Schools - impact of Regional Improvement Collaboratives on pupils and practitioners: review

Part 5: RIC Evidence Examples of Reach and Impact

Introduction

This section includes examples of RIC programmes, workstreams and approaches which have been selected from the returns and supporting evidence submitted by each RIC to this review. These examples have been chosen to provide a snapshot of the range of initiatives and approaches within each region to maximise their impact on, and engagement with, pupils and practitioners.

Priority has been given to examples which include data on the reach of individual programmes and, where provided, the impact, evaluation and/or feedback.

The examples in this section cover a range of timelines and do not reflect the entirety of support currently or previously provided by each RIC, which will be further enhanced through additional programmes, events, resources, interactions and other exchanges not included in the figures below. Further information on these and other examples of RIC activity, engagement, evaluation and governance are set out in their individual review returns and supporting evidence.

Conclusions drawn from these examples and the other evidence considered in the Review are provided in the sections above.

Each RIC’s evidence examples begin on a new page.

Forth Valley and West Lothian Collaborative (FVWLC)

Evidence provided by the FVWLC to this review include the following examples:

• based on evidence-based discussion, including interaction with academics involved in studies into the link between attendance, attainment and life chances, FVWLC decided that for session 22-23 targeted work to improve attendance would be prioritised across the RIC area. Engagement with school leaders and practitioners was central, including an Attendance Symposium in March 2023, which was attended by 400 participants. This has continued to be built upon in the current session, producing a range of resources for practitioners.

  This FVWLC initiative has evidenced positive impacts on pupil attendance across the member authorities. For example, RIC staff worked directly with authorities and around 70 individual schools from Dec 2022, Schools who received RIC intensive support improved attendance over an academic year by 3.6%, 1.8% more than those schools who did not receive direct support. This initiative has been identified as an exemplar and is currently being shared with other RIC areas.

• in the latest session for which information was provided, 3206 Practitioners across the region directly accessed CLPL opportunities or programmes which, practitioner feedback indicated had impacted positively on practitioner knowledge, skills and pedagogy.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, 1350 Practitioners, with a focus on primary practitioners, were supported by the RIC ‘Change Hubs’ to collaborate, develop practice and pedagogy, and identify their CLPL needs. Secondary subject Hubs were also launched in session 23-24.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, 285 Practitioners, with a focus on secondary practitioners, attended a series of Futureproofing Pedagogy seminars, which received positive evaluations form participants.
• the online Inspiration Hub contains 83 Developing Practice Examples designed by practitioners to support colleagues to develop collaboration, improve pedagogy and improve the learning experience for children and young people. This resource is forecast to rise to 250 examples.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, as part of the FVWLC Quality Assurance and Moderation Support Officer (QAMSO) training programme, over 250 practitioners and school leaders participated in a programme to develop a better understanding of standards, share good practice and support effective assessment and moderation.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, 432 Practitioners were directly supported by the FVWL Numeracy Workstream. Evaluations of this workstream show that support has impacted significantly on learners, practitioners and establishments. The numeracy for learners with severe and complex needs programme was also a catalyst for the formation of an Additional Support Needs Network to support practitioners, and 47 Practitioners attended four sessions to share practical ideas on how to make learning in numeracy and maths relevant for learners with severe and complex needs, with positive feedback from practitioners on the impact for them and their learners.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, as part of the FVWLC Literacy programme, 859 Practtioners accessed universal support opportunities, while a further 325 Practitioners were involved in targeted support interventions. This programme included a range of focussed events, information resources and the sharing of learning/collaboration across the RIC area, including twilight sessions for over 100 Support for Learning Assistants. Participant evaluation and feedback across the programme elements and events was very positive.
• the FVWLC established a Youth Voice Framework, constructed with the views of 650 children and young people and assembled by representatives from each of the youth voice structures within the local authorities. This provides practitioners across the RIC with practical resources, co-designed by CLD and education staff and supported by youth participation, to implement the principles of the UNCRC charter and support the youth voice within establishments across the region.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, as part of the FVWLC Data Coaches programme, a data champion has been trained in each of Stirling’s primary and secondary schools, 46 Practitioners in Clackmannanshire have been supported to effectively use SNSA data to support improvement in the classroom, all primary practitioners in Falkirk have been supported to Improve the use of data across all levels of the system, and 41 Practitioners in West Lothian have been directly supported to develop data literacy through the implementation and exploration of ‘agile’ classroom practices.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, as part of the FVWLC Embedding a Play Pedagogy and Learner-led approach in Primary 1 and Beyond programme: 102 Practitioners participated in an event to share learning on the use of Falkirk Council’s Model for Play Pedagogy, 99 Practitioners participated in an event to share learning on re-inventing the school experience for Primary 2 learners, with a focus on outdoor learning, 41 Practitioners participated in an event to share learning on the use of technology within a play-based learning approach, 41 Practitioners also participated in each of 2 further events to share examples of good practice. Feedback from practitioners who completed evaluations was strong across all of these programme events/aspects.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, the views of 326 staff across the FVWL region informed the development of a Health & Wellbeing workstream, including the establishment of a dedicated resource to support staff in getting the information that they need to address pupils and their own health and wellbeing issues.
• a key focus of the FVWLC is to support Local Authorities in achieving the stretch aims they identified as part of the Scottish Attainment Challenge, through its collaborative networks. A single stretch aim was agreed by the four member authorities, to further focus and ensure coherence and responsiveness of the RIC offer.

Northern Alliance (NA)

Evidence provided by the NA to this review include the following examples:

• throughout the 2022-23 school session, the Alliance engaged in 715 collaborative engagements with 5,918 practitioners, including information/resource sharing and informal discussion, more formal planning and joint work, and development of practice through collaborative enquiry. Further information on some of those engagements is included below.
• 1,010 practitioners attended professional learning events or series delivered by the RIC in the 22-23 session.
• by May 2023, 3,497 practitioners had engaged in collaborative engagements to explore existing and new pedagogies and practices.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, a cohort of 57 head teachers were supported to build collective responsibility for whole system success.
• the Alliance continues to support a range of professional networks to facilitate peer support, share knowledge and innovation and deepen collaboration between practitioners across the region, including for example:
  • 27 Subject Support Groups, involving 1,141 practitioners who meet regularly and enhance existing local authority staff groups.
  • the Early Years Network, which has facilitated learning sessions for 193 ELC practitioners from all member authorities.
  • the Head Teacher Leadership of Change Network, comprising 146 Head Teachers across all member authorities plus 30 Evolving Systems Thinking alumni, the Shared Headship Network.
  • the Small Schools Network, the Armed Forces Educators Network, the Network of School Leaders with responsibility for Child Protection and Additional Support Needs.
  • and 47 active Teams in Glow, with over 4,000 members. 4,482 staff are also subscribed to the Alliance newsletter, containing the latest information on RIC resources and events.
• by the end of the 2022-23 session, 4 of the 7 member authorities had hosted Wellbeing and Learning ‘TeachMeets’, where 278 practitioners have come together to share and mobilising effective practice across the RIC, with practitioners presenting and sharing information on approaches that work in the classroom.
• 6,313 practitioners have registered for access to the World Education Summit live event and legacy resources, facilitated by the Alliance.
• 50 ELC practitioners are registered to participate in Cohort 2 of the Play Pedagogy Collaborative Enquiry Model, to support ELC practitioners throughout the collaborative enquiry process.
• in addition to the learning engagements and networks above, effective practice is also captured and cascaded across the NA region, through the dissemination of case studies. To date, 50 case studies have been shared and mobilised online.
• the NA Youth Participation Network and Youth Advisory Group involves young people who represent their peers in each member authority area and is supported by CLD staff from all 8 member authority areas, to secure participation and strong voice for/from young people across the region. All member councils have put in place structures to support youth participation, and this programme has led to a scaling up of the Breakfast Provision/Youth CCITI Model in the region and to the initiation of work to create an Equalities Policy Guide to support the development and/or review of equalities related policies for learning settings.
• the NA Improving Outcomes in Fractions project demonstrated significant progress for each pupil involved in a primary school case study to demonstrate the efficacy of the project approach and resources, where 79% of pupils had a greater percentage score at the end of the project and 64% of pupils more than doubled their entry score. These and other case study resources are made available to practitioners across the region.
• to support coherence in the collective improvement across the region, the Alliance hosted 70 local authority staff with responsibility for school improvement, to provide a shared understanding of the key features of high-quality learning, teaching and assessment, and effective processes to support quality assurance.
• the NA has undertaken detailed engagement with authorities and staff across the region to ensure that the regional offer is aligned with local and authority priorities. This includes, in one authority as example, 150 Argyll & Bute staff attending professional learning sessions in 22-23 and 526 staff registered and accessing in World Education Summit materials facilitated through the RIC. Within Argyll & Bute, 350 staff are currently engaging with one or more of the 47 NA practitioner networks. Similar engagement is undertaken within authorities across the region, to support awareness of an engagement in RIC programmes, resources and learning opportunities.
• to ensure meaningful engagement and capture the issues schools, settings and teams across the region most wanted to collaborate on as part of their RIC, the Alliance met with Head Teachers from every local authority, children and young people, network members, CLD practitioners, ELC practitioners and others across the region, including online options and a session in Gaelic for GME practitioners. In addition, they provided an option to engage online, which attracted a small number of parents. In total, 475 people engaged with this process, which provided over 1,400 pieces of information to analyse and inform the work of the RIC.
• following evaluation of the progress and impact of the first year of their current Plan, the NA decided to focus its activity on learning, teaching and assessment, using a logic model and three core outcome measures to capture progress and impact on learners. This approach was developed in response to an identified need for clearer evidence on the impact of collaboration on learning, teaching and assessment.

Further evaluation of NA workstreams are set out in their annual impact plans, which were provided as supplementary evidence for this review. Those include positive feedback on the qualitative impact for practitioners and learners. For example, practitioner evaluations on engagements from September 2022-early July 2023 found that, 94% of respondents agreed or strongly agrede that NA professional learning increased their understanding, and 91% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that they would be able to apply the learning to their own context.

South East Improvement Collaborative (SEIC)

Evidence provided by the SEIC to this review include the following examples:

• during the current session to date, 182 schools and early years settings across the region have been involved in the main SEIC supports programmes (further information for some of these are outlined below). To put that in context, there are 407 schools in the South East, all of whom can also benefit from some SEIC universal supports including SEIC funded licences for the World education Summit research materials.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, 288 practitioners across the region - from ELC, primary and secondary settings - were supported as part of Cohort 4 of the SEIC Research Schools/ELCs Programme. The range of support included professional learning in practitioner enquiry, engaging with research, partnership working, including with the University of Edinburgh and Education Scotland, and bespoke learning sessions for individual establishments. 94% agreed or strongly agreed that the content had been relevant, and 84% agreed or strongly agreed that their knowledge had increased or improved.
• a cohort of 53 headteachers/ELC managers were supported to connect across the 2023-24 session through the HT Trios programme, which supports collaboration, critical reflection, training and other bespoke guidance and materials to support the cohort in making positive change in their settings.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, 1,078 practitioners across the SEIC signed-up for a series of Pedagogy Pioneer sessions, created and delivered by 12 ‘Pedagogy Pioneers’ involving the sharing of practice with colleagues across the region, to support system wide improvement.
• through the SEIC Digital Connector Programme, 20 schools across the region received bespoke support, for the whole session, to improve their use of digital technologies to enhance learning, including the provision of 1-1 support and regular professional learning for staff. As a result of this support, all schools in this cohort are expected to submit evidence to achieve the Digital Schools Scotland Award by the end of 2023.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, 20 schools across the region received bespoke support for the whole session, to raise attainment in literacy from the SEIC Raising Attainment in Literacy Connector Programme. Informed by school-based audits, bespoke professional learning and support was provided, supported by 1-1 improvement discussions and school visits. All participants were able to reference positive impact from involvement with the SEIC Literacy Connector, with almost all citing increased improvements in literacy data relating to the work they had undertaken.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, 24 schools across the region received bespoke support for the whole session from the SEIC Play Pedagogy Connector Programme. Tailored input was based on data gathered in initial audits and evaluations at the end of each of the Connector sessions. This provided focussed collaborative learning support to each member of the cohort across the session, to support improvement in the use of play pedagogy within their schools. By the end of the school session, 97% of settings reported that improvements had had a positive impact on learners.
• in the latest session for which information was provided, 13 secondary schools across the region received bespoke support for the whole session, through the SEIC Learning Pathways & Positive Destinations Connector Programme. This enabled collaboration and engagement in regular networking and improvement activities across the school session, including the use of 1-1 school visits, reflective tools, resources and improvement exemplars. On-going feedback gathered from the Connector schools showed that 94% of participants felt the content of learning was relevant to their context.
• 18 SEIC Networks and 19 Secondary Subject Networks involving over 300 educators and partners have been established over a number of years through the SEIC to support collaboration with others with shared remits, settings or subject areas, to enable the sharing of practice, approaches and resources. SEIC Networks are self-sustaining which means they are able to set their own agenda, pace, and areas of focus. Networks have members from each of the five SEIC local authorities and links to SEIC and SEIT Officers.
• the SEIC Associates initiative brings together local authority leaders in quality improvement across the region. The cohort for session 2023-24 includes 55 leaders from all 5 SEIC authorities, who are supported to collaborate, share knowledge and to work alongside improvement teams in their own and other local authorities as part of quality improvement processes.
• settings involved in SEIC Universal and Bespoke programmes provided 648 evaluations on the reginal supports provided in the last session. The majority of those confirmed that the support was relevant to their practice, had improved their knowledge and that collaboration with other practitioners/settings had been beneficial. Analysis of the detailed feedback provided was a factor in the SEIC prioritising further opportunities for settings to link together, which resulted in further positive feedback from the settings and practitioners involved.
• the SEIC also provided supporting evidence from HMIe inspections in areas supported by regional programmes. This included positive feedback across all 5 SEIC authorities, including in improvements for pupils in literacy and numeracy attainment, pupil attendance, engagement with digital technology, leadership, pupil voice, health and wellbeing, pupil confidence and other aspects.
• based on evaluation and reflection, the SEIC have re-focussed their programmes towards providing a more streamlined support offer and a reorientation of regional resource to focus on bespoke support for high quality learning and teaching and increased collaboration among practitioners. This approach is reflected in the SEIC cohort-based bespoke support examples referenced in this report.
• the SEIC Trade Union Group includes representatives from, AHDS, EIS, NASUWT, SLS, SSTA and UNISON. It meets regularly to ensure that SEIC communication methods and approaches are appropriate to school leaders and staff.
• the SEIC Board, includes a Headteacher representative from each SEIC local authority, ensuring headteacher/school input in development of the SEIC regional improvement plan, overseeing its progress and impact, setting the direction of the SEIC work and approving the main budget decisions.
• the SEIC has put in place arrangements to ensure that those supporting delivery of their programmes report regularly and consistently on progress, with support tailored to achieving improving outcomes and to ensuring that RIC work contributes to the improvements made by individual schools and at local authority level. SEIC Connector programmes and SEIC Research Schools also undertake evaluation including initial auditing and discovery work, identifying of outcomes, recording reflections and feedback, reporting on the extent to which outcomes are achieved and the creation of case studies to record and share learning.

South West Educational Improvement Collaborative (SWEIC)

Evidence provided by the SWEIC to this review include the following examples:

• collaborative opportunities delivered by the SWEIC were attended by over 1,700 practitioners and leaders over the 2022-23 session. This includes a range of events and interactions across sectors, subjects and themes, including to support classroom teachers, early years practitioners, support staff, primary and secondary depute headteachers, numeracy leads, secondary middle leaders and other staff.
• 227 establishments across the SWEIC region have been supported to collaborate with other schools with similar context through the SWEIC Schools Improvement Network. The purpose of this network is to support collaborative action research within groups of ‘similar’ schools across the SWEIC, to enable headteachers and peers to share their school’s strengths and needs and to identify common themes for further collaboration. Feedback from the schools involved is positive and it is proposed that 40 secondary schools are included in the next phase.
• 262 senior pupils across the SWEIC region have completed courses with the digital @SW Connects programme and been presented for qualifications (111 in year 1 and 151 in year 2 of the programme). Most were at Advanced Higher level (SCQF 7) and attainment rates were positive with 24% in 2023 achieving an A grade and 52% an A or B, with A-D pass rates at 88% (pre appeal).

  All SWEIC secondary schools currently having access to at least 11 AH courses. Both cohorts have comprised significant numbers of pupils from SIMD 1-4. Feedback from learners, teachers and schools is positive and correlates with the attainment data highlighted from the SQA 2023 estimates. Base schools have also indicated that they would like to see the offer expanded, including for AH Sciences.

• 185 practitioners participated in the SWEIC Play Pedagogy programme in session 2022-23. This session-long programme delivered professional learning to enhance a shared understanding of the concept in the Early Years curriculum, increase practitioner confidence and address the needs of participants. Cross-RIC links have also been established in this work between the Northern Alliance Early Years team and the SWEIC seconded officer. An interim evaluation on the confidence of participants to deliver the play pedagogy approach increased from 48.4% prior to the course to 79.2% at the latest evaluation.
• 151 practitioners participated in the SWEIC Early Level Literacy Pedagogy programme in session 2022-23. Delivered as online professional learning for early years and primary practitioners, this programme highlights gaps identified in aspects of literacy skills across Early and First Levels and provides professional learning sessions across a range of identified areas.
• to date, over 80 school leaders and practitioners have been supported by the SWEIC to engage with Winning Scotland Foundation’s Growth Mindset Teams programme. It provides a blend of independent online learning, tutor guidance, collegiate discussion and project delivery, empowering teaching professionals to have a greater understanding of growth mindsets and embed approaches within their schools. 40 participants have signed up for this programme in 2023.
• the SWEIC Maths group facilitates practitioner support for learning, teaching and assessment in numeracy and mathematics. Examples include: a series of twilight sessions on Embedding Assessment in Numeracy and Maths, attended by 83 practitioners, with CLPL resources available to other practitioners via Sway, a cohort of 15 numeracy leads participated in the Critical Friends Programme with the University of the West of Scotland’s Ayr Campus, and 12 practitioners participated in Enhancing Practice in Mathematics CLPL with the University of Glasgow.

  STEM school curriculum leads from across all four local SWEIC authorities have also been provided with funding to support pilot practitioner enquiry approaches in Mathematics and Design & Technology.

• the SWEIC Literacy PL Programme and network of literacy leads supports practitioners across the region through the gathering of evidence and sharing of learning resources and best practice between the member authorities. Specific events include the SWEIC Literacy Fortnight, where 46 practitioners joined that team to access and share over 100 literacy learning resources.
• the SWEIC 4 Stages of Progress framework was adopted to support practitioners across authorities, stages, clusters and schools to develop a shared understanding of the stages of BGE progress, and to enhance confidence in making robust and accurate professional judgements on progress. The framework was launched to over 80 practitioners and shared across all SWEIC establishments, with 88% of practitioners who responded indicating they would continue to use the resource.
• 28 early years and primary practitioners across the region participated in the initial Froebel in Childhood Practice programme. In collaboration with Moray House, University of Edinburgh, practitioners were supported to develop and embed the Froebel play principles for learning in early childhood, to improve outcomes for children and young people. The programme also aims to build leadership capacity in the early years sector. 4 graduates from the programme were recruited to lead the SWEIC Play Pedagogy Programme 2 and 46 participants engaged in follow-up event to further raise awareness and cascade learning.
• in the 2022-23 session, 2 cohorts of secondary middle leaders participated in the SWEIC Leadership of Pedagogues programme, to bridge a gap identified in the professional learning opportunities for secondary middle leaders across the region. The programme received GTCS Professional Recognition for Secondary Middle Leaders and was expanded during session 2022/23 to include development of a middle leaders’ programme for Primary practitioners.
• the SWEIC Enhancing Opportunities programme was a pilot project designed to meet the needs of a cohort of 10 pupils in S1-S3 who, post COVID, had not re-engaged with their learning in school. With the aim to help transition pupils back to the classroom through a dedicated teacher using an online delivery platform across the 4 SWEIC authorities. Feedback was positive and the pilot saw five of the pupils re-engage into mainstream learning within their schools as a result.
• the SWEIC ‘Inclusive Practitioner Programme’ was rolled out this session. It focuses on developing and sharing practice to improve outcomes for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children and young people. It has included inputs from educational psychologists and speech and language therapists. Work has also led to a pilot project on Adaptive Teaching (differentiation), with the potential to impact on approximately 120 teachers and 1500 learners.
• to further support professional collaboration and delivery of regional programmes, the SWEIC facilitates a number of sector networks, supporting practitioners and colleagues across the region to collaborate and share learning in areas such as Inclusion, Curriculum Networks, Psychological Services, Digital Futures, Early Years, Staffing, also and Community Learning and Development.
• headteachers across the region are also encouraged to share innovation and best practice through the SWEIC Headteacher Innovation Group. Initially established as 2 groups – 1 each for primary headteachers and secondary headteachers – following consultation with members it is planned that membership of the group is increased and be amalgamated to include head teacher colleagues from across all sectors.
• initially established in 2022, the SWEIC EAL (English as Additional Language) network, has also evolved in response to the increased number of Ukrainian pupils and parents accommodated across the region. This included the provision of online learning and resources for practitioners, and the development of an ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) forum. Links with Ayrshire College has also supported the offer of an ESOL qualification on a virtual platform being rolled out as a pilot across the SWEIC. Initial feedback of the pilot indicates real impact and is being well received by learners. This work is currently being developed as a case study of innovative practice which will be shared nationally.

Tayside Regional Improvement Collaborative (TRIC)

Evidence provided by the TRIC to this review include the following examples:

• 170 students have enrolled in the Tayside Virtual Campus for the 2023-24 session, which provides senior pupils across the region with equity of access to a selection of Advanced Highers, irrespective of their school size or location. Teachers across secondary schools in Tayside are involved in delivering the Virtual Campus online learning, the Campus also offers professional learning to support teachers, which is delivered both online and face-to-face.

  The Virtual Campus began as a pilot in 2021-22, with 20 students studying one of three AH subjects and was expanded to 39 students across six AH subjects the following session. Qualification results in 2022-23 were broadly in line with national data but had a larger percentage of grade A bands (38%) and with 50% of learners gaining an A or B award.

  The Virtual campus worked in partnership with the SQA to develop an introductory course for all young people embarking on its Advanced Higher online learning. The “Preparing for Digital Learning in the Senior Phase” course is accredited at SCQF Level 6 and worth 3 points. Work has also commenced with Dundee University to explore ways in which the Virtual Campus, and other online learning programmes, can be used to help widen access to Higher Education, particularly amongst the most disadvantaged learners.

• in session 2022-23, over 260 teachers and school leaders participated in a whole day professional learning event on Moderation, Assessment and Curriculum design, provided in response to practitioner consultation on professional learning needs. Evaluation has informed further actions in the TRIC plan for session 2023-24. This focus has also supported the training of 281 trained QAMSOs across the region. Participant feedback from this learning was positive, demonstrating improvement in practitioner confidence across each of the improvement measures.
• in session 2021-22, 189 practitioners attended TRIC professional learning sessions to support the building of confidence, knowledge and implementation of STEM activities.
• during session 2021-22, 131 schools in the region participated in the TRIC Rights Respecting Schools programme to help embed the UNCRC into schools’ curriculum. This included professional learning to schools, including sessions run by Education Scotland and the One World Centre in conjunction with local authority/TRIC staff, which were attended by over 500 members of staff.
• the TRIC digital network informs and supports the delivery of professional learning to support practitioners in Tayside develop digital pedagogy and skills. Nine practitioner sessions were held in session 2022-23, to increase awareness of digital skills or resources which can be used to develop knowledge of the technology’s curriculum and digital pedagogy. There were 329 practitioner engagements across these sessions, which included two courses run in collaboration with Education Scotland. Practitioner feedback was strong, with 95.8% of those who completed the evaluation for the ‘This is Digital Learning’ Course strongly agreed or agreed that the professional learning provided them with knowledge or skills they could use to develop their teaching practice.
• by the end of session 2021-22, the TRIC had supported 26 schools in the region to achieve the Digital Schools Award Scotland, with a further 106 schools enrolled across the region. Support was informed by a digital needs analysis across all three TRIC authorities, which led to creation of a Digital Plan and strategic actions, with actions and measures reviewed regularly by the TRIC Digital Network.
• in session 2021 – 2022, a cohort of 15 headteachers from across Tayside participated in the TRIC Leadership, Development and Induction Programme. Delivered online and through multiple workshops, this programme reflected the new GTCS Standard for Headship and was developed in consultation with participants to meet the leadership development needs of the cohort. This was positively recognised by participants in their evaluations, with 75% categorising the programme as being very useful in developing confidence in the role of headteacher. 25% said it was moderately useful.
• TRIC professional learning networks have been established across the 3 RIC authorities, to support the sharing of knowledge, practice and resources, provide peer support, and encourage teachers to engage in meaningful and relevant discussions about learning and teaching. These include professional learning networks in Digital Learning, Numeracy and Maths, and Moderation and Assessment.
• TRIC officers and teachers have designed a learning, teaching and assessment toolkit shared across the region through headteacher development sessions, to support pedagogical improvement in classrooms and to support school level self-directed professional learning. The impact of this resource is currently being measured.
• building on its partnership with health and social care, the TRIC has also developed a range of shared, evidence-based children and family-centred strategies and approaches which focus on prevention, early intervention, and tiered responses to needs. These include Connected Tayside: an emotional health and wellbeing strategy for children and young people, the Tayside Strategy for Parents and the Child Healthy Weight Strategy.
• the TRIC Learning and Attainment group identifies their improvement priorities through a range of school and pupil-level data, including data on attendance and absence, BGE data, CfE achievement data, information on the poverty-related attainment gap, health and well-being data and data on school leaver destinations. They organise this data around the National Improvement Framework priorities, and used a sample of school inspection reports, school improvement plans and Insight benchmarking for secondary schools to inform their plans.
• the TRIC practitioner enquiry workstream is planned and delivered collaboratively with the University of Dundee, to support teachers to engage critically with professional reading and with Leadership Development and Induction programmes, to ensure that newly appointed and aspiring school leaders engage with research on managing change and leading learning.

West Partnership (WP)

Evidence provided by the WP to this review include the following examples:

• in session 2022-23, the WP Leadership, Empowerment and improvement workstream engaged with approximately 900 practitioners, including:
  • 450 primary leaders and teachers supported through the Improving Our Schools programme and network.
  • 143 teachers across all sectors supported through the Improving Our Classrooms programme (2023-24 detail below).
  • 40 deputy headteachers and principal teachers across all sectors through the Thinking About Headship programme.
  • 175 secondary practitioners supported through the Improving Our Department/Faculty programme.
  • 86 headteachers and leaders supported though coaching and learning sets, co-facilitated by the Mudd Partnership.
• in session 2022-23, the WP Curriculum, Learning, Teaching and Assessment workstream engaged with approximately 1,900 practitioners, including:
  • specialist networks with 68 practitioners from all WP authorities.
  • workstream projects supporting 10 schools in the primary curriculum project.
  • 49 schools in the BGE secondary curriculum project.
  • 39 schools in the Keep Scotland Beautiful project.
  • 170 practitioners in the Pedagogy for All project.
  • 1,613 participants in assessment and moderation training. This workstream is further supported by a range of tools and resources.

  WP specialist networks informing this workstream and supported by individual action plans include: Assessment and Moderation Co-ordinators, Additional Support Needs Assessment and Moderation, Senior Phase Assessment and Moderation, Digital Officers, Literacy Officers, Maths Officers, EAL officers, and Gaelic Officers.

• in session 2022-23, the WP Wellbeing for Learning workstream engaged with just under 1,700 practitioners and participants, including:
  • specialist networks with 56 practitioners from all WP authorities.
  • three UNCRC sessions for 205 practitioners.
  • an attendance spotlight session for 261 practitioners.
  • a session to share the FVWL attendance tool with 163 practitioners.
  • eight circle training sessions for 334 practitioners.
  • six Personal & Social Education (PSE) sessions for 202 practitioners.
  • 408 children and young people trained as young leaders of learning, with 68 school leads.
  • seven inclusion in mainstream sessions for 217 participants.
  • five family learning sessions for 151 participants.
  • four keeping trauma in mind sessions for 86 participants.

  WP specialist networks informing this workstream and supported by action plans include: Families and Communities, CLD Mangers Network, PSHE Secondary, Stand Alone Additional Support for Learning HTs, Home Education Officers, Senior Inclusion Officers, The Promise, Attendance, and UNCRC.

• this year, 148 teachers have registered for the WP Improving our Classrooms (IOC) programme. This is a Masters level, year-long programme for teachers in all sectors, with successful completion gaining 30 Masters Credits and GTCS Professional Recognition. The programme/learning focusses on self-evaluation at classroom level, to inform and support: improved learning and teaching, the use of data informed interventions, improved attainment and achievement, and the provision of equity and excellence for learners.

  Practitioners evaluating the impact of the IOC programme on their learners they work with and their own practice. An overview of this data, based on 83 practitioners, found: for learners that 95% saw an increase in attainment, 100% saw improvement in confidence, 95% saw improvement in engagement and 94% saw improvement in attitude to learning, and for teachers that 94% were using data more, 96% were more confident, 96% said their skills had increased, and 98% said their understanding had increased.

  IOC has been further extended by two establishment-level programmes – Improving Our Schools and Improving Our Departments and Faculties (pilot). In the current session, 360 and 175 teachers and leaders respectively are participating in these. In addition to the feedback above, focus group participants involved in these programmes commented strongly on their impact for practitioners and pupils.

• the West Partnership Online School (West OS) provides an online bank of resources to support pupils with their learning and revision at school and to provide practitioners with online resources to support and enhance learning and teaching. The West OS includes: a resource bank of over 1,400 videos across the BGE and senior phase subjects. As of April 2023, there have been over 86,000 unique users of West OS content from across Scotland. In addition to the recorded resources, the BGE Live offer provides real time, interactive lessons that take place during the school day and provide opportunities for pupils and practitioners to create, think critically, collaborate and learn from a variety of experts and partners. This session, 391 separate schools are using these sessions. Engagement in the West OS and BGE Live offer is increasing, and feedback has been consistently positive on its impact. It is currently used in 1,200 schools across Scotland this session.
• in session 2022-23, 97 nurseries engaged in WP research of the increase in funded early learning and childcare (ELC) to 1140 hours, to explore the impact for children’s outcomes across the region. Initial findings show that the majority of children are meeting their developmental milestones, but that it was difficult to identify if these findings are a result of the increase in funded hours. Since the implementation of 1140 hours, over 80% of parents involved in this research did perceive that their child was more enthusiastic and engaged in their learning, was more independent and that they (parents) were more confident in supporting their child’s learning at home.

Also of interest in evaluating the impact of the West Partnership:

• the WP has an established relationship with the Robert Owen Centre, (ROC, University of Glasgow), who supports the WP through: Professorial support and challenge, as members of the WP Board and to the RIC Lead, practical support for leaders and teachers undertaking collaborative action research activities, and through annual external evaluations on the progress and impact of the West Partnership.

  The most recent ROC evaluation of the WP, ‘Report 3’, looks at WP activity across the 2022-23 session. Key findings identified in that evaluation include:

  • “participants are clear about the impact of the WP added value and impact of collaboration. At a strategic level this is in the form of strengthened relationships, functioning of the Board and in fostering a culture of collaboration. Participants were clear about the types of professional learning offered by the WP which had been most effective in dealing with recovery from the pandemic, those programmes which enabled dialogue and collaborative working with colleagues from different LAs and which had led to impacts upon learner achievement and attainment.’
  • the WP continues to build capacity across the education system in the west of Scotland at classroom, school and LA level. It is also demonstrating impact for individual classroom practitioners, school leaders and children and young people. WP added value to the LAs is still a prominent impact for many. It has achieved this through a focus on collaborative and networked learning, building collective capacity and capital and high-quality CLPL complemented by similarly high-quality resources.’
  • the evidence provided in section three indicates that there has been substantial progress regarding impact of the WP objectives at school and classroom level. The interview and survey data strongly indicate that teachers’ engagement with the WP has enhanced their professional learning, enabling them to have a positive impact on children and young people’s learning.’
  • the overall WP strategy of creating a networked learning system underpinned by collaboration across different types of boundaries and systematic enquiry and evidence building (Madrid Miranda and Chapman, 2021) is now yielding dividends and are worthy of future investment, especially in times of financial austerity.”