Dornoch school praised for ‘positive ethos’ after Education Scotland visit

“Kindness and respect” were at the heart of a positive review of practice at a Sutherland primary school, an Education Scotland inspection has revealed.

Inspectors from Scotland’s education watchdog talked to parents, carers and children at Dornoch Primary in December, while working closely with the headteacher and staff during their visit.

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In the category of “learning, teaching and assessment”, the school attained an evaluation of “Good”, noted for “a positive ethos and climate for learning where children have a strong sense of belonging.”

An evaluation of “Satisfactory” was also received for inspectors’ “raising attainment and achievement” quality indicator.

The inspection team found that across the school community, children and adults “demonstrated kindness and respect to each other very well”.

A survey completed by pupils revealed that 92.86 per cent felt the school taught them “how to lead a healthy lifestyle” and 90.82 per cent agreed that “other children treat me fairly and with respect”.

60.47 per cent of parents, when surveyed, agreed that their child felt safe at school, while a combined 88.37 per cent either agreed or strongly agreed that staff “really know (their) child as an individual.”

It was noted that the staff team “reflected carefully on their professional skills and abilities” and work collaboratively to improve their approach to learning and teaching.

Inspectors concluded that staff worked well with colleagues in the Dornoch Campus to improve approaches to planning children’s learning.

Staff were also praised for working closely with partners and the local community to provide children with a wide range of worthwhile experiences, to “support children well to achieve success, learn new skills and be effective contributors”.

Teachers were also surveyed, with 92.3 per cent feeling that they are “appropriately supported by the school to undertake (their) role.”

Inspectors identified a need to improve approaches to learning, teaching and assessment to ensure all children experience consistent high-quality learning in a bid to raise attainment for all children, including those who “require challenge”.

Senior leaders and staff should also continue to develop consistent approaches, it was recommended, when it comes to using assessment information to identify trends in children’s attainment over time.

It is hoped that this will help management to demonstrate children’s achievement of, and progress towards, Curriculum for Excellence levels.

Inspector Helen Mulholland concluded in her report: “We are confident that the school has the capacity to continue to improve and so we will make no more visits in connection with this inspection.”

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