S.I.P. - School Improvement Plan

School Aims:

Why are we here?

• Blackness Primary School provides staff, pupils and families with experiences that promote a positive mindset, engagement, learning and enjoyment.  This is developed through relationships between home, school and our community whilst drawing on wider expertise and resources.  We operate on a level of mutual respect, with the understanding that “Everyone Here Matters”.

We develop our community through supported challenge and a wide range of opportunities and experiences. We will:

• nurture positive relationships:

• promote and extend learning

• develop engagement in learning:

• include our whole community:

• promote and support health and wellbeing in our community

All staff demonstrate ambition to improve and develop our community’s skills and opportunities. We work together to overcome any challenges we may encounter.

Context of the School:

Blackness Primary School is a non-denominational school which serves the Westend of Dundee.  The area comprises a mix of local authority, private and rented accommodation and is culturally diverse.  Pupils from the school are mainly in the catchment area for Harris Academy. The school in 2023-24 supported around 335 pupils from a wide range of cultural backgrounds. The school roll regularly changes due to the fluctuating nature of our school population, many of whom are from out with Scotland. The school was arranged into 13 classes with one composite class at the P7/6 stage. There was an allocation of 18 teachers, including a Principal Teacher, a Depute Head Teacher and Head Teacher. Free school meal entitlement was 14% of the pupil population and 8% of our pupils lived in SIMD1 and 2. Our roll included 1 looked after child. 12% of our pupils are bilingual with 18 home languages spoken.

We receive Pupil Equity Funding of £51,000 to support our work in providing the best possible opportunities for our learners, particularly those who are at risk of missing out due to financial circumstances. Some of this was used to enhance our staffing levels, including and additional 0.5 LCA and an Active Schools Assistant. Our Cost of the School Day action plan outlines our commitment to removing financial barriers and promoting an inclusive environment with equal opportunities for all.

Almost all pupils come to school ready to learn and we enjoy very strong support from all stakeholders in our local community especially from parents and partners.

The priorities for the year’s improvement plan were determined by our on-going self-evaluation of the life and work of our school.

Reading

Writing

Talking and Listening

Numeracy

Primary 1

(CFE Early Level)

87

80

87

89

Primary 2

87

82

89

93

Primary 3

90

83

90

92

Primary 4

(CFE 1^st Level)

88

84

92

88

Primary 5

91

81

82

84

Primary 6

84

80

84

84

Primary 7

(CFE 2^nd Level)

91

89

95

91

Continuous Professional Learning: 

Over the past year, our staff members have undertaken a wide range of training and development activities to support their continued personal professional learning and the priorities within our school improvement plan. These have included the following:

• All teaching staff participated in Conceptual Understanding in Number training. This was supported by DCC Pedagogy Team.

• Most teachers carried out a practitioner enquiry linked to CuiN. They shared the results with each other.

• Moderation has taken place within school and within our cluster and this has focussed on developing shared understanding of expectations in teacher judgement of children’s progress. We have also engaged the DCC Pedagogy Team in this process with our P1, P4 and P7 teachers discussing and verifying attainment predictions. It was found that these were accurate.

• We have continued to engage with professional learning linked to teaching writing, sharing practice and developing focussed assessment criteria to support progression for all learners P1-P7.

• Several members of staff engaged with accredited courses including at master’s level (a focus on inclusion), middle leadership programmes.

• Learning to Read development days supported our commitment to continuing to improve our learning to read programme. These days included modelled lessons, group discussions and a focus on our data, using this to plan next steps for interventions or targeted support.

• All staff participated in Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3 of Trauma Informed Practice.

• We further developed our approaches to implementing restorative Practice across the school. Work with Educational Psychology supported staff to reflect on and adapt practice accordingly.

• All staff attended a one-day de-escalation training delivered by Additional Support Needs Officer.

• Visual training to support inclusive practice delivered to all staff by AIS team.

• Decider skills training undertaken by our SFL teacher.

• Our P1 teachers have engaged in professional learning linked to play pedagogy. They have attended training, engaged in professional reading and visited other settings.

• One of our teachers delivered opt-in art workshops for teachers. These were well attended.

Members of staff have undertaken leadership roles related to our school improvement priorities eg Digital Leader, Reading Leaders, Pupil Voice Group, Art CLPL and resource organisation, play pedagogy, nurture development.

School Improvement Priority 1

Develop our approaches to planning, teaching and assessing numeracy with a focus on conceptual understanding.

Progress and Impact: SEE Conceptual Understanding in Numeracy Evaluation DRAFT Report 23-24 compiled by Catherine Christie (Pedagogy Team).

Staff attended nine CLPL sessions. This included seven sessions which covered Conceptual Understanding in Numeracy across seven domains with a further two session on GTCS professional recognition and practitioner enquiry:

1. Principles of Counting
2. Number Sense
3. Conceptual Place Value
4. Addition and Subtraction
5. Multiplication and Division
6. Fractions, Decimals and Percentages
7. Mental and Written Calculations
8. Professional Recognition and introduction to Practitioner Enquiry
9. Practitioner Enquiry Plan

Staff were offered support in implementing the pedagogies outlined in the CLPL in class in between CLPL sessions.

They were also offered meetings and support to implement pupil assessment using diagnostic tasks and with identifying enquiry questions and planning interventions for practitioner enquiries.

• Six in class team teaching sessions were delivered to model CPAL approaches
• A further four practitioners received advice and assistance in delivering diagnostic tasks with learners.
• 13 practitioners were supported in developing practitioner enquiries with 26 meetings held and enquiry notes created.

All teachers took part in practitioner enquiries, identifying a group of learners whom they had identified as ‘likely’ or ‘unlikely’ and who therefore needed support to reach the target for their expected progressions or Achievement of a Level.

Practitioner enquiries consisted of identifying an existing issue or problem amongst learners, carrying out diagnostic tasks to further define the issue, identifying an intervention based on a pedagogical approach, or approaches outlined within the CUiN course, linking this to theory, reading and research and delivering the intervention and measuring and analysing the results.

The main mechanism for staff feedback was an evaluation form. Following the course sixteen staff completed the form. They reported:

• An increase in Confidence in teaching conceptual understanding in numeracy of 74%.
• An increase in Knowledge of teaching conceptual understanding in numeracy of 78%                        
• An increase in Skills in teaching conceptual understanding in numeracy of 76%                                 

• When staff were asked in the survey what they had learned, a range of answers were given with CPAL

approaches the most common answer given, but diagnostic maps and tasks also mentioned.

• When asked to name one thing they would embed in their practice, the most common answer was CPAL approaches including the use of concrete materials. 

PUPILS

• A final pupil survey asked pupils whether they liked numeracy and maths lessons more or less than at the start of the session. The majority -45% -of pupils liked numeracy and maths lessons more in June 2024 than they did in September 2023, 39% liked them the same and 16% liked them less.
•  A wide variety of reasons were provided for answers.  Reasons given by those who said they liked lessons more included that lessons were more fun and easier with those who liked them less often saying they were harder.
• Few children referred to CPAL approaches. There is continued work to be done in relation to building opportunities for pupils to talk and share discussions about approaches used in numeracy learning.
• There is still a perception that concrete materials are for younger or struggling learners and this means some children up the school are reluctant to use them.

SLT advised that PSVs and learning walks have demonstrated evidence of the Professional Learning being implemented in practice with a difference observed in the practice of most class teachers. Both general CPAL approaches, and number talks are more evident.

Pupil agency is more evident with pupil voice more part of lesson

Diagnostic assessments were useful in terms of “digging deeper”, uncovering learner’s conceptual understanding and identifying interventions required. It was agreed they can play a role in the school’s assessment approaches and portfolio which are currently being developed.

NEXT STEPS

• Continued implementation of CuiN and CPAL approaches.
• Further professional reading and discussion to take place at regular intervals to develop teachers’ knowledge of teaching and learning activities for each stage children’s conceptual understanding and development.
• Developing knowledge of development maps, progression of pupils’ conceptual understanding and how to assess this, will enable teachers to identify the stage of pupil’s understanding.
• Establish a school numeracy and maths implementation group.
• Develop policy and guidelines to support consistency in approach across the school.
• Further develop the role of our Numeracy Champion to allow us to benefit from work carried out across DCC.
• Highlight CLPL opportunities and pedagogy team initiatives related to numeracy.
• Carry out pupil surveys again in session 24/25 to establish pupil views in numeracy learning.
• Audit our current provision of resources to support these approaches.

School Improvement Priority 2:

Develop our nurture approaches and spaces available linking to the nurture principles

Progress and Impact:

A plan for introducing nurture groups was created and shared with staff.

Appropriate spaces were identified and adapted for nurture practice.

Identified resources were procured and distributed for use.

• A range of qualitative (pupil/staff surveys/TATC discussion) and quantitative (ASN/SIMD/EAL) data was used to identify Individual pupils and groups of pupils who would most benefit from the provision.
• Targets were set and plans created to support their engagement and involvement in a range of learning experiences aimed at meeting their needs – ASN, self-regulation, self-esteem, relationship building, teamwork and co-operation.
• Referral forms are also available and staff can make a referral to be discussed with SFL and SLT.
• A variety of groups were established to cater for a range of needs – STEM, Skills for Learning Life and Work, Messy Play.
• Pupil and staff questionnaires highlight a positive response to these.
• Positive relationships between pupils from different stages was noted.
• Information shared with parents/carers and TATC discussion indicated that they were fully supportive of the work being carried out.
• Pupil well-being wheels used to promote and gather pupil voice and progress.
• Information shared with all staff at in-service and staff meetings.
• Self-evaluation from staff highlights the positive impact that this provision and approach is having on targeted children.
• All staff undertook Nurture CLPL and completed Trauma Informed Practice Modules 1, 2 & 3 in line with DCC expectation.
• Lunchtime provision for those who find the 1-hour lunch challenging was reviewed:

• 20/20/20-minute plans were created to chunk this time
• The provision is regularly reviewed with some children attending the whole of lunchtime, some part and some only occasionally as the need arises
• Relationships between pupils of different ages established
• Pupils are more ready for afternoon learning and join classes after lunchtime

• A P1-2 Nurture club has been run at lunchtime for selected pupils. This has included a focus on social skills and building relationships.
• We have started to make use of adapted curriculum planning for identified pupils and we made use of the milestones planning documents.

Next Steps:

• Establish a Learning Environment Group to review and improve the use and inclusiveness of our learning spaces.
• Review our approaches to inclusive practice in all classrooms, our nurture provision and learning spaces throughout the school. This will be done through an audit of our current practice and the use of ABLe, Dundee Standard, Blackness Learning and Teaching Standard, circle resource and good practice check-list to support improvements.
• Engage with the Accessibility and Inclusion Service to support staff CLPL in the use of scripts, visuals and decider skills.
• Create a visuals policy.
• Create a learning environment policy
• Further develop approaches to play pedagogy in the early years in line with the Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum.
• Update the Blackness Standard in line with desired pedagogical approaches.
• Access appropriate CLPL via the Pedagogy Team/Accessibility and Inclusion Service/DEPS.
• Further develop planning for identified pupils working on adapted curriculum planning.
• Increase our use of calm kits/fix-it folders.

School Improvement Priority 3:

Further develop pupil voice and leadership in relation to our school priorities both within the classroom and across the school community.

Progress and Impact:

Our Pupil Council Group was established and met each term with the HT.

• Pupil survey results were reviewed and shared with all staff and pupils through our stage gatherings
• This led to a link with UNCRC and a focus on respect throughout the school

Our Active Schools Travel Group was established and met with Active Travel Reps fortnightly. This led to the development of:

• our school Active Travel Plan
• our school walking bus/supported by parents and Active Travel
• promotion of walk to school campaign – all classes participated, and a high number of children engaged in walk to school (see Active Travel data).

Our P7 pupils were involved in leadership training to support their role as buddies to our younger pupils. This was delivered by Active Schools and had a clear impact on the playground support for P1s and 2s. Parents commented positively on the work of the buddies and their achievements were recognised at the P7 end of term gathering.

Throughout the school year planned opportunities for classes to work collaboratively with each other took place eg Health Afternoons, Paired Reading and Play sessions with older children supporting younger classes.

Some of our pupils initiated and led clubs at lunchtime. This promoted their sense of responsibility and involvement in the life of our school.

Our Parent Council established Pupil Ambassadors who met with a Parent Council Rep to establish pupil roles and involvement in the work that they do eg promotion at parent contact meetings, support during fund raising events.

We are registered for UNCRC award recognition, and this has been a focus of pupil gatherings throughout the year. A social goal was set each week and this linked to our school values and a UNCRC article.

Next Steps:

• Continue with our work in aiming for Bronze UNCRC recognition.
• Further develop the work of our Pupil Council, particularly in relation to school improvement priorities.
• Continue to develop and establish a wider range of pupil leadership opportunities – consult with pupils to determine these.
• Introduce weekly Monday Meetings/Gatherings to promote shared messages and information across the school.
• Further develop leadership of learning within classrooms.
• Review our extra-curricular club provision to include further pupil leadership and a wider range of activities on offer.
• Carry out pupil surveys in relation to school improvements and involved pupils in focus groups to allow them to share their opinions.

1. SIP PRIORITY 1

Improving our approaches to inclusive practice, including the learning environment, resources and a range of pedagogy resulting in effective learning opportunities for all.

1. SIP PRIORITY 2

Develop our approaches to planning for assessment, gathering evidence and recording assessment information to ensure this is integral to our planning of learning and teaching.

1. SIP PRIORITY 3

Develop our approaches to planning, teaching and assessing numeracy with a focus on conceptual understanding.