10 February 2015 Dear Parent/Carer Irvine Royal Academy North Ayrshire Council In February 2014, HM Inspectors published a letter on your child’s school. The letter set out a number of areas for improvement for the school that we agreed with staff and North Ayrshire Council. Recently, as you may know, HM Inspectors visited the school again to see how much progress the school has made. During our visit, we talked to the Chair of the Parent Council and young people and worked closely with the headteacher and staff. We heard about the steps the school has taken to improve. We looked at the main areas for improvement that had been identified in the original inspection and at other aspects of the school’s work. As a result, we were able to find out about the progress the school has made and the impact this has had on young people’s learning and achievements. This letter sets out what we found. How well do young people learn and achieve? The school is making good progress towards improving how well young people learn and achieve. Young people now have a greater sense of identity with their school and wear their new school uniform with pride. The ethos of the school has improved considerably and is very positive. In lessons observed, almost all young people behave well and continue to enjoy positive relationships with each other and their teachers. Teachers increasingly use young people’s views to improve learning and teaching. As a result, young people now feel they have more of a say in making the way they learn in class better. They now receive better feedback from their teachers and are using this well to set learning targets. Young people, particularly at the senior stages, are now more aware of their strengths as learners and what they need to do to improve further. They would benefit from more challenging learning activities in lessons to help them develop their thinking. At all stages, there are improved leadership opportunities for young people which is resulting in greater account being taken of their views. For example, the recent S3 Arran leadership experience has supported young people to develop the skills and confidence to lead primary challenge days and organise careers events for their peers. Overall, young people demonstrate increasing responsibility and skills as they contribute to opportunities to make decisions about the life and work of the school. For example, S2 Curriculum champions are involved in the design of the curriculum. Senior pupils now demonstrate a more mature attitude to their learning. They continue to act as positive role models to their younger peers. Education Scotland st 1 Floor, Endeavour House 1 Greenmarket Dundee DD1 4QB T 01382 576700 F 01382 576701 E dundee@educationscotland.gsi.gov.uk Textphone 01506 600236 This is a service for deaf users. Please do not use this number for voice calls as this will not connect. www.educationscotland.gov.uk Transforming lives through learning Young people’s achievements are now celebrated well through assemblies, the House system and through the use of social media. The termly newsletter and telephone calls to parents are well received and effective in celebrating young people’s successes. Young people are now gaining accredited awards in recognition of their efforts. The S6 Leadership Team are working well towards their Saltire Awards and the S1 to S3 pupil council are beginning to undertake work to gain a Participative Democracy award. These opportunities are helping young people to become more confident and independent in their learning. The school is improving the ways in which it monitors and tracks young people’s progress from S1 to S3, including in literacy, numeracy and health and wellbeing. Senior managers are aware of the need to continue to work with subject staff to improve approaches to assessing young people’s progress at these stages. Overall, across S4 to S6, young people’s performance in national qualifications is improving. There has been a notable improvement in the number of young people achieving at least five awards at National 5 level by S4 and three or more Higher awards by S6. How well does the school support young people to develop and learn? Teachers are now planning tasks which engage young people more actively in their learning. We have asked teachers to plan more stimulating and interesting tasks to meet the needs of all learners better. The school’s work on improving the curriculum is now more focussed on the needs of learners and firmly based on the principles of Curriculum for Excellence. The school’s revised vision, values and aims underpin the development of the curriculum and provide a clearer sense of direction. An effective start has been made to developing the curriculum to provide a coherent and progressive learning experience for young people from S1 to S3. Teachers and young people are actively shaping the curriculum through regular discussions and working groups. Young people would benefit from a school wide focus on developing their literacy and numeracy skills. Department staff have worked well with colleagues in their own authority and beyond to implement the new National and Higher qualifications. Science and mathematics staff have made a positive start to working with primary colleagues to improve transition in learning from P7 to S1. How well does the school improve the quality of its work? The headteacher continues to provide strong direction and motivation for staff and young people. The remits of the senior leadership team have been revised ensuring clearer lines of responsibility and closer links with subject department staff. Principal teachers take greater responsibility for taking forward improvement within their subject areas and key school priorities such as improving attainment. Across the school, staff engage actively and enthusiastically in a range of professional learning opportunities designed to provide them with the skills to lead school improvement priorities and improve their practice. Working well together, under the very effective leadership of the headteacher, staff are taking the necessary steps to address the key areas for improvement identified within the original inspection. Collectively, they communicate a clearer vision and ambition for all young people. Overall, the school’s approaches to self-evaluation and planning for improvement are now impacting positively on the quality of young people’s experiences and achievements. Staff now have a better understanding of their individual and collective responsibility 2 for self-evaluation and improvement. Parents, young people and partners have an increased role in evaluating the life and work of the school. What happens next? Overall, the school is making very good progress towards addressing the main points for action identified in the original inspection. As a result, good progress has been made in improving the quality of education. Under the headteacher’s very effective leadership staff are continuing to improve the curriculum and the quality of learning, teaching and attainment. Stronger teamwork within the school and better partnership working with the wider school community are supporting the school to realise its renewed vision for the young people of Irvine Royal Academy. We are confident that, under the leadership of the headteacher, the school has the capacity to secure further improvements. As a result, our Area Lead Officer will continue to work with North Ayrshire Council to build capacity for improvement and will maintain contact to support and monitor progress. In partnership with North Ayrshire Council, we will carry out a review of the school’s progress within one year of publication of this letter and decide at that point whether a further inspection is required. Fiona Robertson HM Inspector If you would like to receive this letter in a different format, for example, in a translation please contact the administration team on the above telephone number. If you want to give us feedback or make a complaint about our work, please contact us by telephone on 0141 282 5000, or e-mail: complaints@educationscotland.gsi.gov.uk or write to us addressing your letter to the Complaints Manager, Denholm House, Almondvale Business Park, Livingston EH54 6GA. 3