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Standards and Quality Report 2018-2019

Irvine Royal AcademyWe Believe in Better

Ambition Respect Responsibility

OUR VISIONIrvine Royal Academy Believes in Better

In partnership with our school community, our vision is to improve the performance of our school, giving all our students a consistently excellent educational experience which meets their individual needs and offers them appropriate personal support to achieve positive and sustained destinations.

We are determined to have high aspirations for all, learn, celebrate, value and show respect for our school community.

Our vision is being achieved with the ongoing commitment, dedication, drive and teamwork of our staff, pupils, parents and partners from the local community and beyond.

OUR AIMS

We will provide an excellent educational experience for every pupil within a nurturing environment. We will continue to refine, develop and embed our practices through robust self-evaluation processes. We will ensure equity for all our young people across the whole range of educational provision. We will equip our pupils with the skills, attitudes and expectations required to prosper in a changing society. We will promote positive partnerships with our parents, cluster schools and the wider community.

OUR VALUES

Ambition, Respect, Responsibility

OUR SCHOOL

In Irvine Royal Academy we are committed to ensuring that every young person reaches their potential. We are on a journey of continuous improvement in order to provide the best possible standard of education. We are a non-denominational, six year, secondary school situated in the town of Irvine. Pupils come to the school from four primary schools: Annick Primary School, Castlepark Primary School, Loudon-Montgomery Primary School and Woodlands Primary School. In addition, we have a small number of placing requests from outside our catchment area. Our roll for 2018/2019 was 684, an increase of nearly 200 pupils from last year.

Our school has a strong team of dedicated staff. The school has an equivalent of 52 full time teachers. The Senior Leadership Team comprises of the Headteacher, four Depute Headteachers and an Education Business Officer. Our extended leadership team has seven Principal Teachers of Curriculum, five Principal Teachers Guidance and one Principal Teacher of Learning Support. The school is ably supported by our learning assistants, librarian, careers officer, administrative staff, technicians, janitors, catering and cleaning staff. We are also supported by partners from


health, social work, community learning and development, Police Scotland and many other outside agencies.

Irvine Royal Academy has a very strong reputation within our local community which continues to go from strength to strength. This is achieved by genuine partnership. Our supportive parents are represented by the Parent Council. The Parent Council is instrumental in shaping policy and contributing to school improvement and in raising funds to support the pupils of our school. They have purchased school equipment and supported many extra-curricular activities within the school. We have a very good extra-curricular programme which includes various sports, national and international excursions, social events and a multitude of activities that helps to provide our young people with a rich and varied learning experience.

The school is used by our community with which we have forged strong links. Throughout the year this community space is used in a variety of ways. For example the local community attend our music shows and dance performances as well as using it for local youth, church and community groups. The school is open for private evening lets on a daily basis and throughout the holiday period.

Our Standards and Quality Report aims to share what we have been doing in school over the last year – what has been going well, what we want to do next and how we judge our own standards. It will also include information about the key messages we have learned this year – particularly through feedback from you, from our pupils, from our staff and from our data which will inform how we plan to make changes for next session.

SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT TARGETS SESSION 2018-2019

1. We will continue to develop & embed the principles of Nurture & GIRFEC to improve wellbeing for all.2. We will relentlessly focus on developing pedagogic knowledge to lead learners and the learning of colleagues.3. We will continue to refine and embed our self-evaluation processes to be the best we can be.4. We will raise attainment and achievement to deliver improved performance at all levels for all pupils.5. We will ensure all pupils experience appropriate learner pathways leading to 100% of pupils sustaining a positive destination post-school.


HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR YEAR

* We introduced The Inclusive Learning Programme (ILP) to support young people with their learning & offer emotional & behavioural support.

* Over 50% of our staff have been trained in Mental Health First Aid.

*18 staff have successfully undertaken Masters study, post-graduate and leadership courses to improve their practice.

* Our exam performance continues to grow year on year. Our data continues to show improvement against our virtual comparator schools.

* We have successfully gained the Bronze Rights Respecting Schools Award and are striving for Silver.

* We are a Silver Award Winner from Sports Scotland and continue to recognise the sporting achievements & talents of our young people.

* We appointed two key lead posts to drive forward areas of improvement in Literacy and Numeracy.

* We have had key areas of the school refurbished to enhance our learning environment.

* We played a key role in local community events.

* We organised and performed in many local, national and international sporting, cultural, musical and leadership events.

* We have reinstated School Shows with Mary Poppins being showcased in October 2019.

* We continued to promote ‘Hot Choc Friday’; a pupil forum to hear pupil’s views on school improvement.

* We enhanced our curriculum to offer more vocational learning.

*We raised over £4000 for charity.

* Over 15 pupils are working towards Silver and Gold Awards for Duke of Edinburgh.

* After listening to pupil voice and as part of our Promoting Positive Relationships Policy, we introduced ‘Royal Rewards’.


Our school is committed to:

A process of self-evaluation – to assess our strengths and our areas to improve on. Working in partnership with parents – not just sharing information but genuinely involving parents/carers in the work of our school helping

us to make our school community a great place to learn and grow up.

Our approach to self-evaluation: What do we do to assess our strengths and plan our development priorities?

We ask people (pupils/staff/parents/community partners) through surveys, focus groups and informally – the results of the most recent

stakeholder survey are shown below.

We look at the wealth of data we have about the work we do – e.g. attendance and exclusion statistics, our school roll, behaviour merits

and demerits, assessment information, SQA exam results and destination figures for our leavers.

We observe the learning and teaching that goes on in our school and discuss this with pupils and staff to make sure our young people

experience the best lessons.

The results of our self-evaluation activities are then collated and used to plan improvements.

There is a national drive to raise attainment for all and to close the attainment gap between the most deprived areas and the most affluent. The

key targets are outlined in the National Improvement Framework for Scottish education.

The National Improvement Framework priorities are:

• to improve attainment for all, particularly in literacy and numeracy.

• to improve the learning progress of every child, by reducing inequality in education.

• to improve children and young people’s health and wellbeing.

• to improve employability skills and sustained positive school leaver destinations for all young people.

Our school improvement priorities therefore take into account National and local actions, as well as areas

specific to Irvine Royal Academy.


Annual Stakeholder Survey Results

Our School Surveys on School Improvement – views expressed by parents in August 2018 (in %).

Similar reports are available for pupils and teaching and non-teaching staff.

Evaluative Statement Strongly

Agree

Agree

Disagree Strongly

Disagree

Don’t Know

1 My child likes being at this school.

69.8 28.9 0 0 0

2 Staff treat my child fairly and with respect.

79.1 14.0 4.7 0 0

3 I feel that my child is safe at school.

60.5 32.6 7 0 0

4 The school helps my child to feel confident.

69.8 25.6 4.7 0 0

5 I feel staff really know my child as an individual.

48.8 41.9 4.7 2.3 2.3

6 My child finds their learning activities hard enough.

32.6 48.8 11.6 7 0

7 My child receives the help they need to do well.

51.2 44.2 4.7 0 0

8 My child is encouraged to be healthy and take regular exercise.

58.1 37.2 4.7 0 0

9 The school supports my 53.5 39.5 7 0 0


child’s emotional wellbeing.

10

My child is making good progress at school.

69.8 27.9 2.3 0 0

11

My child was well supported when they made choices for their future.

46.5 20.9 9.3 0 23.3

12

I receive helpful information about how my child is doing e.g. informal feedback; reports…

53.5 34.9 11.6 0 0

13

The information about how my child is doing reaches me at the right time.

48.8 27.9 20.9 2.3 0

14

I understand how my child is assessed.

46.5 30.2 18.6 4.7 0

15

The school gives me advice on how to support my child’s learning at home.

30.2 30.2 27.9 7.0 4.7

16

The school organises activities where my child and I can learn together.

39.5 18.6 23.3 14.0 4.7

17

The school takes my views into account when making changes.

30.2 37.2 16.3 7 9.3

18

I feel comfortable approaching the school with questions, suggestions and/or a

45.0 55.0 0 0 0


problem.

19

I am kept informed about the work of the Parent Council.

30.2 26.6 32.6 11.6 0

20

I feel encouraged to be involved in the work of the Parent Council.

20.0 60.0 20.0 0 0

21

I am satisfied with the quality of teaching in the school.

65.1 32.6 2.3 0 0

22

The school is well led and managed.

67.4 32.6 0 0 0

23

The school encourages children to treat each other with respect.

62.8 26.6 4.7 2.3 0

24

I would recommend the school to other parents.

65.1 30.2 4.7 0 0

25

Overall I am satisfied with the school.

27.9 44.2 9.3 2.3 12.3

26

The school deals well with bullying.

52.5 41.3 10.6 2.9 2.7

What will we do as a result?

- We will continue to look for ways to consult with all stakeholders on the things that matter so all stakeholders feel included.- We will continue to look at how we share information with parents/carers about their child’s progress and assessments and actively work

with parents/carers so that learning can take place both at home and school. We want our parents/carers to feel more empowered to help our pupil’s study at home.

- We will look at ways to communicate clearly about option choices and career progression pathways so all stakeholders are informed- We will continue to work with sporting partners from the local community to share information with pupils and parents/carers about what’s


on both in, and after, school and in the local area. We will continue to promote active participation through events in 2018-19 e.g. club taster days, sports days and working with our local partners to improve health and fitness; especially in senior school.

- We will look at promoting the work of the Parent Council so that all families feel informed and updated.- We will continue to review and revise our school policies and procedures on anti-bullying and promoting positive relationships.

How successful has the school been at improving excellence and equity? What did we achieve last year?

School Priority 1:

We will continue to develop & embed the principles of Nurture & GIRFEC to improve wellbeing for all.

National Improvement Framework Priority

To improve children and young people’s health and wellbeing

How Good is Our School? (version 4) Quality Indicator:

2.1, 2.3 & 3.1

Progress, impact and evidence:

The school supports learners to develop and learn well. Learning Support staff, assistants and partners work effectively to ensure the delivery of the GIRFEC (Getting It Right For Every Child) strategy and to meet our legislative requirements.

There is a growing understanding of a variety of additional support needs amongst teachers. All teachers have been involved in awareness raising training of Autistic Spectrum Disorder and further opportunities have been given to develop an understanding of attachment disorders and ACEs. All staff have been trained on the principles of nurture.

Flexible approaches are used by most teachers to meet the learning needs of Additional Support Needs (ASN) learners. All ASN learners are included in mainstream classes and presented for National Qualifications at an appropriate level (as we do for all learners).

Effective course planning in almost all subjects provides appropriate support and challenge for individual learners and those with additional support needs. Most teachers match learning activities to the needs of individuals however, in order to establish a more consistent approach to flexible course planning we will endeavour to offer whole school training to all staff.

Learning assistants are deployed effectively to support learning in classes. Guidance staff and ASN teachers work effectively with outside agencies to assess pupil needs and plan suitable education programmes for learners. All learners with ASN attend mainstream classes and are supported appropriately to meet their needs.

Comprehensive information is provided by Guidance and Learning Support staff informing teachers of effective learning strategies for all learners


with learning needs. When appropriate, learners are provided with small group and one to one tuition in the Pupil Support Department. Parents/Carers are contacted regularly to discuss the learning and progress of learners in their care. We systematically monitor and review programmes learners are involved in. We have a robust Professional Team Around the Child system which operates. This means that if there are any wellbeing, emotional, learning, behaviour or attendance concerns about any of our pupils, they can be discussed at this forum, which can be a multi-agency meeting (as appropriate to the needs of each pupil).

Wellbeing Plans are established for learners who have additional support needs and are reviewed termly with all stakeholders. These are used appropriately to monitor pupil progress in relation to their individual targets and to celebrate milestones achieved.

Our school’s arrangements for Child Protection are comprehensive. Our teachers respond promptly to the needs of learners and our Support staff keep teachers up to date with any specific pupil need.

Staff wellbeing, in addition to pupils’, has also been a focus this year. We had a health and wellbeing inset day solely focused on promoting wellbeing and raising awareness of the importance of strong physical and mental health amongst staff. To this end, we introduced ‘mental health breaks’ for staff, as well as staff fitness and social activities. These were all very well received and we will continue to build on this year’s successes.Next Steps:

Enhance sand develop our current provision for wellbeing, mental health and growth mindset. Continue to develop staff health and wellbeing. Facilitate more pupil, parent and staff raising awareness sessions around mental health. Ensure wellbeing plans continue to be kept up to date and accurate. Whole school focus on differentiation to meet the needs of all learners. Whole staff training on pupils with ASN and how we best meet their needs.


School Priority 2 & 3:

We will relentlessly focus on developing pedagogic knowledge to lead learners and the learning of colleagues.

We will continue to refine and embed our self-evaluation processes to be the best we can be.


Improving attainment for all

Improvement in attainment, particularly in literacy and numeracy

Closing the attainment gap between the most and least disadvantaged children


1.2, 1.3, 1.5, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 3.2


This session we wanted to ensure all staff deepened and developed their subject, curricular and pedagogic knowledge to lead learners and the learning of colleagues.

All departments are utilising a wide range of learning and teaching approaches to deliver the curriculum, resulting in developing our pupils to be successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors. All students from S1-S3 participated in the Broad General Education last session in line with Curriculum for Excellence expectations. The various approaches being used in classrooms have enabled young people to develop their skills by taking greater responsibility for their own learning as well as developing their ability to work in partnership with others. Strategies such as active learning, critical skills and assessment for learning are widely used and teachers are reporting notable improvements in young people’s thinking and communication skills, increased confidence and a continued improvement in classroom and whole-school ethos.

As part of classroom practice, pupil views are increasingly sought both in relation to the learning experience and in connection to individual target


setting. Some departments display pupil voice outcomes which show the impact of pupil consultation. Young people are increasingly able to evaluate their own and others’ work.

Staff have been regularly evaluating their practice using HGIOS 4 (How Good is Our School 4) challenge questions, in addition to sharing practice with colleagues in various departments across the school and visiting other schools to look ‘outwards’. Last session we introduced a change to how we evaluate our work. A Validated Self Evaluation (VSE) visit was arranged for the Social Subjects Department to review learning and teaching in the BGE in May 2019. Staff both internal and external to the school and an HMIE Associate Assessor conducted a day visit observing lessons in the faculty and speaking to pupils and staff in focus groups, in addition to interrogating department data and tracking and monitoring procedures. The impact and outcome of this was very positive and is a model that we would look to follow next session. Another two departments have been identified to experience a VSE visit in session 2019-2020.

All staff, departments and the senior leadership team regularly evaluate their work by following our streamlined quality assurance calendar. Regular learning walks, lesson observations, focus groups, surveys and jotter checks took place across the school year with outcomes and action points from this being taken forward. Furthermore, there was a review of two Quality Indicators across the school: QI 2.3 and QI 3.1. Impact reports were produced and discussed with action points to address. A similar review of another two Quality Indicators will take place next session.

We have also been working extensively with the Professional Learning Academy (PLA) on developing Literacy Skills across the school. The results of this programme are proving very fruitful and will continue to be rolled out next session involving more pupils as Literacy Ambassadors. In addition to this, we also implemented TRT (That Reading Thing) which is an intensive reading programme focusing on sounds, phonics and blends. Over 45 young people benefitted from this support. The programme saw levels of confidence increase along side reading ages, which one case increased by over 7 years after a 6 week TRT session.

During inset days and staff meetings, staff had opportunities to support and challenge their practice by taking part in a variety of workshops and activities linked to questioning techniques, differentiation and feedback. In addition, we established Teachmeets and Breakfast Blethers so staff could come together to share practice and learn from their peers. All staff who participated found this worthwhile and this is something that we would seek to take forward next session.

18 staff have successfully undertaken Masters study, post-graduate and leadership courses to improve their practice, in addition to the 50% of staff who participated in the Teachmeets and Breakfast Blethers to share, explore and discuss classroom practice. We want to increase this figure next session.

Next Steps:

Whole school lead for Pedagogy remains in post to drive the Learning and Teaching agenda. Annual Refresh of PRINTS for all staff. Opportunities will be created for staff to share best practice within school, outwith school and beyond. Increase in the number of staff participating in Teachmeets and Breakfast Blethers to ensure consistency across the school.


Increase the number of staff undertaking professional learning. Whole school Professional Learning Groups continue to grow and take forward school improvement areas. Learning and Teaching remains a standing item at staff meetings, department meetings and inset days. Our school self-evaluation calendar will be reviewed and amended as appropriate.

School Priority 4:

We will raise attainment and achievement to deliver improved performance at all levels for all pupils.


Improving attainment for all

Improvement in attainment, particularly in literacy and numeracy

Closing the attainment gap between the most and least disadvantaged children

Improvement in employability skills and sustained, positive school-leaver destinations for all young people


1.2, 1.3, 1.5, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 3.2


Attainment Irvine Royal Academy has a trend of positive attainment. These results are testament to the hard work and dedication of the staff, pupils, parents and carers. Statistical data for session 2018-2019 indicates that Irvine Royal Academy performed well in S4, particularly at five qualifications at National 5. In S5 and S6 the Higher performance was strong. Young people leaving our school in S6 are leaving with ore tariff points than the North Ayrshire Average and virtual comparator schools. The results for session 2018-2019 are as follows:

27.62% of pupils in S4 achieved 5 passes (A-D) at National 5 51.9 % of pupils in S5 achieved one Higher (A-C) 22.58% of pupils in S5 achieved three Highers (A-C) 4.3% of pupils in S5 achieved five Highers (A-C) 17.39% of pupils in S6 achieved one or more Advanced Higher


Comparisons in key measures of attainment against national and authority averages and with comparator schools (schools with similar characteristics ) are favourable for pupils at all stages

Our rigorous whole school tracking system allowed us to track the attainment of all S4-6 students on a regular basis across the school year. This meant we could intervene early and support and mentor young people who were at risk of underachieving. The introduction of targeted mentoring last session, along with focused session on cognitive learning techniques, meant that specific individuals could be given bespoke advice and guidance tailored to their needs. This had a positive impact on attainment and we will continue to utilise the same approach next session.

In addition, we also offered a number of new courses this session at various levels to ensure that the needs of all learners were being met and there were seamless progression pathways. We offered new courses in Travel and Tourism, First Aid, Dance, Computer Games Development and Science and Technology as well as a number of school/college partnership courses. These courses have proved very popular and have seen pupils gaining a host of wider achievement accreditation. We will continue to revise our curriculum and course choice offer based on labour market intelligence and demand.

This session also saw the opening of our Inclusive Learning Programme (ILP). The purpose of the ILP was to engage with young people who were perhaps disengaged from school, at risk of exclusion, had poor attendance and/or experienced barriers to learning. The ILP targeted a small number of young people to engage with a member of staff and two youth workers, to engage them back in the life of our school. Pupils were offered small group and one to one support to help with learning, in addition to sessions on targeting literacy, numeracy, wellbeing and emotional support to build resilience and confidence. The impact of the ILP has been very positive with all young people attending every day and on time. The greatest success however was around one young person whose attendance at the start of the year was 15%. By attending the ILP, his attendance at the end of the year was 95%, and he achieved 5 qualifications at National 4 and Level 4 – something which could not have been predicted at the start of the session. We are all extremely proud of this. We will continue to refine and revise our provision next session in the ILP based on our learning this year.

Achievement

We aim to ensure that every pupil at Irvine Royal Academy experiences success during their time with us. This year we have increased the opportunity for pupils to celebrate their achievements. We recognise and celebrate achievement at our annual Prizegiving evening in September as well as recognising achievement in our weekly assemblies, praise cards, displays, incentive trips, on Twitter and in the local newspaper. This year examples of achievement included:

Many pupils participating in our various school concerts and productions at national level. High pupil participation rates in local, regional and national sporting events. Hundreds of hours of volunteering accredited through the Saltire Awards. Pupils of all ages involved in the bronze and silver Duke of Edinburgh award scheme. Pupils in S4 participating in an accredited Employability programme during study leave.


Pupils participating in the Outward Bound Trust leadership activities. Many pupils representing our school at local festivals and fairs. Pupils across all year groups raising thousands of pounds for charity.

Pupils also had the opportunity to take leadership on roles within our school by assisting in leading trips, assemblies, clubs, excursions and organising charity events.

Next Steps:

Continue to raise attainment and achievement for all young people. Enhance our provision the Senior Phase (S4-6) by focusing on the development of skills and progression pathways in curricular areas. Ensure pace, challenge and rigour within the Broad General Education (BGE), in addition to robust assessment and moderation procedures

within departments, across the school and across our cluster schools. Use Insight (an analysis tool used by schools all over Scotland to analyse school performance data) & other available data in a more

forensic way to analyse performance and target specific groups of learners at risk of underachieving at all levels. Continue to work with our cluster primaries to develop an interconnected and progressive 3-18 curriculum for Literacy and Numeracy;

ensuring consistency in practice and commonality in language.

School Priority 5:

We will ensure all pupils experience appropriate learner pathways leading to 100% of pupils sustaining a positive destination post-school.


To improve employability skills and ensure sustained and positive destinations


1.3, 1.5, 2.2, 2.6, 2.7, 3.1, 3.3


The CurriculumAmbition Respect Responsibility

Irvine Royal Academy is continuing to ensure that our curriculum develops pupils’ capacities as successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors. Across our curricular areas staff have begun to embed literacy and numeracy skills as appropriate to their curricular areas.

Our partnership working with Ayrshire College, and other organisations in the business world and third sector, has increased the opportunities available for our young people this year. For example, we identified a cohort of pupils in S3 and S4 who were disengaged with school, underachieving and potentially at risk of entering a negative destination. In partnership with Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce and Ayrshire College, we explored the opportunity to undertake a school-college hybrid timetable to engage young people in meaningful education and offer opportunities to increase attendance, participation and ultimately attainment. Initially pupils were given the opportunity to engage with more vocational classes taught within the college environment to experience what it was like, and also experience learning in courses such as Barista, Rural Skills, Nail Bar and Bike Maintenance and Repair delivered in school. Pupils engaged very well with initial taster sessions delivered by college staff. Immediately we saw an increase in motivation to attend school and overall attendance percentage increased.

Individual timetables cover all curricular areas since pupils attend Ayrshire college for part of their week and also attend their bespoke Irvine Royal school timetable for the remainder; ensuring that all essential curricular areas are covered. Within their college time, pupils initially focussed on practical Sport and Fitness related areas with a view to developing wider skills and understanding through physical literacy in areas such as working with others, leadership, teamwork, presentation skills and communication. This contextualisation of delivery is a particularly effective method of interdisciplinary learning since the school pupils can then further develop these skills in a more work based environment which has led to improvements within their school based topics/classes also. Teachers have indeed commented on increased motivation and focus in classes. Classes in the Nail Bar have seen young people develop their key skills in communication, customer care, customer service, courtesy and confidence. We regularly open our Nail Bar, Polished, to members of the public, go to visit Elderly Care Homes to do nail and hand massages, attend local community events and events in our cluster primaries.

The combination of approach has led to increased overall engagement, increased attainment (e.g. young people leaving Irvine Royal Academy are gaining more than their North Ayrshire council peers and are outperforming their virtual comparator schools), increased attendance (by 2%), increased punctuality (increase of 70%), reduced exclusions (by 60%), enhanced partnership working and an increased positive destination statistic of 3%. Our school roll has also increased by 200 pupils as we believe our innovative and changing curriculum, linked to close analysis of labour market intelligence, is attracting more young people to our school (amongst a number of other factors).

Our staff continue to engage fully with the Scottish Qualifications Authority and Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework in order to enhance our offer of National Qualifications and accredited learning courses at levels 4, 5 and 6.

This year our pupils benefitted from dedicated time each week to explore their learning and planning for their future through an accredited STEM based programme one period per week.

From our evidence, transitions in learning from BGE to Senior Phase and from Senior Phase to a positive and sustained destination is good and


our curriculum continues to meet the needs of many of our pupils. However there is more work to be done to ensure a 100% positive destination rate (current rate is 91.4%*) and a seamless transition at all stages of a pupil’s school career. In the past three years, positive destinations have improved as a result of allying our employability programme, with a robust Careers Education programme delivered through Personal and Social Education and our very good partnership working with local businesses, Skills Development Scotland and Ayrshire College. We ensure that almost all of our learners receive appropriate advice and valued experiences. This enables students to make informed decisions regarding their next steps when they decide to leave school. We intend to continue to develop this successful aspect of our curriculum to ensure all young people move directly to a positive and sustained destination.

*Note that 94% of young people leaving Irvine Royal were in a positive destination on leaving school but two students changed college course on census day which affected the overall statistic.

Transition

Our learning community is committed to inclusion and meeting the needs of all learners. We continue to work very closely with our cluster primaries and our P7 transition programme continues to go from strength to strength. Curriculum transition and programmes meet the needs of many learners, including those with additional support needs, to ensure continuity and progression in learning between P7 and S1 and from the BGE into the senior phase.

Our skills development programme and Personal and Social Education course supports the pastoral transition from primary to secondary. Our pastoral transition programme for young people in our cluster primaries continues to develop and evolve year on year. We plan a number of activities and Challenge Days along with sporting events, discos and a three day visit in June. There are a number of curricular visits, particularly in subjects which are more practical in nature like Home Economics, Science and Technical. These visits are always well received and have evaluated very positively.

Through our transition programme we continue to ensure that staff are aware of the achievement levels of young people entering first year. We are working with our Primary partners to embed our 1+2 language strategy. Sharing the standard with assessment and achievement of a level continues to be focus.Next Steps:

Continue to adapt and review our curriculum to ensure bespoke pathways for individual learners involving more stakeholders eg college, employers etc

Ensure all students leaving school have qualifications that are the best they can achieve and 100% of leavers go into positive destinations. Work closely with cluster colleagues to ensure teacher confidence and consistency with assessment and moderation. Continue to develop curricular and pastoral transition programmes to ensure a seamless move from P6/7 to S1.


OVERALL CAPACITY FOR IMPROVEMENT: STRENGTHS AND TARGETS FOR SESSION 2019-2020

Improve Wellbeing for All

Facilitate more pupil, parent and staff ‘raising awareness’ sessions focusing on mental health.

Enhance and develop our current provision for wellbeing, mental health and growth mindset.

Continue to develop staff health and wellbeing.

Continue to support the social and emotional needs of a targeted number of our young people in The Sphere & ILP.

Raise attainment & achievement

Continue to raise levels of attainment to ensure all pupils achieve what they are capable of.

Improve levels of attendance and reduce exclusions.

Provide opportunities for wider achievement for all of our pupils, including the introduction of accredited courses, more vocational learning and leadership opportunities.

Ensure pace, challenge and rigour within the Broad General Education (BGE), in addition to robust assessment and moderation procedures within departments, across the school


and across our cluster schools.

Improve learning and teaching

Review approaches to effective differentiation and feedback.

Develop our Young Workforce

Ensure we have accurate information to allow us to target 100% positive destinations for all leavers.

Develop further links with employers and college to increase opportunities for employability skills.

Ensure a consistency and a common language between cluster schools and Irvine Royal Academy in Literacy and Numeracy.

Develop Parental Engagement

Improve parental engagement / partnership working – looking at how we communicate with parents/carers and how well we engage parents to help their child learn at home.

Work closely with our newly appointed family learning worker.

Refine approaches to Self-Evaluation

Review and refine our approaches to self-evaluation using the National Improvement Framework and How Good is Our School 4 as a benchmark.

Use successfully piloted VSE model to target two departments per year to review.

Continue to look inwards and outwards to be the best we can be.


SUMMARY

Session 2018-2019 can be considered by all members of the school community to be one of significant success. Very positive feedback from our entire school community and the local authority recognised the ongoing and consistent work of the school to provide positive outcomes for all young people. Evaluation of the improvement plan suggests many improvements are becoming embedded in practice. However, complacency is not an option and we are committed to continuing the improvement journey of our school in the session ahead.

We must never lose sight of the shared vision for Irvine Royal Academy – Believing in Better – and it is only by working in partnership that we can, and will, make a difference together.

Our Key Priorities for Session 2019-2020

1. PROMOTING WELLBEINGWe will continue to develop and embed the principles of GIRFEC to improve wellbeing for all.

2. LEARNING & TEACHINGWe will relentlessly focus on ensuring all pupils have high quality learning experiences.

3. LEADERSHIPWe will continue to build leadership capacity at all levels to create a culture of improvement.


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