National Islands Plan: annual report 2021

Education

Strategic Objective 12 – To promote and improve education for all throughout life

We committed to work with UHI, the University of Aberdeen, Heriot-Watt University, Robert Gordon University and other education providers to ensure a broad range of options are available to young people.

Work is ongoing in relation to this commitment.

Skills Development Scotland is working to support the development of the Islands Growth Deal TalEntEd Islands programme in partnership with UHI, Robert Gordon University, Heriot-Watt, the three Island authorities and Highlands and Islands Enterprise. The TalEntEd Islands programme will create opportunities for education, skills, entrepreneurship and commercialisation, which will help respond to demographic challenges and the outmigration of young people from the Islands, drive an increase in sustainable green jobs, and fast-track Island decarbonisation.

Scottish Funding Council Outcome Agreements ask colleges to remove barriers and support full participation and successful outcomes for all groups of learners in their local community. Colleges plan their course provision in line with the economic needs of their regions, and through working closely with employers, are able to respond flexibly to the skills demands of the region and communities they serve.

Through the UHI Islands Forum, which oversees delivery of UHI's Islands Strategy, SG officials collaborate with a broad range of key stakeholders to ensure that a broad range of options as available to young people; utilising UHI's strengths in delivering further education, higher education, research and knowledge exchange, both within and outwith the islands and against the Key Themes and Key Objectives of the Islands Strategy.The Forum takes a place-based, challenge-led and research-driven approach to key issues such as repopulation, workforce development in key sectors, the impact of climate change and talent attraction.

We committed to support UHI as it deepens collaboration with island partners to promote learner pathways, innovation and industry/employer engagement.

Work is ongoing in relation to this commitment.

The UHI Islands Strategy Director works closely with the Scottish Government Islands Team through a collaborative, solution-focused approach that seeks to maximise the opportunities that arise through overlapping work streams, such as UHI projects associated the Islands Growth Deal and Islands Programme investment. Critically this work interconnects as a result of shared priorities, identified through both the Islands Strategy and the SG's National Islands Plan.

The Scottish Government has committed to developing a Talent Attraction programme and a Migration Service for Scotland. Brought together, this will improve Scotland's ability to attract and recruit workers from outside of Scotland with the skills that our economy will need in the future, and support international workers in the migration and relocation process. An effective service takes the pressure away from the employer to provide relocation support, both initially and in the longer-term, linking in with relevant experts and other services.

As part of the wider Talent Attraction programme, we are developing an Student Retention pilot to encourage students to stay in Scotland post-qualifying. The flow of students and younger workers in the 20s and 30s are the two main 'peaks' in rest of UK migration, with relatively high education levels. The percentage of individuals with degrees is 10-20% higher among migrants than non-migrants.

We continue to support the Skills Recognition Scotland project, supporting workers with qualifications gained outside the UK to overcome unemployment and underemployment and support employers to recruit talent and help address skills shortages.

The Talent Attraction programme of work will support stakeholders, including agencies and local authorities, to encourage intraScotland migration to meet skills gaps, address the west to east challenge, support migrants who have made Scotland their home to remain here, and encourage Scottish young people to stay in Scotland

We committed to ensure that young people are given the same opportunities to access education as young people on mainland Scotland.

Work is ongoing in relation to this commitment.

From October 2020, Education Scotland and e-Sgoil have been delivering Scots language education sessions for children and young people who are shielding long term from coronavirus. There have been sessions delivered thus far as part of an offer e-Sgoil extends to all of Scotland. Throughout the 2020/21 lockdown there have been Scots language lessons included in the Education Scotland 'Scotland Learns' offer for remote learning. This material, as well as other Scots language material is available on the National Improvement Hub, where resources have been tailored to suit individual dialects of Scots language including, Shetlandic, Orcadian, Caithness and Doric.

Education Scotland's Scots Language Co-ordinator's are engaging with UHI to support delivery of their PGDE Teacher training course through the development of course materials and lectures on Scots language for student teachers, similar to work done in other Universities across Scotland promoting the educational benefits of Scots language to student teachers as part of the core course and to support delivery of Language learning in Scotland: a 1 + 2 approach and the Scottish Government's Scots Language Policy.

e-Sgoil deliver a national e-learning offer with the islands at its heart. The Head Teacher is based in Stornoway, the Depute Head in Shetland and the teaching compliment can deliver from anywhere in Scotland, or indeed, the world.

HM Inspectors produced national overviews to support the quality and effectiveness of the delivery of remote learning. Evidence was gathered on Gaelic and English Medium Education through engagements with local authorities, schools, parents, children and young people. The purpose of the national overviews was to learn what was working well; surface challenges; and identify what further assistance was required. Findings on Gaelic Medium Education were shared with local authority networks and teachers through the university partnership arrangement, Eòlas, which includes the University of the Highlands and Islands.

HM Inspectors are engaging with establishments to gather evidence for national thematic reports on recovery education, wellbeing and outdoor learning. Island schools, including those that deliver Gaelic Medium Education are part of these thematics. HM Inspectors also undertook quality assurance and improvement activities in colleges on behalf of the Scottish Funding Council. This included a national overview of practice of remote learning in colleges, which has supported practitioners' understanding of the quality and effectiveness of remote learning in colleges across the country.

We committed to work with young people across all Scottish islands to ensure that they are able to contribute to the implementation of the Plan from an education perspective and to ensure that their voices are present.

This commitment was fulfilled in 2020. Please see the National Islands Plan Annual Report 2020 for further details.

Youth Scotland are supporting delivery of the Young Islanders Network, which will be co-created and led by our young islanders, ensuring that the interests and priorities of this cohort are carefully considered and reflected in the development of this new forum.

Youth Scotland's island-based YIN lead was recruited in November 2021 and will build on the success of the YIN pilot and is responsible for coordinating the development and delivery of the YIN in partnership with interested children and young people.

Through the Young Islanders Challenge, (YIN pilot) young islanders articulated a desire to engage with the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Islands, and contribute to the governance of the NIP. This vision aligns closely with the original aspirations for the YIN – to provide grassroots youth representation that delivers tangible, positive outcomes for young people in our island communities.

Youth Scotland continue to engage with partners at local islands and national levels to identify a pathway through a mapping exercise, and to ensure that the YIN will be most productive and effective, while avoiding gaps or duplication.

The next stage for the YIN will be to work with identified Young Island Champions to develop the YIN Implementation Plan and for the Young Islanders to support the planning and preparations for the official YIN launch – which is scheduled to take place in 2022.

We committed to continue to support and promote Gaelic medium education at all levels.

Work is ongoing in relation to this commitment.

By March 2022, Education Scotland will publish a revised Gaelic Language Plan, 2022–2027. This is part of HM Inspectors' five-year strategy for Gaelic Education, which also impacts on islands. As part of this, HM Inspectors will continue to provide specialist evaluations of how well establishments and settings are performing in a range of key areas. We provide this specialist evaluation for Gaelic Medium Education and for island contexts. We will also take forward new high-level aims to support Gaelic.

We committed to work with all island authorities to scope potential projects that could benefit from successive phases of the new £1 billion Learning Estate Investment Programme which runs until 2026.

Work is ongoing in relation to this commitment.

The £2 billion Learning Estate Investment Programme prioritises schools in need of updating, as identified by local authorities, to ensure rapid progress where most required and will benefit around 50,000 pupils across Scotland. All projects will be announced and funding allocated by 2026.

The first phase of projects to benefit from the Learning Estate Investment Programme was announced in September 2019. This includes Comhairle nan Eilean Siar's Barra and Vatersay Community Campus project to replace Castlebay High School, Castlebay Primary School and Eoligarry Primary School.

The second phase of projects to benefit from the Learning Estate Investment Programme was announced in December 2020. This includes The Highland Council's Broadford Primary School project on the Isle of Skye.

On 23 December 2021, we confirmed that Phase 3 of the Learning Estate Investment programme will open to local authorities in 2022, and successful projects will be announced before the end of 2022. Any bids for funding from island authorities, through Phase 3 of the Learning Estate Investment Programme, will be given careful consideration.

We committed to increase our collective efforts to improve the educational outcomes of children living in poverty by continuing to support island authorities/schools plans to raise attainment through Scottish Attainment Challenge programmes such as Pupil Equity Funding.

Work is ongoing in relation to this commitment.

Education Scotland continues to collaborate with island authorities to improve educational outcomes of children living in poverty. Five Attainment Advisors work with local authority central staff and individual schools to continue to improve the use of data, identify need and develop appropriate interventions to close he poverty related attainment gap. Joint cross-island professional learning has taken place to developed skills in data use and how to make best use of the Pupil Equity Funding.

HM Inspectors continue to share practice using social media campaigns, dedicated sections within Scotland Learns newsletters, webinars and inclusion within thematic reports and other publications. Sketchnotes and accompanying blogs, written by senior leaders in schools remain very popular. Four sketchnotes have been developed to support with the Scottish Attainment Challenge, two for the Equity Audit in December 2020 and a further two for the report outlining progress towards closing the poverty-related attainment gap in March 2021.

We committed to consider the needs of adult learners in our island communities as we develop our adult learning strategy for Scotland.

Work is ongoing in relation to this commitment.

Adult learners from island communities have taken part in consultation exercises to identify the barriers that they face in learning in order for the strategy to work towards removing these barriers. Further consultation is being planned to take place in February/March 2022 and an Island Community Impact Assessment will be undertaken ahead of the publication of the new Adult Learning Strategy.

CLD HM Inspectors have also worked closely with CLD policy colleagues to update and refresh guidance to local authorities on regulations for CLD planning 2021-24.