Education Reform Programme Board minutes: February 2023

Attendees and apologies

• Clare Hicks (CH)
• Fiona Robertson (FR)
• Gayle Gorman (GG)
• Matthew Sweeney (MS)
• Des Murray (DM)
• Douglas Hutchison (DH)
• Stephen Pathirana (SP)
• Andrew Watson (AW)
• Victoria Bruce (VB)
• Laura Murdoch (LM)
• Jenny Stewart (JS)
• Elaine Lothian (EL)
• Tibs Zaheer (TZ)
• Ken Muir (KM)
• Lisa Bird (LB)
• Liz McGrath (LMcG)
• Gillian Hamilton (GH)
• Sarah Hart (SH)

Apologies

• Laura Cavan (LC)
• Graeme Logan (GL)
• Stephen Kerr (SK)
• Geoff Huggins (GH)
• Nicky Richards (NR)
• Robert Malpass (RM)
• Louise Hayward (LH)
• Chris Dunne (CD)
• Gill Winters (GW)
• Jaxon Parish (JP)

Guests

• Kieran Watson (KW)
• Tracy Manning (TM)
• John Keenan (JK)
• Jo Martin (JM)
• Neil Cardwell (NC)
• Mike Baxter (MB)

Observers

• John Wilson (JW)
• Adela Mansur (AM)

Items and actions

Summary of Decisions and Action Points 

• Board to provide comments on Benefits Model and Benefits Management Strategy (below the line paper). PMO to circulate Benefits Model slide deck - PB280223-AP65
• Board to provide comments on Programme Update slide deck, particularly any suggestions or comments on planned actions to address risks - PB280223-AP66
• details of the new Steering Group (which is replacing Policy and Legislation Delivery Board) to be provided at April Board - PB280223-AP67
• update on discovery work on Roles and Responsibilities to be shared at next Board meeting - PB280223-AP68
• PMO to review risks in relation to Roles and Responsibilities work with appropriate teams - PB280223-AP69
• SS to pick-up with VB on how ELC (Early Learning and Childcare) is being reflected in the role and responsibilities work - PB280223-AP70
• Board to provide comments on Comms and Engagement approach. PMO to circulate slide deck - PB280223-AP71
• SH to engage with Head-teacher and Primary Teacher representatives on Stakeholder Engagement Plan - PB280223-AP72
• Board to provide feedback on legislative intent Stakeholder Engagement approach - PB280223-AP73
• ensure a conflict-of-interest mechanism regarding employee representation on governance boards is in place and clarity on the co-ordination of this work is provided - PB280223-AP74

Welcome and introductions

CH welcomed members to the 10 meeting of the Programme Board and noted apologies. CH highlighted Jenny Stewart (a Scottish Government non-Executive Director) and Tibs Zaheer (SG Finance Business Partner) have joined the Board.

Minutes and actions

Minutes from the previous meeting were issued for comment on 1 February 2023. Comments were received via correspondence and minutes now marked as approved. RAE took Programme Board through actions in the log. Out of the five actions, four have been closed and one remains open/ongoing. PB240123-AP63 - NC to share branding commission with Board for feedback before issuing - this area of work has evolved and is being undertaken in two parts. The first is focused on names for the new national bodies to meet legislative requirements. The second will consider wider work required to develop the identities of the new national bodies.  Updates will be provided to future Board meetings on an ongoing basis. As work has evolved deadline has been extended to April Board.

Draft Benefits Model

JM covered the most recent iteration of the Benefits Model and highlighted that the model has been collaboratively developed with Scottish Government (SG), Education Scotland (ES) and Scottish Qualification Authority (SQA) colleagues. The baselining of this model will help us ensure appropriate work initiatives are in place for the delivery tranche. The Programme Board views will inform the “v1.0” baselining of the model.  

The Board welcomed the addition of the Benefits Model and the opportunity to comment. It was suggested that the benefit on 'Improved experiences and equity for learners' should be extended to include how learner engagement is better recognised. The Board also suggested 'credibility, accessibility and public confidence in qualifications' be articulated as a benefit. JM assured the Board that consideration is being given to how we track outcomes and benefits.

Action Point: Board to provide comments on Benefits Model and Benefits Management Strategy (below the line paper). PMO to circulate Benefits Model slide deck.
Owner: PMO
Deadline: 21/03/23

Programme Update (Including update on Outline Business Case)

LB gave an update on the Programme position which remains at amber.  Timelines are being reviewed in line with recent discussions on Target Operating Model (TOM) development. She also noted progress on the Outline Business Case (OBC), drew attention to current risks and highlighted that dependencies are now being collaboratively managed with SG, ES and SQA colleagues in line with the approved Dependency Management Strategy. 

The Board welcomed the addition of dependency management. The Board recognised the challenges of timelines and that the changes will impact each body differently and noted the importance of reflecting this appropriately in the OBC. LB assured the Board that this was part of the current consideration and that the refreshing of milestones will help us to ensure we are prioritising work appropriately. A further Gateway Review will be scheduled once the timeline for TOM completion is confirmed. 

Action Point: Board to provide comments on the Programme Update slide deck, particularly any suggestions or comments on planned actions to address risks.
Owner: PMO
Deadline: 21/03/23

Policy and Programme Delivery

Programme Delivery

LB updated the Board on the closing of the discovery and design phase of the programme. The main focus is completion of draft TOMs and agreement of the timelines and key milestones for these and for the Thematic Projects. 

LB confirmed that as part of this review of progress, members of the Policy and Legislation Delivery Board have been notified that the group will be replaced by a new smaller Project Steering Group. This will strengthen the ability to draw on others’ expertise in a more focused and timely way. The remit and membership of this new group is being finalised and an update will be provided at the next meeting.

LB went on to summarise changes to the delivery model and to the reporting approach (including the move to fortnightly updates).

Legislation Update

LB reported that significant progress has been made in drafting policy and legal instructions to create the legislative underpinning for the new bodies. These were shared with SQA and ES last week. LB thanked the ongoing input and engagement from both bodies regarding this. 

Thematic projects

LB outlined work to develop the Thematic Projects (replacing what was formerly referred to as Horizontals) in order to agree the scope and outcomes required for each. These are being discussed with Delivery Directors. These are enabling us to collectively consider the resource requirements across the programme and to reach decisions on the business cases for the financial year ahead.

Roles and Responsibilities

LB updated the Board on progress to date. 

It was previously agreed by the Programme Board that a ‘core group’ drawn from the PB membership would meet to discuss the Roles and Responsibilities commission, to provide clarity in relation to the interactions of the new bodies with each other and with other parts of the system. It was also agreed that following consideration by the core group others with a direct interest would be brought into this activity, in particular representatives from the existing national bodies to ensure their expertise feeds into this work.

That initial core group consisted of members from COSLA (Convention of Scottish Local Authorities), ADES (Association of Directors of Education in Scotland), Non-Executive Head Teacher representative and the SG. The group met on 15 December. The group agreed that the areas under consideration are complex, and that support will vary around the country to reflect local needs and circumstances.

In the review of the TOMs in December it was recognised that there are nuances in the responsibilities of the  new bodies and this work therefore needs to consider  how those would operate across the system.  

In taking this work forward, it is important to recognise that local government has the statutory responsibility for improvement. Providing clarity on the relationships between the national bodies, schools, local authorities and RICs (Regional Improvement Collaboratives) in supporting improvement will be a key element of this work. The role of the new National Education Agency will therefore require particular focus, given the range of interdependencies in in providing support for improvement and curriculum leadership. The work must also consider the position relating to the new Qualifications body and Inspectorate. 

In light of the complexities identified above, LB stated that further thought has been given to how best to progress this, and that the SG has commissioned a member of the consultancy team to advise on and support a more structured approach to this project.

A multi-phase approach is proposed: 

• firstly, a discovery phase, to deep dive into the complexities and determine areas of overlap or gaps in provision that need to be considered
• followed by a design phase, to put in place a plan to address the gaps and overlap that have been identified through discovery
• with implementation of agreed actions to follow, as per the plan to be developed during design

This will be taken forward with the core group, including in agreeing the underpinning principles to support key relationships and in defining the scope of activity in each phase. The discovery phase will therefore begin with a workshop with the core group, to explore design principles and approach for phase one and to commence the mapping work outlined above. 

Further engagement will capture the needs and wants of users of the education system and key stakeholders with respect to the support they need. Representatives from the project teams of the existing bodies will also be invited to join this process.

The timelines of this work must align with the wider reform programme, including ensuring appropriate linkage to supporting the further development of the TOMs during the design phase of this thematic project. 

An update on progress from the discovery phase will be given at the next Programme Board meeting in April.

The Board welcomed this programme delivery update and acknowledged that this work will be impacted by independent reviews which are due to be published. The Board also welcomed the emphasis given on ensuring that the Roles and Responsibilities work is embedded in consideration of the wider system. The Board noted that further clarity would be required to ensure that the scope of the Thematic Projects reflected the different constitution and responsibilities of each body.  LB confirmed that this was underway and that it was important to be clear on those distinctions whilst recognising the need to ensure activity is aligned. The Board suggested that clarity on the Thematic Projects will be important to mitigate any risk to overall programme delivery, in particular the work on Roles and Responsibilities. It was confirmed that risk confident levels are routinely monitored and managed.

Action Point: Details of the new Steering Group (which is replacing Policy and Legislation Delivery Board) to be provided at April Board.
Owner: PMO
Deadline: 18/04/2023

Action Point: Update on discovery work on Roles and Responsibilities to be shared at next Board meeting.
Owner: Sean Stronach
Deadline: 18/04/23

Action Point: PMO to review risks in relation to Roles and Responsibilities work with appropriate teams.
Owner: PMO
Deadline: 23/03/23

Action Point: Sean Stronach to pick-up with Victoria Bruce on how ELC (Early Learning and Childcare) is being reflected in the Roles and Responsibilities work.
Owner: Sean Stronach
Deadline: 18/04/23

Update from Delivery Directors

New Agency / New Inspectorate

GH summarised progress to date and noted that the focus is currently on the development of TOMs following discussion with SG colleagues. GH noted the importance of agreeing timelines as part of this.

GH will be taking on the role of Interim Chief Executive of Education Scotland. Discussions are underway regarding the role of Delivery Director. Consideration is being given to the timing of a split of the Delivery Board into two separate Boards. This will allow for a more detailed approach on each area of work. Delivery Board membership is being extended to cover Early Learning and Childcare (ELC), Community Learning and Development (CLD) and Additional Support Needs (ASN). GH welcomed the appointment of a dedicated transformation consultant to support TOM development and work on Thematic Projects, noting this support will strengthen capacity.

New Qualifications Body

LMcG summarised the Qualifications Body highlight report and indicated that they have now moved to fortnightly reporting. Good progress is being made on TOM development and Trade Union engagement on the TOM is underway. LMcG noted that work on ‘to be’ and design principles of new services is ongoing and that the project team will be considering the interim report from the Hayward Review in relation to the TOM once published.

Communications and engagement plan

SH gave an overview of the programme approach to engagement in 2023 - 2024. This overview detailed the user engagement via a user panel and supporting roundtables, ongoing use of the Education Reform Stakeholder Reference Group, and prospective options and opportunities for Ministerial involvement in these processes.

SH highlighted that the engagement structures created and utilised over the coming months will be a legacy that can be used in the context of the new bodies once they have been established, and/or wider future education-focused engagement. The intention however is not to create lots of new forums, but where possible to utilise existing networks and forums.

The Board endorsed the approach as set out and welcomed this update. They noted that the engagement timeline is planned to extend over the summer holidays. SH assured the Board that they will be prioritising activity with sectors which are unavailable over the break and will factor this into planning. SH highlighted that the planned Education Reform website will also be used to strengthen core communications with stakeholders and encourage feedback.

Action Point: Board to provide comments on Comms and Engagement approach. PMO to circulate slide deck.
Owner: Sarah Hart
Deadline: 21/03/23

Action Point: SH to engage with Head-teacher and Primary Teacher representatives on Stakeholder Engagement Plan.
Owner: Sarah Hart
Deadline: 18/04/23

Stakeholder engagement on legislative intent

KW gave an overview on progress made to date and noted we are undertaking a parallel engagement process over the next couple of weeks with affected organisations and external stakeholders. 
JK and TM gave overviews of the Legislative Intent papers for the New Qualifications Body and New Inspectorate and welcomed comments. Accompanying Bill assessments and documents will be shared with the Board at appropriate points.

The Board welcomed the opportunity to comment and noted that further detail on the operationalisation of the intent is required. It noted that ensuring a conflict-of-interest mechanism regarding employee representation on Boards is in place and clarity on the co-ordination of this work would be appreciated. The Board noted that further consideration may be needed on the governance arrangements relating to the Accreditation Committee and potential conflicts of interest. The Board acknowledged that engagement with SQA staff has not yet taken place, so this remains sensitive.

Action Point: Board to provide feedback on Legislative Intent Stakeholder Engagement approach.
Owner: Kieran Watson / Sean Stronach
Deadline: 08/03/23

Action Point: Ensure a conflict-of-interest mechanism regarding employee representation on governance boards is in place and clarity on the co-ordination of this work is provided.
Owner: Kieran Watson
Deadline: 31/05/2023

Any other business

None

Review and close meeting

CH thanked the Board for their contributions and ended the meeting, noting the next meeting will be on 18 April 2023.