and planning (PMP) audit of the education functions of the authority. The inspection team also includes an Associate Assessor who is a senior member of staff currently serving in another
Scottish local authority. i

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Inspection of the education functions of
South Ayrshire Council
The education functions of South Ayrshire Council were inspected during the period April - June 2002 as part of a five-year national inspection programme of all local authorities in Scotland.
The inspection team interviewed elected members and officers of the Council. The inspection team also attended meetings, visited schools and other establishments in the authority and met with staff, chairpersons of School Boards and other key stakeholders of the Education Service. A summary of inspection activities is given in Appendix 2.
On behalf of HM Inspectors, an independent company issued and analysed responses to questionnaires to headteachers of all educational establishments within the authority and to the chairpersons of the School
Boards/Parents’ Associations and to partnership pre-school establishments.
Social and economic context
South Ayrshire Council covers an area of 422 square miles with a total population of around 114,000. This figure has been relatively stable over the last ten years although the pupil population has decreased in line with national trends. Projections for the next 15 years indicate
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2 a continuing overall decline of about 5% in the pupil population in South Ayrshire in comparison with a predicted national decline of 12%. The projected increase of 16% in the population above working age is broadly in line with the predicted national trend.
South Ayrshire contains a mix of urban and rural communities and, in socio-economic terms, a mixture of advantaged and deprived areas. The overall free school meal entitlement (FME) of 15% is below the national average of 18.8% but ranges widely between 0% and
70% in primary schools and between 5% and 37% in secondary schools. The unemployment rate of 4.8% is above the national average of 4.1%. Some wards have unemployment rates of more than twice the national average. While the overall pattern of employment broadly reflects the national picture, there have been significant changes in South Ayrshire’s economy in recent years. Between 1995 and 2000, employment in transport and communications has fallen by 33% compared to a slight national increase. Similarly, employment in manufacturing has fallen by 22% compared to a national decrease of 5%. On the other hand, figures for employment in the construction industry indicate an increase of 29% in comparison with a 2% rise nationally. Over the period 1995-2000, the overall drop of 1% in the number of jobs in South Ayrshire compares unfavourably with the national increase of 7%.
In this overall context, the Council has recognised the specific challenge of attracting school leavers who leave the area for further or higher education to return to South
Ayrshire to enter full-time employment.
Political and organisational context
South Ayrshire Council has 16 Labour councillors who form the current administration, 13 Conservatives and one Independent councillor. In February 2002, to complement changes to the organisational and

management structure, the Council introduced revised policy-making arrangements by establishing a new committee structure. Within this structure, the Policy and
Resources Committee has a focus on policy development, strategic resource allocation, and performance management. The Lifelong Learning Committee, one of seven other main committees, is the key policy and decision-making body for education.
In 1997 the Council published its Vision of 2020: South
Ayrshire Council’s Ambitions for the Future . This key document firmly established the broad strategic direction and overall aims of the Council. The vision statements include a focus on lifelong learning with priorities of raising attainment, promoting social inclusion, and fostering the personal and social development of young people.
A major review of the management structure of the
Council resulted in the implementation of new arrangements during 2001. The purpose of the review was to strengthen strategic management, with particular emphasis on addressing cross-cutting issues and joint-working. In the new structure, the Directors of
Education, Culture and Lifelong Learning (ECLL), Social
Work, Housing and Health (SWHH), Environment, Land and Property (ELP), and Development Safety and
Regulation (DSR), are directly responsible to the Chief
Executive. Together with the Depute Chief Executive they comprise the corporate management team. Each
Director has responsibilities which cross traditional departmental and organisational boundaries. The
Director (ECLL) and the Director (SWHH) work closely in planning and delivering services on a thematic basis and with clear links to key partner organisations.
In strengthening the strategic management of the Council, steps had been taken to bring arrangements for performance management and planning into a more coherent framework. To that effect, the Council was
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4 about to publish its Business Plan and a Resource Plan identifying specific and measurable objectives over a three year period.
The senior managers in the ECLL Department are the
Director, the Head of Educational Attainment, the Head of Resource Planning and Support, and the Head of
Lifelong Learning. Together with three Co-ordinators responsible respectively for Quality, Resources, and
Early Years provision, they comprise the Departmental
Management Team.
Educational provision and performance
The Council is responsible for just under 16,500 pupils in
45 primary schools and nine secondary schools. Three of the primary schools, two of the secondary schools and four special schools make specialist provision for pupils with special educational needs. Pre-school education is provided in four nursery schools, 20 nursery classes in primary schools and 12 partnership centres.
The
Accounts Commission Statutory Performance Indicators
(SPIs) for 2000-2001 show that all three and four-year-old children took up a pre-school place compared to national averages of 96% and 87% respectively.
The SPIs show that around 44% of primary schools in
South Ayrshire had occupancy levels below 60% compared with 32% nationally. Around 53% of primary schools had occupancy levels of 61%-100% compared with 61% nationally. Occupancy levels in secondary schools were close to the national averages. In
2000-2001, the cost of education per pupil in primary and secondary schools was slightly below the national average and the average for similar authorities.
For 1999-2000, 2000-2001 and 2001-2002 the Council allocated £57,179,000, £60,099,000 and £67,718,000 respectively to the revenue budget for education,

including Excellence Fund core and special programme direct grants.
The following commentary draws on key performance information about the schools in the Council provided in Appendix 1.
Staying on rate and school leavers’ destinations
•
Over the last three years the percentage of pupils staying on after the compulsory leaving age had declined, but remained slightly above the national average figures and those for a group of similar authorities.
•
Over the same period the percentage of school leavers entering higher education was well above national average figures and those for similar authorities. In
2000-01 the figure was the highest of the group of similar authorities and fourth highest nationally.
Partly as a result, the percentage entering further education and employment had remained consistently below national figures.
Attendance and absence
•
Between 1997 and 2000 the percentage of total absences in primary schools had been slightly below national figures. In secondary schools the percentage of absences had been on a decreasing trend and was below national levels by 2000-01.
•
Over the last three years the number of exclusions had fluctuated, but in session 2000-01 had decreased from above to below the national average. In
2000-2001 the authority had almost entirely eliminated permanent exclusions.
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5-14 performance
•
Between 1998 and 2001, there was an increase in the number of primary school pupils achieving or exceeding appropriate levels of attainment for their stage in reading, writing and mathematics. In all three aspects performance had been consistently above the average levels achieved nationally and in similar authorities, but the gap had narrowed over the last three years. By 2001 the Council had exceeded the targets it had set itself in reading and writing and had almost achieved its target in mathematics.
The performance of S2 pupils in National Tests between 1998 and 2001 indicated improvements in reading and writing. In these aspects the Council had exceeded the targets it had set itself. The rate of improvement in writing was the same as the national rate, but in reading it was less than the national rate of improvement. The Council had not achieved the targets it had set itself for mathematics. Levels of performance of S2 pupils in mathematics in 2001 were lower than they had been in 1998 while, over the same period, national figures had improved.
Overall performance in reading and writing was above the average levels achieved nationally and in similar authorities. Overall performance in mathematics was in line with national averages and those of similar authorities.
SQA examination performance
•
Over the period 1999 to 2001, South Ayrshire’s performance was consistently above national averages and those of similar authorities in the percentage of pupils achieving five or more awards in
SQA National Qualifications (NQs) Level 3 or better,
Level 4 or better and Level 5 or better, by the end of
S4. However, between a starting point of 1995 to
1997 and 1999 to 2001, the rate of improvement in

the percentage of pupils gaining five or more awards at Level 5 had been less than the national rate, and the
Council had not met its target figure.
•
From 1999 to 2001, performance at NQ Level 6 was also consistently above national averages and those for similar authorities. Over this period, the percentage of S5 pupils achieving three or more awards at A-C remained constant in comparison to a slight improvement nationally. The percentage of pupils achieving three or more awards at A-C was the second highest of similar authorities. The percentage achieving five or more awards at A-C was the highest of similar authorities and fourth highest nationally.
Over the longer period between 1995 to 1997 and
1999 to 2001, rates of improvement in performance at
Higher Grade were broadly in line with the national rates. The authority had almost met its target for the percentage of pupils achieving three or more A-C awards, and had exceeded its target for five or more
A-C awards.
•
The proportion of pupils gaining one or more NQ award at Level 7 by the end of S6 was above the national average and was the second highest of similar authorities.
•
The authority’s performance in terms of value added measures of progress from Standard Grade to Higher
Grade was better in 1999 than in 2001. It remained slightly above the equivalent national average figure.
School inspection evidence
In the period from January 1999 to June 2002 HMIE published reports which gave evaluations against a full set of performance indicators in 15 primary and five secondary schools.
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Almost all of the primary schools inspected provided a good overall quality of education. In one school the overall quality was very good. One had important weaknesses in key aspects of provision. Almost all schools had a well-balanced curriculum and good quality programmes of study. The quality of the teaching process and the quality of pupils’ learning were good in almost all cases. The overall quality of attainment in
English language and mathematics was very good or good in most schools inspected.
Around 60% of the primary schools inspected had a very good ethos and in the remainder the ethos was good.
Communications with parents and partnerships with parents and School Boards were consistently strong features. All schools very well or well staffed. Although most schools were also well equipped, some had gaps in resources and two had important or major weaknesses in the quality of accommodation. The quality of support for learning and the implementation of legislation for special educational needs (SEN) were very good in over 40% of schools and good in most of the others inspected. All schools had very good or good leadership with a higher proportion of very good leaders than is generally found nationally. Other strengths in management included schools’ arrangements for staff development and review and management of devolved finances.
Around half of the primary schools inspected had some important weaknesses in their arrangements for using assessment as part of teaching, and in about a third teaching was not well matched to pupils’ needs and experiences. There were also weaknesses in teachers’ planning in around a quarter of schools. Approaches to self-evaluation were fair in over 30% of schools and there were weaknesses in implementing the development plan in around 20%.
The five secondary schools inspected all provided good overall standards of education and good learning and

teaching. The overall quality of attainment was good at all stages in two schools but the other three had weaknesses in attainment at two of the three broad stages of secondary education.
The secondary schools were all well staffed and well resourced. They all provided very good or good arrangements for pastoral care and for developing partnerships with parents and School Boards. They communicated well with parents. All had good arrangements for implementing SEN legislation. Four of the schools had very good or good arrangements for support for learning, curricular and vocational guidance, and for the management of devolved finances.
Leadership was very good in one school and good in the others.
All but one of the secondary schools had important weaknesses in their accommodation. Two of the five had weaknesses in their ethos. In three, the arrangements for staff development and review, the approaches to self-evaluation, and the quality of development plans and their implementation were fair. Two of the schools had some important weaknesses in the effectiveness of promoted staff and senior teachers. Main points for action identified by HMIE most frequently related to the need to improve attainment, the curriculum, and approaches to quality assurance and development planning.
Evidence from the authority’s pre-inspection reports to
HMIE indicated a good knowledge of provision in its schools. The format of reports was clearly related to a framework of performance indicators and was supported by detailed provision of statistical data and evidence from
Directorate visits to the schools. They contained an appropriate emphasis on evaluative comment and had recently added evaluations on the effectiveness of leadership as an integral part of the report.
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Vision, values and aims
Performance in this area was very good. In A Vision of
2020 , the Council clearly set out its aims and long-term ambitions for the people of South Ayrshire. It also identified the action necessary to achieve its stated priorities. In the context of promoting lifelong learning, the Council’s aims included reference to encouraging
‘increased participation and improved levels of attainment in academic, social and economic life’.
Priorities for action included those of promoting equal access to educational opportunity, raising levels of attainment and encouraging inclusion into mainstream education.
The restructuring of the Council in 2000-2001 had provided the opportunity for all Departments to review their aims and priorities. In this process the Education,
Culture and Lifelong Learning (ECLL) Department had, on behalf of elected members, consulted with a wide range of stakeholders including School Boards and other partner organisations. Staff in the Department and elected members had been involved in agreeing the revised aims. Aims such as those of raising attainment, maximising achievement, developing equality of opportunity, and supporting every individual in their learning, were clearly indicative of the very close alignment of the Department’s vision with that of the
Council and the national priorities for education.
The Department’s commitment to improvement was underpinned by the stated aims of establishing effective methods of monitoring performance and of embedding rigorous approaches to quality assurance across the service. The wide-ranging and successful development of the culture of self-evaluation ensured that senior managers had a clear view of progress in implementing the Department’s vision, values and aims.
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The statement of aims and other key policy documents gave a clear definition of the role of the authority in providing effective support and challenge to its schools.
Senior managers and officers showed a strong commitment to the values and aims of the ECLL
Department in the focus of their activities and in their relationships with staff in establishments across the authority. Headteachers, senior promoted staff and
School Boards were fully aware of the Department’s aims.
Senior officers had developed good working relationships with partner services and agencies. As full members of a range of cross-service groups, they contributed effectively to important aspects of joint working. Their involvement in, for example, the Community Learning
Partnership and the Lifelong Learning Partnership Group, promoted and supported co-operative ventures with a wide range of organisations. These and other links with local and national agencies were essential elements of the
Council’s development of effective strategies for implementing its vision, values and aims. Senior managers in the ECLL Department were working to further strengthen the partnerships which had been established.
Leadership and management
The quality of leadership and management was very good. The Director (ECLL), as a key member of the
Corporate Management Team, had made significant contributions to corporate priorities in aspects such as planning and quality assurance. The Chief Executive, the
Director and senior managers had a very clear vision of the priorities for education. The Director had worked tenaciously and successfully to encourage elected members to give appropriately high priority to quality development in education.
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The Director provided very good leadership, effectively combining a strong overall strategic role with an active involvement in key operational matters. He had a very good knowledge of all aspects of the work of the ECLL
Department and of schools across the authority. He gave his colleagues in the Departmental Management Team, officers and headteachers a firm strategic lead on the
Department’s key priorities. His commitment to promoting effective working relationships had contributed to strong teamwork among key staff across the authority. He was approachable and accessible, and demonstrated an ability to take decisive action to maintain and improve quality in all aspects of the work of the Department.
The Director, the Heads of Service whose remits focused mainly on key aspects of school education, and the
Co-ordinators of Quality, Resources and Early Years provision, formed a very effective and hard-working team. These strengths and the impact of the Director’s leadership were widely recognised by other centrally-deployed staff and by headteachers across the authority. Strong but responsive leadership, well focused on quality development and on developing the skills of central staff, were significant features of the strategic management of the Department.
The commitment to effective self-evaluation was exemplified in an extensive survey of the views of headteachers and senior managers on the effectiveness of the work of the Department using the Quality
Management in Education (QMIE) framework
1
. This thorough and comprehensive review had resulted in appropriate action to address the main issues arising.
Approaches to quality development were already firmly embedded in the work of the authority, and further improvements were being implemented. Through their
1
Quality Management in Education (HM Inspectors of Schools, 2000) is a framework of self-evaluation for Local Authority Education Departments.

focus on performance monitoring, senior management and officers had made a significant impact on the quality of support and challenge offered to schools. In the pre-inspection survey no headteacher disagreed with the view that senior managers showed a high level of commitment to promoting quality.
The Council had not yet implemented formal arrangements for staff review for central staff, but had piloted a system in some Departments. The work of the
Director, senior managers and centrally-employed staff had not been formally reviewed. While the Director and members of the Departmental Management Team met regularly with officers responsible for specific projects to review progress, a formal system of staff development and review should now be established.
Policy development
The quality of policy development was very good. The
ECLL Department had developed a clear and coherent policy framework to guide its work. Links between the
Council’s aims and policies and those of the Department were well embedded in the service planning process.
Action to implement policy was clearly identified in the
Service Plan and explicitly linked to the Council’s vision, the aims of the Department, local improvement objectives and national priorities.
Policy advice was wide ranging and very well balanced in its coverage of strategic and operational matters. It was underpinned by a notable emphasis on activities relating to quality assurance and quality improvement.
The components of the overarching policy on quality management provided a comprehensive and effective strategy for maintaining and improving quality. The policy clearly set out the key principles and processes involved and confirmed the commitment to embedding quality assurance as an integral feature of the work of the
Department and schools. Effective approaches to
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14 self-evaluation and performance monitoring were essential features of the policy.
The range of the Department’s policy documentation included clear advice on school development planning, devolved management of resources, health and safety, and care and welfare. Policy advice on cross-service partnership working included a well-conceived strategy for supporting ‘Looked-after and Accommodated
Children in Need’. In addition to the strategic policies, headteachers appreciated the very specific advice on aspects of crisis management and child protection. A calendar of key activities for schools also provided a very useful aide-memoire for headteachers. All secondary headteachers and almost all primary headteachers (94%) agreed with the view that the range of the Department’s policies was appropriate for the needs of their establishments.
Senior managers and officers demonstrated a clear and shared understanding of the strategic themes and key priorities in the Department’s policy framework. Schools had been provided with a useful list of key documents which included all of the Department’s policy statements and other forms of advice. Headteachers were well aware of the Department’s expectations in developing and implementing policies in their schools.
Arrangements for developing and regularly reviewing policies were very effective. A major review of the
Department’s policy on support for pupils had recently been completed. The development of a new policy on
‘Pupil Support and Inclusion’ was an example of very good practice in policy development. Notable features included the extent of involvement of key stakeholders through formal and informal consultation and the considerable support agreed by elected members to implement the policy.

The authority’s approaches to consultation and communication were very good. The ECLL Department had produced a clear and comprehensive framework for consultation and communication. In addition to providing strategic and operational advice, the framework identified stakeholder groups who would be involved.
Senior managers and officers implemented the policy on consultation and communication very effectively.
The policy on ‘Public Performance Reporting’ set out key principles which included the commitment to consult and report on the authority’s local improvement objectives.
The Department gave commendable emphasis to making officers accessible to school staff, parents and other stakeholders. The Director led by example through his involvement in a systematic schedule of visits to all schools and School Boards. At the time of the inspection, he had visited all schools at least once and had met with more than half the School Boards. These meetings provided very good opportunities for face-to-face consultation and communication with key stakeholders.
The ECLL Department consulted and communicated well with other Departments in the Council, notably with
Social Work, Housing and Health. On a wider front, the
Department had established effective partnerships with
North and East Ayrshire Councils to take forward a number of joint initiatives and projects. Very good links were also maintained with a range of national agencies.
Headteachers expressed positive views on the
Department’s approach to consultation. In the pre-inspection survey, almost all (92%) thought that the
Department consulted effectively with their establishments. Most heads of establishments (77%) felt that they were appropriately consulted on the direction and priorities of the Service Plan. All secondary
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16 headteachers and almost all primary headteachers had responded positively. While School Board chairpersons were evenly split in their views on opportunities to influence the Department’s aims and plans for education, the inspection found that a wide range of systematic procedures for consulting parents were being implemented. In particular, chairpersons of School
Boards visited by the Director and officers were very positive about their willingness to take forward points for action.
Overall, an impressively wide range of consultative groups had been established. They were represented on an overarching ‘Standing Group on Formal Education’ which met three times a year with senior elected members and Directorate staff. Membership of this group included representation from School Boards, Parent-Teacher
Associations, the Consultative Group for Parents of
Young People with Support Needs, the Pupils’ Forum, the Teachers’ Forum, principal teachers’ networks, headteachers and several other groups.
Notable features of the Department’s approach to consultation included the following:
•
The aims of the Department had been drafted with the assistance of elected members and central staff.
Thereafter, they had been issued widely for consultation.
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Approaches to policy development involved consultation with all key stakeholders as an integral part of the process, particularly in developing the policy on pupil support and inclusion.
•
Consultation with stakeholders was an essential feature of the 3-year improvement plan, with the
Department committed to full consultation with all service users.

•
A number of important projects had been the subject of extensive consultation. The successful outcome of proposals for a shared campus for a denominational and non-denominational primary school owed much to the Department’s willingness to extend the consultation period to fully explore suggestions made by parents.
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Headteachers met regularly with the Director and senior officers and valued the meetings highly.
•
Headteachers and staff involved in working groups taking forward Service Plan projects had very good opportunities for discussion of policy development and implementation.
•
School Board chairpersons interviewed by the inspection team appreciated the regular meetings and opportunities to be informed and consulted on major developments.
•
Regular meetings and good working relationships between the Directorate and the Joint Consultative
Committee provided an effective means of consulting with teachers’ unions.
Approaches to communication were also very good. The
Director had successfully communicated the key aims of developing quality and promoting continuous improvement to a very wide range of stakeholders. To ensure the improvement agenda was addressed, elected members had been involved in establishing a Quality
Development Group comprising the Chief Executive, his depute, the leader of the Council, the Convenor of the
Lifelong Learning Committee, the depute Convenor and the Director (ECLL). This group, which provided an important forum for communication at the highest level, met at six-weekly intervals to consider strategic issues and to take action to promote continuous improvement in education.
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The aims of the ECLL Department were displayed prominently in establishments. The pre-inspection survey indicated that almost all headteachers (90%) recognised that senior managers had successfully communicated a clear overall vision for the development of education. The same high percentage of School Board chairpersons were aware of the main aims and values for education.
Eighty nine percent of headteachers agreed that the
Department was effective in disseminating good practice about how to improve standards and quality in education.
Almost all School Board chairpersons (93%) felt well informed about how to channel their views, enquiries and complaints, and a similarly high number indicated that they had opportunities to join with other School Boards to hear about developments in education. Almost all
(96%) felt that they were aware of how well their school was performing.
Notable features of communication included the following:
•
The Director and senior officers participated in a wide range of meetings with headteachers, staff and working groups. These meetings provided very good opportunities for headteachers and staff to be kept fully informed about key developments.
•
Headteachers appreciated the range and quality of performance data that was provided by the
Department. This included analysis by gender, by subject, and in relation to the performance of similar schools and departments.
•
All teachers had been invited to apply to serve on teams to take forward projects in the Service Plan.
•
The distribution of the monthly departmental newsletter provided school staff and School Boards

with a regular update on current activities in the
Department. The distribution of minutes of meetings and other documents through the Council’s intranet provided valuable, readily available and up-to-date information for all central staff. The use of e-mail in communicating with schools was at an early stage of development.
•
The Director and officers provided excellent opportunities for elected members to be informed about important developments in education.
Seminars for elected members had included a focus on issues relating to attainment and social inclusion.
•
The authority’s Standards and Quality Report
1999-2002 was well presented and appropriately evaluative. It contained a summary of key strengths, points for action and evidence related to each area of its work. The authority should also identify points for action drawing on the profile of attainment presented in the report. All schools had produced standards and quality reports. These were well presented but varied in quality.
•
The Council had established a clear system to record and respond to complaints and enquiries. The ECLL
Department had very good arrangements in place to collate, monitor and respond to all enquiries.
Overall, the Department made very effective use of a wide range of strategies in communicating with key stakeholders. However, there remained a perception among staff in schools below senior management team level that some aspects of communication could be improved. Senior officers and headteachers should continue to explore ways of addressing these perceptions.
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Service planning
Approaches to service planning were very good. The
ECLL Department had taken the lead in producing its
2002-2005 Service Plan in advance of the Council’s
Business Plan which was being finalised at the time of the inspection. The service planning process was very well managed and clearly seen as the key mechanism for maintaining quality and achieving improvements in the management and delivery of the Department’s priorities.
The priorities in the Service Plan fully reflected the corporate Vision of 2020 . The ECLL improvement objectives provided a clear focus on local and national priorities. These objectives were further developed through an Improvement Plan that outlined specific projects and identified success criteria.
Progress in previous Service Plans had been reviewed, evaluated and reported to the Council. The Department’s
Standards and Quality report identified many of the outcomes of the audit process. Widespread consultation with all stakeholders had resulted in improvements in the structure of the Service Plan and in the planning process.
A management action plan served as a key working document identifying for each project the lead officers, financial resources, timescales for completion and monitoring procedures for the specified tasks. The plan was well structured and well presented but criteria for measuring success were not always sufficiently specific.
The 17 main projects included the specification of important links with partner organisations and other
Council Departments.
Centrally-deployed staff were fully conversant with the
Service Plan and had a very clear understanding of their role and responsibilities in implementing the Plan.
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However, some lead officers carried a heavy responsibility for a number of projects, sometimes within tight timescales. Senior managers in the Department used monthly monitoring meetings to carefully review progress in the identified tasks. They had also begun to address the need for clarity in the specification of success criteria for some projects.
Links between the Service Plan and school development plans were very good. A useful planning calendar for schools and one for the Department were used to balance demands. Helpful guidelines had been provided for schools to harmonise their development planning procedures and to ensure coherence with the
Department’s plans. The contribution of schools to achieving the Department’s local improvement objectives was clearly demonstrated. Headteachers and senior promoted staff were fully aware of the Service Plan and the way it addressed local and national priorities.
Recognising the need for wider communication of the essence of the Service Plan, the Department had recently distributed a helpful summary of the Plan to all staff.
A number of staff had been seconded into the Department to assist in the development and delivery of projects in the Service Plan. Almost all staff in schools were aware of opportunities to become involved in project teams.
This commitment to involving staff across the authority promoted a wider understanding of the Department’s priorities and encouraged a sense of ownership in taking forward key tasks. It also made significant contributions to their continuing professional development.
The Department had very effective links with key partner organisations, including good collaborative working across the Council. The Children’s Services Plan was well presented and clearly identified links with the ECLL
Service Plan. Officers in the Department were very clear about their roles and responsibilities within the
Children’s Services Plan. The Department had developed
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22 a Community Learning Strategy that involved, for example, supporting young people and promoting adult literacy within social inclusion partnership areas. A major strength of the inter-agency approach was the work in progress to support ‘Looked-after and Accommodated
Children’. The Scottish Executive’s report Better
Behaviour-Better Learning provided another strong focus for the inter-agency working that was beginning to make an impact on establishments. In addition, the Department was in the final stages of agreeing a Memorandum of
Understanding with Ayr College, the University of
Paisley and the local Health Board to focus partnership activities in a collaborative planning process.
Deployment and effectiveness of centrally-employed staff
Performance in this area was good and improving.
Individually and as a team, the small number of centrally-employed staff were able and fully committed to their work. There was a very strong sense of teamwork, not only among ECLL officers but also with staff from other Departments, secondees from schools and external consultants. All staff showed a clear commitment to delivering the Council’s key priorities.
In the past there had been some over-commitment to too many projects, not all of which had been followed through to a successful conclusion. The Department had begun to address this issue through focusing more closely on the effective implementation of a more manageable number of key projects. Almost all staff in the schools visited appreciated the approachability of central staff.
They also recognised the heavy demands on staff at all levels throughout the Department, including the workload of the most senior members of the Directorate and of technical and administrative staff.
The Director had given a very strong lead in providing schools with appropriate support and challenge. This was

reflected in the remits of staff at all levels. The visits to schools by the Director, accompanied by senior managers and central staff as appropriate, were widely recognised by headteachers as stimulating and challenging meetings.
Centrally-employed staff at all levels had a good knowledge of the schools they worked with. This sometimes extended to a close working knowledge of the support needs of individual pupils. Almost all staff in the schools visited and headteachers (94%) who responded to the pre-inspection questionnaire believed that senior managers showed a strong commitment to promoting quality. Headteachers were similarly clear about the roles and responsibilities of the education authority’s officers. Most headteachers (82%) thought central staff were prompt and helpful in responding to contacts with their establishments.
Centrally-employed staff were developing their role as link officers with responsibilities for area clusters of schools. This relatively new development, seen as one of the principal means of providing schools with support and challenge, had not yet been fully embedded in the system. While headteachers varied in their views on the extent to which the new arrangements were meeting their needs, most were very supportive of the developing role.
Link officers were benefiting from high quality support and well-focused staff development. There were clear signs that the role of link officers was developing well with a strengthening impact on both the work of the
Department and of schools.
The authority endeavoured to support curriculum developments by a range of additional means including the use of external contributors, consultants, secondees and lead principal teachers. In a number of instances this had resulted in effective and highly regarded support for schools, but there were areas, for example in some subjects in secondary schools and in aspects of provision
23

for special educational needs, where school staff were sometimes critical of the level of support provided.
Schools were appreciative of the assistance they received from financial and other centrally-based administrative staff. Even when they were critical of aspects of financial systems or of the problems in securing supply cover for staff, most commented favourably on the support of central staff to help to resolve the difficulties.
Resource management
The management of resources was good overall. Schools were generally well staffed and well equipped.
Education had fared relatively well from Council spending within the capital budget, including some innovative re-development of school buildings. Effective steps had been taken to make use of some surplus accommodation within schools for pre-school provision and to house support services. Against a background of falling rolls and the Council’s continuing commitment to maintaining small schools in rural areas, there remained issues relating to over-capacity and the fitness of the building stock for modern educational purposes. The
Council had recognised the need to increase spending from the revenue budget and had taken important steps to improve the position. Spending per pupil had increased significantly above rates of inflation over the past two sessions. A significant injection of funds had recently been agreed to underpin developments in the provision for pupil support and inclusion.
Some schools in the authority benefited from very high quality accommodation and facilities. However, reports published by HMIE on schools in South Ayrshire over the last three years identified weaknesses in the quality of the accommodation in a few primary schools and most
24

secondary schools. Staff in several schools raised value-for-money issues relating to repairs, maintenance and minor adaptations carried out by the Council. Senior managers were aware of these concerns and had promoted increasingly productive liaison between the
ECLL and Environment, Land and Property (ELP)
Departments. They had, for example, established a systematic programme of joint visits to schools focusing on aspects of resource provision. These visits, undertaken by the Head of Resource Planning and
Support and a representative of the ELP Department, were appreciated by headteachers.
On its inception the Council had faced challenges relating to the occupancy levels in schools and the maintenance of buildings. A major internal study of its school buildings costed total maintenance needs at around £45 million to address the backlog of repairs. This figure did not include additional costs associated with up-dating school accommodation, for example, in relation to new technologies to support learning and teaching. The
Council was actively addressing these issues. Proposals for an extensive re-development of provision, including joint campuses and bringing together education and community facilities, had been submitted to the Scottish
Executive as part of a successful Private Public
Partnership bid.
The Council and the ECLL Department were committed to the principles of Best Value. The ECLL Department had identified its approaches to quality development, quality assurance and continuous improvement as the essential methods of meeting Best Value requirements.
Key principles of Best Value were addressed through, for example, its framework for consultation, and benchmarking activities in a range of contexts. The context, process and results of Best Value reviews required to be more clearly communicated to stakeholders. For example, headteachers and staff in schools were not wholly familiar with the impact of Best
25

26
Value on provision. Specific outcomes in identifying the cost-effective use of resources had included the effective use of surplus accommodation to support the expansion of pre-school provision. Other examples included the successful establishment of the dual campus for a denominational and non-denominational school, the re-building of two primary schools, and the identification of potential savings through revised timetabling arrangements in upper secondary classes.
The quality of provision for information and communications technology (ICT) in schools was improving from a low base. There were positive working relationships between staff in the Council’s ECLL
Department and ICT services. The Council had made good progress in networking its schools with fast connections. In secondary schools, the ratio of computers to pupils was in line with Government targets. The ratio in primary schools still lagged behind, but it was anticipated that the authority would reach the appropriate target next session. All teachers and pupils had e-mail addresses. The extent and quality of training for teachers and other staff had been variable across the authority.
While Council staff were perceived as helpful, schools experiencing problems with ICT felt that the level of technical assistance was inadequate. The recently introduced helpline had a heavy backlog of calls. The
Council had recognised these problems and had initiated action to improve the level of technical assistance available to schools.
While schools were generally well staffed and a number of initiatives had provided additional staffing, there remained difficulties in securing adequate cover for absent teachers and in resolving issues surrounding some staff who had been employed for many years on temporary contracts. Officers within the Council were well aware of the issues and difficulties and were taking appropriate steps to try to resolve them.

Financial management
Performance in this area was good. Significant improvements in financial management had been made in recent years and further improvements were planned, for example in aspects of the devolved management of resources. ECLL and Financial Services had established good working relationships. Elected members and senior managers were closely involved in the budget-setting and budget-monitoring process. The Director (ECLL) monitored the budget very closely.
Following an overspend in 1999-2000, an independent consultant had been commissioned to review the financial procedures in place within the ECLL Department.
Thereafter, significant improvements had been implemented, including the recruitment of very good accountancy support. In addition, the Council had completed a Best Value review of the accountancy function. As a result, accounting teams supporting
Departments had been transferred to Financial Services.
At the time of the inspection a service level agreement between ECLL and Financial Services was being finalised. The accounting team were closely involved with schools, giving helpful support and advice on financial arrangements. Feedback from schools and from centrally-deployed staff on the quality of support they received from the accounting team was generally positive.
In addition to the committee structure, the Council had established a budget working group comprising senior elected members, the Chief Executive and Directors of
Departments. The group undertook detailed preparatory work as part of the annual budgetary process. The
Director (ECLL) ensured that headteachers were appropriately informed and consulted on aspects of budgetary provision. Overall, the budget-setting process was clear and transparent.
27

28
In the pre-inspection survey 89% of secondary headteachers indicated that they found the Council’s financial procedures effective. However, only a majority of primary headteachers (66%) agreed with this view.
School Board chairpersons were evenly split in their views on whether or not the system for allocating finance to schools was clear and understandable. The ECLL
Department should consider ways of further clarifying the key factors and criteria for allocating finance and other resources to schools.
A working group had been established to review and update the Council’s devolved management of resources
(DMR) scheme. The scheme had been a source of some frustration to schools, mainly because they had not been permitted to carry forward any of the balances from one financial year to another. As a result, schools lost some of the financial flexibility the scheme might otherwise have provided. The Council was committed to improving this situation by allowing carry forwards in some budgets in the future, subject to successful implementation of the new financial system. Another concern raised by some schools related to the timing of the distribution of additional funds from the Government towards the end of the financial year. The ECLL Department made every effort to disburse the funds timeously, but sometimes the allocation of monies to the Council late in the financial year had made it very difficult for the Council and schools to adopt best practice in planning their expenditure.
Elected members on the Lifelong Learning Committee received budget monitoring reports on a monthly basis.
These reports were clear and concise, compared budget with actual expenditure, offered projections of expenditure, and provided sufficient commentary to enable informed judgements regarding the financial position of the ECLL Department. The full Council received an overall summary position noting significant variances.

As an additional method of scrutiny, the Council had established a budget scrutiny group, comprising senior elected members and the chief and depute chief executive. This group could request information from officers, and provided an additional method of holding officers to account for financial matters.
Budget monitoring information was derived primarily from the Council-wide financial systems. The Council had recently made a significant investment in moving all schools on to the same financial system, with the intention that all financial information would be held in a single system. This was causing some disruption in individual schools although education finance staff were attempting to minimise the impact on schools. The good training already given by the Council to headteachers and
Administration Finance Officers (AFOs) should be continued and extended to support school-based administrative staff throughout the introduction of the new system. In addition, the frequency of meetings of centrally-deployed finance staff and AFOs should be increased in line with declared intentions.
Measuring, monitoring and evaluating performance
The quality of work in this area was very good. The authority had a very strong commitment to promoting effective approaches to self-evaluation supported by systematic and rigorous quality development procedures.
It had taken a lead role in contributing to the national framework for self-evaluation through, for example, its involvement in piloting and publishing national support materials to assist schools to self-evaluate the quality of learning and teaching, arrangements for primary-secondary liaison and approaches to promoting equality and fairness.
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30
The ECLL Department had a wide range of well-developed approaches to monitoring and evaluating the performance of schools and pre-school centres.
Under the leadership of the Quality Co-ordinator, it was very effectively promoting the involvement of heads of establishments in the evaluation process.
Senior managers in the Department had well-defined roles in monitoring performance. Most headteachers
(85%) were confident that the authority had an accurate knowledge of the performance of their schools.
Well-structured and increasingly evaluative reports provided to HMIE prior to inspections confirmed that the authority knew its schools well.
The Quality Co-ordinator managed the process of collecting and analysing performance data very effectively. A wide range of data on primary and secondary schools was gathered in establishment profiles which were readily available to senior managers in the
ECLL Department. Trends were analysed and comparisons made with similar schools and departments to identify differences in performance. Evaluations from
HMIE inspections and from the schools’ own self-evaluation activities were included in the database and used to identify needs across the authority’s schools.
Well-presented packs were prepared for discussion with headteacher and principal teacher groups and for discussions with individual schools and departments.
The authority was developing its computer software to further improve schools’ access to data.
Commendably, data on pre-school centres was also gathered and analysed. This included information from
HMIE inspection reports, parental questionnaires issued by the ECLL Department, notes on visits to schools by officers, and the views of staff on their staff development needs.

The authority’s Quality Improvement Framework set out the principles and processes for assuring quality. It provided schools with appropriate guidance and advice on self-evaluation, development planning and standards and quality reports. It was supplemented by more detailed advice with very helpful exemplification and formats to promote consistency in schools across the authority.
Very good support and staff development was provided to schools to encourage the development of skills in self-evaluation. The authority actively promoted the use of national performance indicators from How good is our school?
2
and The Child at the Centre
3
to monitor quality and plan for improvement. Primary and secondary headteachers felt increasingly confident in using data as a result of training and the discussions undertaken during the Director’s visits to schools. All primary and secondary headteachers agreed that the Department had effectively encouraged their schools to develop systematic approaches to monitoring and evaluating their work. Outwith the school sector, senior managers had taken some steps in developing more systematic approaches to self-evaluation in Lifelong Learning and
Psychological Services.
Key messages from the available performance data, including aspects such as attendance and attainment, were summarised for each school in preparation for the
Director’s visits to primary, secondary and special schools. These visits formed a central element in the quality improvement process and were conducted with rigour. The Director and senior officers, including the link officer, met with each school’s senior management team to discuss key aspects of the performance of the school. Issues were identified and action to be taken by
2
How good is our school? – Self-evaluation using performance indicators (Audit Unit
– HM Inspectors of Schools, SOEID, 1996)
3
The Child at the Centre – Self-evaluation in the Early Years (SEED, 2000)
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32 the school and by the authority were agreed, recorded and shared with all teachers. The following year the
Director’s visit began with a review of progress on the action points from the previous meeting. The Department planned to extend these visits to nursery schools in the coming year.
Visits during the school year on aspects such as development planning, standards and quality reporting, the discussion of examination data and other issues, reinforced points for action set by the Director’s visit.
Link Officers were increasingly expected to develop this role in supporting and challenging schools throughout the year.
The authority’s scheme for staff development and review was very well established in primary schools. The arrangements had recently lost some impetus in secondary schools. The introduction of arrangements associated with the McCrone agreement had delayed review interviews in some secondary schools. The authority had revised its arrangements for headteacher review to place more emphasis on leadership and the new
‘Standards for Headship’. Headteachers had responded well to these changes. The authority should now consider the extension of staff review to non-teaching staff and ensure that the review process for teachers is firmly re-established in secondary schools.
The Department had taken very useful steps to evaluate its own performance. It had commissioned a consultant to survey and meet with groups of headteachers and
Directorate staff to carry out a broad evaluation of the
Department’s work against the key areas of Quality
Management in Education . The Department had used the findings to implement a number of improvements in its performance. It had also surveyed parents in all schools to identify strengths and aspects for development.
Looking beyond its own boundaries, the Department had

conducted benchmarking exercises comparing its performance with those of similar authorities.
Overall, there were major strengths in the Department’s approach to monitoring and measuring performance.
There was clear evidence that the authority had established a sound quality assurance framework and had provided consistent and energetic support to schools in implementing it. The establishment of a quality development culture was a key feature of the work of the
Department.
Continuous improvement in performance
The overall impact of the authority’s approaches to securing continuous improvement was good, with clear evidence that solid foundations had been established for further improvement. The pre-inspection survey indicated that all pre-school heads, almost all primary headteachers (95%) and most secondary headteachers
(77%) were confident that the authority was helping schools to improve the quality of education.
The Department had a number of initiatives to support schools and to stimulate improvement, many in response to the Government’s Excellence Fund programme. The authority’s processes for supporting and challenging schools were increasingly effective in improving quality.
These processes should now be targeted more closely on specific stages or subjects where data across the authority indicates a need for improvement.
Support for pre-school education
The Department’s support for partner centres was very effective. Support for the authority’s nursery schools and classes also had important strengths but some aspects needed further development.
The authority had significantly expanded its provision for pre-school education and now provided a place for all
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34 three and four-year-old children. Officers had prepared clear and helpful guidance for nursery schools and classes and for partner centres. They actively promoted effective joint staff development for staff in partner centres and those in the authority’s nursery schools and classes.
Extensive, high quality support in quality development had been provided for all pre-school partnership centres.
Development officers visited them regularly to discuss their practice. Commendably, some visits were designed to provide an external evaluation to set alongside the centre’s own judgements of their quality. Very good procedures and support materials were in place for development planning, curriculum development, and planning, recording and reporting children’s progress.
Officers also made a series of very useful quality development visits to nursery schools and classes although these needed to be more systematic in providing defined levels of support, particularly to nursery classes.
The Department had introduced a transition record to transfer information on pupils’ achievements from pre-school to primary education. Staff in all pre-school centres had been trained in using the transition record.
The authority had also organised staff development for all
P1 and P2 teachers to ensure that their planning built on pupils’ achievements in pre-school education.
ECLL staff worked very well with other agencies in supporting pre-school education in the community. For example, they collaborated with childcare staff and other
Ayrshire authorities to provide comprehensive information about the range of provision for childcare.
They also worked with childcare and health staff on projects to promote health and reduce social disadvantage.
Support for primary schools

The authority supported its primary schools effectively with significant improvements in the quality of support in recent years.
The Council had achieved the Government’s target on the number of pupils in classes at the P1 to P3 stages. It had used early intervention funding effectively to provide additional nursery nurses and teachers, to establish joint training for primary and pre-school staff, and to involve parents more in supporting their children’s learning.
Assessments of pupils’ performance in the 5-14 curriculum showed notable increases in the numbers of pupils achieving Level A by the end of P2 and Level B by the end of P3, standards above those normally expected for their stage.
Across the primary stages, the proportion of pupils achieving national attainment levels in reading, writing and mathematics had increased between 1998 and 2001.
Standards achieved were consistently above national levels but the rate of improvement was less than the rate achieved nationally and less than the rate for similar authorities. The authority was aware of the need to ensure that early gains in pupils’ attainment at P1 to P3 were sustained through the later stages of primary education. The analysis of attainment data on individual schools was used effectively in the Director’s visits to agree specific targets for improving attainment.
The authority provided very good support for the development of programmes of study related to
5-14 guidelines. This aspect of support had improved considerably in recent years. Officers had developed or adapted helpful programmes of study and support materials for a wide range of aspects of the curriculum.
They had launched these with headteachers and provided some very good staff development to support their implementation. Staff welcomed this increased level of structured support and regarded the materials as practical and helpful.
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36
Support for secondary schools
The authority supported secondary schools well and was actively seeking to improve the range and impact of initiatives. Subject networks enabled principal teachers to work together regularly in developing materials and in identifying and sharing best practice in their curriculum areas. A lead principal teacher for each network received a small amount of time each year to co-ordinate network activities. Some networks had been successful in preparing curriculum materials and providing staff development opportunities in individual subjects. The
Department had recently introduced meetings of lead principal teachers to ensure greater consistency in the effectiveness of networks.
The authority had identified the need to increase the pace of improvements to the curriculum in S1/S2. Revised guidance on the curriculum and on approaches to assessment, for example in environmental studies, had been issued. Overall, however, progress in implementing the 5-14 curriculum had been more variable at S1/S2 than at the primary stages.
The very clear focus on meeting pupils’ needs was a strong feature of the Department’s support for secondary schools. Examples included:
• additional funding and advice for study support initiatives;
• the encouragement of greater flexibility in the curriculum with the adaptation of programmes to pupils’ needs especially in S3 to S6; and
• some imaginative programmes to improve transition from school to college or work.

The impact of the authority’s initiatives in raising attainment in secondary schools had been variable, but this was against a background of high attainment in comparison to national averages. With the exception of mathematics in S1/S2 where pupils’ performance was in line with the national average, overall performance at
S1/S2 and in national examinations at S4 to S6 was consistently above national averages and the averages for similar authorities. However, rates of improvement in performance over recent years tended to be below the national rates of improvement and those of similar authorities.
At S1/S2, between 1998 and 2001, attainment at S2 in reading and writing had improved. The rate of improvement for writing was in line with the national average and the average for similar authorities. In reading, the rate of improvement was below these levels.
Attainment in mathematics at S2 had fallen whilst the national and similar Council averages had improved.
In South Ayrshire between 1999 and 2001, the overall rates of improvement in performance at Levels 3, 4 and 5
(Standard Grade) were generally less than improvement rates nationally and in similar authorities. At Level 6
(Higher), the proportion of pupils gaining three or more awards by the end of S5 had remained constant whilst national and similar authorities’ averages had risen slightly. More positively, the rate of increase in the proportion of pupils gaining five or more awards at
Level 6 by the end of S5 was in line with improvement rates achieved nationally and by similar authorities.
Commendably, by the end of S6 the proportion of pupils gaining at least one award at Level 7 (Advanced Higher or Sixth Year Studies)) had increased by a margin well above the national averages and those of similar authorities. The authority should continue to support and challenge schools in raising pupils’ attainment,
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38 particularly in mathematics at S1/S2 and at Standard
Grade.
Support for pupils
In 1999, the Council had set out a clear policy for promoting inclusive education. This placed an increasing emphasis on support for pupils with moderate learning difficulties in mainstream schools. The authority had established facilities for pupils with special educational needs within three primary schools and two secondary schools. These initiatives were working well, with appropriate steps being taken to address issues relating to staff training and the co-ordination of services in the secondary sector. The authority was now taking final decisions on the implications of these changes for its special schools.
In developing its provision for inclusive education, the
Department had recently reviewed its services for support for pupils. It had re-organised learning and behavioural support staff into teams based in local clusters of schools.
The Department had also identified the staff development needs of teaching and other staff. It was too early to evaluate the success of these new arrangements, but they were working well where regular meetings and staff development had been organised to integrate learning and behaviour support staff into the cluster. In some cases, these measures had still to be put into place.
The Department had organised staff development on inclusive education for all of its primary and secondary schools. It had presented its well-considered strategy for early and staged intervention to support pupils’ learning and behaviour. Training in designing individualised educational programmes (IEPs) for pupils with particular needs had been welcomed by all staff involved.

Psychological services worked closely with families, staff and pupils in assessing individual needs and offering appropriate advice. They provided effective support for the implementation of SEN legislation in schools. They collaborated well with other agencies to support a wide range of initiatives in schools. Psychologists also provided effective training in behavioural support, IEPs and target-setting for pupils with special educational needs, and ran courses designed to help school staff to cope with major crises. Plans were in place to further develop their work on learning styles and thinking skills.
This range of activities constituted a very ambitious programme, particularly since psychological services had been understaffed against its established staffing complement for several periods in recent years. Although schools widely acknowledged the quality of service provided, there were some criticisms of variations in quality and concerns that the service was over-stretched.
The authority should work with the service to prioritise its work and continue to take steps to ensure a full complement of staff.
The ECLL Department worked closely with the Social
Work, Housing and Health Department to support looked after and accommodated children. Arrangements were very well planned and focused clearly on improved educational outcomes for the children. Each pupil had a personal education plan. Two jointly funded full-time teachers were seconded to provide support for staff and to co-ordinate services for the pupils.
The authority had adopted a number of initiatives to support pupils at risk from exclusion from schools. It had deployed more behavioural support staff, provided additional training in behaviour management, strengthened inter-agency work with social workers, psychologists and medical professionals, and extended the use of joint assessment teams to include some primary schools. Initially, exclusions had continued to rise but
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40 more recently there was evidence of a reduction. The
ECLL Department’s senior management team monitored patterns and trends in exclusions very regularly and officers provided prompt feedback and support to schools.
The authority also had a number of imaginative and successful projects to support young people with a range of difficulties in making transition to other stages of education or towards employment.
Support for staff development
Overall provision for staff development had some important weaknesses. Around 40% of headteachers in primary schools and 45% of headteachers in secondary schools did not agree that the authority assisted their staff in accessing appropriate staff development.
Strengths in staff development focused well on key aspects of pre-school education and the early stages of primary school, on management and quality assurance in all sectors, and on SEN, inclusion and the development of
IEPs.
However, the overall coverage and frequency of courses was limited. Teachers reported variation in the range and quality of the courses available on learning and teaching in different aspects of the curriculum in primary schools and in secondary subjects. They expressed concern about the cancellation of some courses and some teachers indicated they were not always aware of available courses. Following an initial ‘welcome course’ for probationer teachers, the authority had no arrangements for meetings or additional training.
The Department had begun to address most of these issues. It was currently in discussion with officers of
Learning and Teaching: Scotland to access a wider range of courses and expertise. It was placing more emphasis on providing a common menu of courses for all schools

on in-service days and on delivering courses to staff at whole school or departmental level. The Department also intended to make more use of seconded staff tutors to provide practical advice and support for class and subject teachers. It had appropriately increased the provision of courses available for non-teaching staff.
Other features of support
The Department provided very good support to schools leading up to inspection by HMIE and in supporting improvement following inspection. In recent years almost all recommendations had been met before follow-up inspections.
The authority’s effectiveness in disseminating good practice was variable. In many cases good practice was celebrated and disseminated effectively. Around 65% of headteachers in the pre-inspection survey felt that senior managers were good at celebrating success. However, opportunities were sometimes missed to spread good practice and motivate staff. Link Officers, well placed to gather examples of good practice, should ensure these are consistently reported to senior managers for further action. Positive features included the following:
•
Details of best practice were included on the
Department’s database of schools. Evidence from
HMIE inspection reports and from Directorate visits was used to identify strengths within schools. This information was helpful to Link Officers in responding to requests for support with aspects of curriculum developments.
•
The Department’s newsletter publicised examples of good practice.
•
The authority’s Standards and Quality report included positive comments from HMIE reports.
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•
Local galleries were often used to celebrate the work of primary schools.
The ECLL Department gave good support to the arts and sport. It provided good opportunities for pupils to perform music in public. The Council’s instrumental service helped to sustain the Ayrshire Youth Orchestra and the South Ayrshire Jazz Orchestra, both of which nurtured talent and mounted annual concerts. In A
Celebration of Art and Design a large number of primary and secondary schools had contributed to an impressive exhibition of pupils’ skills in art and craft in a public gallery. The Department had also promoted a programme of after-school activities in the arts and sport. All primary schools were involved, with specifically targeted programmes of sports activities in Social Inclusion
Partnership areas.
Overview
South Ayrshire Council had established a very clear vision for education. The Education, Culture and
Lifelong Learning Department, through its provision of support and challenge, was clearly adding value to the work of schools in raising attainment and promoting social inclusion. The Department demonstrated an impressive commitment to developing quality in all aspects of its work. The Department’s aims were fully in line with the national priorities for education and were closely focused on addressing local objectives. The success the Department had achieved in meeting its aims was underpinned by a shared understanding among officers and headteachers of their role in improving the quality of education across the authority. Very effective methods of monitoring performance and developments in embedding rigorous approaches to quality assurance were essential features of the work of the Department.
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The Director provided very good leadership. He had been instrumental in ensuring that the Department and schools across the authority had a very clear sense of direction. He very effectively combined his strategic management role with a well-judged involvement in operational matters. Evidence of this was seen in the responses of headteachers to the questions in the pre-inspection survey issued to all Councils in advance of an inspection. In South Ayrshire, the overall responses by heads of establishments were notably more positive than the norms for similar surveys.
The Director was very ably supported by the Quality
Co-ordinator and other senior managers and officers.
Individually and as a group they had a very good knowledge of schools across the authority. They had very successfully promoted a strong sense of teamwork across the authority. The involvement of key stakeholders in developing policy strengthened the impact of the Department in improving quality.
The Directorate team also recognised the need to strengthen specific areas of the Department’s work.
These included aspects of resource and financial management, and the provision of staff development for teachers. While schools in South Ayrshire performed well in comparison with national average levels of attainment and, for the most part, in comparison with other similar authorities, there was scope for improvement in some aspects of pupils’ performance.
Through its own gathering and evaluation of performance data, the Department was well aware of priorities on which to focus.
Overall, the authority was very effectively fulfilling its key functions of assuring and improving quality in its establishments.
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44
Key strengths
•
The clarity and impact of the ECLL Department’s aims set within the context of the Council’s vision and values.
•
The highly effective leadership and sense of direction provided by the Director and his team of senior managers with responsibilities for school education.
•
The accessibility and approachability of the Director, senior officers and centrally-employed staff across the
Department.
•
The strong sense of shared values and corporate teamwork among senior managers, officers and headteachers across the authority.
•
The approaches to policy development, closely focused on quality improvement.
•
The very effective approaches to consultation and communication with key stakeholders.
•
The systematic and effective approaches to service planning.
•
The quality of the work of the Department in supporting and challenging schools underpinned by the promotion of self-evaluation and the rigorous approaches to performance monitoring.

In addition to addressing the areas for improvement identified in this report, the Council should act on the following recommendations:
•
Procedures for the review and development of central staff and the devolved management of resources should be strengthened.
•
Senior managers in the Education Culture and
Lifelong Learning Department should further develop the expertise and skills of link officers in supporting and challenging schools.
•
Steps should be taken to improve the provision of staff development for teachers, and extend the arrangements to support probationers.
•
Provision of ICT equipment and training for teachers in the use of ICT should be further improved.
•
The Department should continue to focus on improving the curriculum and attainment at S1/S2, and should seek to further improve attainment in national examinations, particularly at Standard Grade.
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46
Around two years after the publication of this report
HM Inspectors will re-visit the authority to assess progress in meeting these recommendations. The local authority has been asked to prepare and make public an action plan, within eight weeks of the publication of this report, indicating how it will address the main points for action in the report.
Ian Gamble
HM Chief Inspector
Quality, Standards and Audit Division
August 2002

Performance information
Statistical indicators
•
% of school pupils staying on to S5 (post Christmas)
South Ayrshire
National
Av. similar councils
4
1998/99
72
1999/00
68
2000/01
66
65 65 64
65 66 65
•
Pupil destinations
% Entering Full-Time South Ayrshire
Av. similar councils
% Entering Full-Time South Ayrshire
Av. similar councils
% Entering South Ayrshire
Employment National
Av. similar councils
•
Absence
1998/99 1999/00 2000/01
39 42 43
31 31 32
34 34 34
16 16 16
18 19 20
20 21 21
18 15 14
26 26 24
22 21 21
In relation to the Raising Standards – Setting Targets initiative, South Ayrshire has set itself the following target to minimise the average number of half-days absence per pupil in primary and secondary schools by
2000/01.
Primary
National
(1997/1998) (2000/2001) (2000/2001)
21 20 18
Secondary
National 43 43 36
4
Av. similar councils refers to the group of education authorities which are most similar to each other in terms of various socio-economic and demographic factors.
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48
•
Exclusions from schools in South Ayrshire
2000/2001 Total
South
Ayrshire
Exclusions
Exclusions
Per 1000
Pupils
Temporary
Exclusions
Permanent exclusions
786 46 785 1
38,334 322
•
As part of the Raising Standards – Setting Targets
Target initiative, South Ayrshire Council set itself the following targets in reading, writing and mathematics in primary schools to be achieved by 2001, and has made the following progress in achieving them. The figures represent the percentage of pupils attaining and expected to attain appropriate 5-14 levels by P7
5
.
Starting Level
June 1998
Current Level
June 2001
Target Level
June 2001
National 69 80 77
National 56 70 67
National 73 79 81
As part of the Raising Standards – Setting Targets initiative, South Ayrshire Council set itself the following targets in reading, writing and mathematics in secondary schools to be achieved by 2001, and has made the following progress in achieving them. The
Target figures represent the percentage of pupils attaining and expected to attain appropriate 5-14 levels by S2
6
.
Starting Level
June 1998
Current Level
June 2001
Target Level
June 2001
5
Level A by end of P3. Level B by end of P4. Level C by end of P6.
6
Level D by end of P7.
Level E by end of S2.

National 41 56 54
National 36 46 48
National 41 51 55
•
Results in Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA)
National Qualifications.
Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) levels :
7: CSYS at A-C
6: Higher at A-C
5: Intermediate 2 at A-C; Standard Grade at 1-2
4: Intermediate 1 at A-C; Standard Grade at 3-4
3: Access 3 Cluster; Standard Grade at 5-6
By end of S4
5+ @ level 3 or better South Ayrshire
1999
95
2000
93
2001
93
5+ @ level 4 or better
Av. similar councils
South Ayrshire
92
79
92
79
92
79
Av. similar councils
South Ayrshire
Av. similar councils
76
37
33
79
40
34
78
38
35
5+ @ level 5 or better
By end of S5
3+ @ level 6 or better
5+ @ level 6 or better
By end of S6
1+ @ level 7 or better
South Ayrshire
Av. similar councils
South Ayrshire
Av. similar councils
South Ayrshire
Av. Similar councils
27
23
12
7
11
11
27
24
12
8
14
11
27
23
14
9
15
11
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50
•
As part of the Raising Standards – Setting Targets initiative, South Ayrshire Council set itself the following SQA Standard Grade and Higher Grade targets for session 2000-2001, and has made the following progress in achieving them. The figures represent the percentage of pupils achieving particular targets.
SG English 1-6
SG Maths 1-6
5+SG 1-6
5+SG 1-4
South
Ayrshire
(1995/97) (1999/2001) (1999/2001)
95 96 95
National 92 94 94
South 95 96 96
Ayrshire
National 92 94 94
South 92 94 95
Ayrshire
National 89 91 93
South 76 79 82
5+SG 1-2
HG, 3+ (A-C)
Ayrshire
National 72 76 77
South 36 39 41
Ayrshire
National 28 33 34
South 26 28 29
Ayrshire
HG, 5+ (A-C)
National 20 22 23
South 10 13 11
Ayrshire
National 6 8 8
•
Value Added from S Grade to H Grade
(a positive number represents more progress than is typical nationally; a negative number represents less progress than is typical nationally; an * indicates a significant result)
South Ayrshire 2.93 0.33 0.43

Inspection coverage
Establishments visited:
Cherry Tree Nursery School
Girvan Nursery School
Tarbolton Nursery School
Annbank Primary School and Nursery Class
Ballantrae Primary School
Dalmilling Primary School
Forehill Primary School
Girvan Primary School and Nursery Class
Glenburn Primary School
Kincaidston Primary School and Nursery Class
Kirkmichael Primary School
Monkton Primary School
Muirhead Primary School and Nursery Class
Pinwherry Primary School
St Ann’s Primary School
Tarbolton Primary School
Ayr Academy
Carrick Academy
Marr College
Craigpark School
Rosebank School
South Park School
Meetings attended:
Lifelong Learning Committee
Consultative Group on Formal Education
Parents’ Consultative Group (Pupils with Support
Needs)
ECLL Departmental Management Team
Operational Team
Educational Attainment Team
Resources Team
Headteachers
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Interviews or meetings with Council Members and
Officers:
Leader of the Council
Convenor of Lifelong Learning Committee
Conservative Group Leader
Chief Executive
Depute Chief Executive
Director of Education, Culture and Lifelong
Learning
Director of Social Work, Housing and Health
Head of Financial Services
Chief Accountants
Interviews or meetings with other Stakeholder Groups:
Focus Group of Headteachers
Focus Group of Heads of Partner Centres
Representatives of Teachers’ Unions
School Board chairpersons of schools visited
Interviews with a range of ECLL and other staff

Quality indicators
We judged the following to be very good
•
Vision, values and aims
•
Effectiveness of leadership and management
•
Policy development
•
Mechanisms for consultation
•
Mechanisms for communication
•
Service Planning
•
Measuring, monitoring and evaluating performance
We judged the following to be good
•
Deployment and effectiveness of centrally-employed staff
•
Resource management
•
Financial management
•
Continuous improvement in performance
We judged the following to be fair
•
No aspects were found to be in this category
We judged the following to be unsatisfactory
•
No aspects were found to be in this category
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Copies of this report have been sent to the Chief
Executive of the local authority, the Head of the
Education Service, other local authority officers,
Members of the Scottish Parliament, Audit Scotland, heads of the local authority educational establishments, chairpersons of the local authority School
Boards/Parents’ Associations and to other relevant individuals and agencies. Subject to availability, further copies may be obtained free of charge from the office at the address below or by telephoning 0131 244 0746.
Copies are also available on our web site: www.scotland.gov.uk/hmie
Should you wish to comment on, or make a complaint about, any aspect of the inspection or about this report, you should write in the first instance to Ian Gamble,
HMCI whose address is given below.
HM Inspectorate of Education
Quality, Standards and Audit Division
1-B95
Edinburgh
If you are still dissatisfied with our services, you can contact your member of the Scottish Parliament (or, if you prefer, any other MSP) and ask for your complaint to be passed to the Scottish Parliamentary Ombudsman.
The Ombudsman is fully independent and has powers to investigate complaints about Government Departments and Agencies. He will not normally consider your complaint before the HMIE complaints procedure has been used. Instead, he will usually ask you to give us the chance to put matters right first if we can.
Crown Copyright 2002
HM Inspectorate of Education

This report may be reproduced in whole or in part, except for commercial purposes or in connection with a prospectus or advertisement, provided that the source and date thereof are stated.
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