Chamber and committees

Would Graeme like to comment on that?

We have talked a bit about the benefits of ELC and there has been an acknowledgement of the roll-out. The hours that are being offered have tripled since 2002, I think, which is great. However, in reading the written submissions, I noted that there is a gap and that not all parents are taking up places. What suggestions do you have on how we can increase the take-up, given the expansion? I put that question to Matthew Sweeney first, and then I am interested to hear from Jane Brumpton.

It is a complex area. I know, from teaching for many years, that it is not just about education. However, when you look at it, the poverty bit sometimes gets missed. Inevitably, if people do not have enough money, a child is not ready to learn, because they are hungry. That makes it even more challenging for teachers as well, so the two things go together. How does the SAC fit into the Scottish Government’s overall approach to tackling child poverty?

Good morning, everyone. It has been a fascinating discussion so far. Cabinet secretary, you acknowledge that we have taken extensive evidence on this subject over the past few months. Parents, young people and teachers have said that, prior to Covid, progress was being made in closing the attainment gap—albeit modest progress; nevertheless, we were moving in the right direction. It is clear that Covid has had an impact on that. Briefly—I know that we do not have a huge amount of time—what are the highlights of the progress that you think has been made in closing the poverty-related attainment gap? Has the Scottish Government considered widening the definitions of measuring that attainment?

What you have said so far has been interesting. I think that we have all more or less accepted that the Scottish Government is in a difficult position. You want to keep the use of the orders to an absolute minimum and keep people as close to home as possible. Therefore, what work have you done with the UK Government? The situation is driven by underprovision in England, so have you lobbied the UK Government and, if so, how did you get on with that?

You are here in front of this committee. Would the Education Committee at Westminster be a route to get to ministers, who obviously are the ones who will make the decision?

On the refreshed approach, “The Scottish Attainment Challenge: Framework for Recovery and Accelerating Progress” says:

“The Scottish Attainment Challenge mission is central to all of Education Scotland’s work supporting Scottish educators”,

and part of it is to

“support local authorities to deliver an agreed plan”.

The evidence that we have been taking from teachers, among others, suggests that there is a lack of consistency across local authorities. What work is Education Scotland doing to reduce that inconsistency? Everybody is entitled to have quality input, wherever they are in Scotland. I do not know who is the best person to answer that—it might be Craig Clement, but I will take the witnesses’ lead.

Your report “Recalibrating Equity and Social Justice in Scottish Education: Bouncing forward after COVID-19 lockdowns” talks about

“intensifying support in the short term”,

and says that

“high quality universal and targeted provision is vital.”

What progress has been made in those areas?

It is interesting that you mentioned the RICs. The evidence that we have taken on those has been mixed. The principle behind RICs was whole-heartedly welcomed, and people understood it, but the experience of teachers is mixed. That goes back to my line of questioning about variation across authorities. The principle was recognised as good but, if RICs are not working well and tweaking is needed, how can you respond to that? Are you taking on board the views of teachers? Some teachers think that the approach is working well, but others think that they are not part of the collaborative process and that the approach is still a bit leadership led rather than classroom led. How are you dealing with that?

I have a final question. Given that your organisation is about to go through structural changes, do you have sufficient capacity in it to offer the support and challenge functions that you have already mentioned?