Agendas, reports and minutes

A meeting of the Education Committee will take place REMOTELY on Wednesday 30 September 2020 at 10.35 am.

Webcast Notice: This meeting will be filmed and broadcast over the internet on the Highland Council website and will be archived and available for viewing for 12 months thereafter.

You are invited to attend the meeting and a note of the business to be considered is attached.

Yours faithfully

Stewart Fraser
Head of Corporate Governance

Business

1.    Apologies for Absence
Leisgeulan

2.    Declarations of Interest
Foillseachaidhean Com-pàirt

Members are asked to consider whether they have an interest to declare in relation to any item on the agenda for this meeting. Any Member making a declaration of interest should indicate whether it is a financial or non-financial interest and include some information on the nature of the interest. Advice may be sought from officers prior to the meeting taking place.

3.    Good News/Outstanding Achievements
Naidheachdan Matha/Coileanaidhean Fa Leth

4.    Presentation: Letters from Lockdown – Preliminary Report
Taisbeanadh: Litrichean bhon Ghlasadh

There is circulated Report No EDU/14/20 dated 10 September 2020 by Gillian Newman, Policy Lead, Highland Children and Young People’s Forum.

Gillian Newman will give a presentation in amplification of the report.  In addition, a number of the prize-winning young people will be in attendance to talk about taking part in the Letters from Lockdown project.

The Committee is invited to:-

i.    acknowledge the value of the contributions made on behalf of the Council to the children and young people who took part;
ii.    consider the potential use of these letters as an online resource for Highland education;
iii.    note the work with Third Sector partners such as the Highland Children and Young People’s Forum to actively involve children and young people in consideration of how to “build back better”;
iv.    recognise the resilience shown by the children and young people; their gratitude for what they have; their care for others in the community; their understanding of the impact on their own mental health and the mental health of their peers; the new life skills sought; and the efforts to keep fit; and
v.    note the work with Third Sector partners such as the Highland Children and Young People’s Forum to support children and young people in identifying what will help them going forward in a future where further local lockdowns are likely.

5.    SQA Attainment Update
Cunntas às Ùr mu Bhuileachadh SQA

There is circulated Report No EDU/15/20 dated 7 September 2020 by Donald Paterson, Education Improvement Team Leadership Lead.

The Committee is invited to:-

i.    note the contents of the paper and recognise the significant improvement trends in attainment in S4, S5 and S6;
ii.    formally congratulate the young people, their families and the school staff for such significant improvement in SQA attainment in the Highlands in August 2020; and
iii.    agree that following individual school attainment reviews a report will be brought back to the Education Committee highlighting best practice in closing the attainment gap in schools and reporting on the key strategies being deployed to further improve work in this area.

6.    Learning,Teaching and Curriculum – Reconnect and Recovery
Ionnsachadh agus Teagasg – Ath-cheangal agus Ath-shlànachadh

There is circulated Report No EDU/16/20 dated 21 September 2020 by Nicky Grant, Executive Chief Officer, Education and Learning.

The Committee is invited to note:-

i.    the developments underway to support recovery planning in school settings in relation to learning, teaching and assessment;
ii.    the continued focus on partnership working at school, local and national level to further enhance curriculum delivery and improve outcomes for our learners; and
iii.    the plans and actions underway to support the continuity of learning in response to localised outbreaks of Covid-19, periods of further lockdown and return to blended learning.

7.    Education Recovery and Resilience: additional funding for counselling, teacher resource and digital inclusion

There is circulated Report No EDU/17/20 dated 20 September 2020 by Nicky Grant, Executive Chief Officer, Education and Learning.

The Committee is invited to:-

i.    agree the approach being taken regarding the distribution of Counselling funding of £1,022,000 in financial year 2020/2021 and that a report on the impact of these funds will be reported to the Education Committee as part of the returns that will be sent to the Scottish Government;
ii.    agree the approach to the use of the additional funding of £2,200,000 to support Education Recovery through additional teaching resource as set out in Appendix 1 of the report; and
iii.    note the allocation of approximately £1,188,489 capital and £204,520 revenue awarded to The Highland Council through the ‘Connecting Scotland Education Programme’ and agree the distribution approach as set out in section 5 of the report.

8.    Early Learning and Childcare 1140 Hours
Cunntas às Ùr mu Thràth-ionnsachadh agus Cùram-chloinne

There is circulated Report No EDU/18/20 dated 18 September 2020 by Kirsty Henry, Service Manager Early Years.

The Committee is invited to:-

i.    note the updated position of Early Learning and Childcare;
ii.    note the key outcomes of the review provided in the report and appendices;
iii.    note that 22 settings will deliver 1140 hours provision in the very near future, a further 32 by January 2021, and a further 8 by April 2021; 
iv.    agree the actions outlined to progress further work around the remaining 30 settings linked to capital works, to report to the November Committee, status of capital works and contingency planning to ensure 1140 hours readiness for summer 2021; and
v.    note that all of the timelines as set out within the report remain predicated on The Highland Council’s ability to progress expansion in a safe, practical and affordable manner during the Covid-19 pandemic.

9.    Revenue Budget Monitoring 1st Quarter 2020/21
Sgrùdadh Buidseit Teachd-a-steach

There is circulated Report No EDU/19/20 dated 7 September 2020 by Brian Porter, Head of Resources.

The Committee is invited to:-

i.    consider the revenue budget outturn forecast for the year; and
ii.    note that further reports will be considered by Council in relation to mitigating actions to address the overall budget gap facing The Highland Council.