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Publication - Statistics

Summary Statistics for Attainment and Initial Leaver Destinations, No. 5: 2023 Edition

Published
28 February 2023
From
Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills
Directorate
Learning Directorate
Topic
Education, Work and skills
ISBN
9781805255260

This statistical publication provides information on the educational attainment and initial destinations of 2021/22 school leavers from publicly funded schools in Scotland.

View supporting documents Supporting documents

Infographics

There were 55,237 school leavers in 2021/22. Of these, the majority (59.8 per cent) left in S6, while 27.7 per cent left in S5 and 12.4 per cent left in S4. The proportion of leavers in S6 has decreased since last year (2020/21) and the proportions in S4 and S5 have increased. Of these 2021/22 school leavers, 95.7 per cent were in a positive initial destination three months after the end of the school year. This is an increase from 2020/21 when the figure was 95.5 per cent. And 4.3 per cent of 2021/22 school leavers were in other initial destinations. The gap between leavers from the most and least deprived areas in a positive initial destination in 2021/22 was 4.4 percentage points. This has narrowed since 2014/15 when it was 7.7 percentage points, and again since 2020/21 when it was 4.8 percentage points.
For 2021/22 leavers, 96.4 per cent left with one pass or more at SCQF Level 4 or better, 86.4 per cent left with one pass or more at SCQF Level 5 or better and 61.3 per cent left with one pass or more at SCQF Level 6 or better. Also in 2021/22, 2.1 per cent left with no passes at SCQF level 3 or better. There is an attainment gap between leavers from the most deprived and least deprived areas that shows the difference in attainment between the two groups. The gap widens as the SCQF Level considered increases. At the attainment level of one pass or more at SCQF Level 4 or better, the attainment gap in 2021/22 was 5.8 percentage points. At the level of one pass or more at SCQF Level 5 or better, the gap was 19.1 percentage points. And at the level of one pass or more at SCQF Level 6 or better, the attainment gap was 37 percentage points. The attainment gaps at all levels have narrowed since 2014/15.

Contact

Email: school.stats@gov.scot

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