Forth Valley & West Lothian Regional Improvement Collaborative

Attendance is a common stretch aim for all our of local authorities.

Our Forth Valley and West Lothian Regional Improvement Collaborative strategic plan 2022-2024 contains an outlined Attendance Focused Implementation Plan.

We have created an Interactive Attendance Guide thinglink to support settings with their improving attendance work.

Q1. What impact do we want to have?

• We want to support establishments to increase their attendance rates with a particular
  improvements sought in the following areas:-
• S4 Attendance
• Improvement in attendance for children and young people with attendance between 50%-
  80%
• Attendance of care experienced children and young people.
• We want to empower staff and establishments to address the issue of attendance through
  building supportive networks, offering professional learning and creating partnership
  opportunities.

Q2. What problems are we trying to solve?

• Need to improve attendance rates as part of the Scottish Attainment Challenge – Supporting
  Local Authorities with addressing their Attendance Stretch Aim for Scottish Attainment
  Challenge (SAC).
• Reduced attendance rates – Identifying common reasons for lower attendance rates post
  covid
• Variable systemic support – Ensuring our RIC establishments have access to systems,
  approaches and examples of effective practice for improving attendance.
• Variable access to professional learning and support – Identifying and addressing
  professional learning requirements of staff

Q3. What changes could we make that will result in improvement?

FACILITATE (Based on our current UNCRC operating model)
Build systems networks
At LA officer level create a steering group to look at Policy, Data sharing and take ownership
of the initiative and drive this froward.
Build Practitioners Networks – Build networks to support key people in schools at Senior
Management. Pastoral and Classroom level to create opportunities to share practice ideas
and resources.

Attendance Symposium
We will create, develop and offer a symposium on attendance meeting needs of different
stakeholders.

UPDATE- Our symposium went live on 27th March you can gain access to the speaker’s and workshop presentations which were shared by clicking on this link. The Attendance Symposium

The symposium was designed to share effective practice, identify support needs, build networking, showcase available resources and explore the latest research on attendance. 

Support

• Plan and create a data-informed programme of Professional Learning to take place
  throughout the academic year.
• Provide resources e.g. attendance toolkit to support schools with self-evaluation. Provide
  case studies and partnership working and support offers.
  Support Required at Local Authority level.
  It is essential that Local Authorities make all stakeholders and establishments aware that this is
  an immediate priority at Local Authority and Regional level, and encourage all staff to
  demonstrate a commitment to meet, share, collaborate and participate in this initiative.

Partnership Working
There will be significant partnership working with our Education Scotland Regional Improvement
Team staff (as there has been in the planning stage) in the following areas
1. Creation, facilitation and maintenance of networks.
2. Identifying research and best practice examples from across the country and
beyond.
3. Partnership creation and delivery of professional learning.

Partnership working within our RIC- this will include CLD and Psychological Services but may also
include Social Work, Third Sector organisations, NHS and Colleges.
Partnership working outwith our RIC – Partnership working with other RICs and other Meta
organisations from further afield.

ATTENDANCE RESEARCH PAPER SUMMARIES

Our Research Library contains summaries of academic readings, key findings and evidence-based interventions. If you require access to any of the full research articles mentioned, please contact us: fvwlric@glowmail.org.uk

You can read the summaries using the attendance research summaries flip book or clicking on on our Research Library thinglink

You can access a range of professional learning videos as part of our Attendance video playlist on our RIC YouTube channel.