THE head teacher at Greenwood Academy has spoken of her delight at the verdict of Scotland's education watchdog on the Irvine school.

But Katy Hegarty also said "there is always room for improvement" as the Academy takes stock of Education Scotland's findings.

The inspectors' report was published earlier this week following a visit to the school in February.

 

The full report is more than 20 pages long, but identifies four 'areas of strength' and three 'areas for improvement'.

The full report was over 20 pages in length, however, from these full fidings, four areas of strength and three areas for improvement were identified.

The school was also evaluated on four different "quality indicators" during the visit.

The school's leadership of change, and its raising of attainment and achievement, were rated as 'good'.

The quality of the school's learning, teaching and assessment, and of its work to ensure wellbeing, equality and inclusion, were both judged 'satisfactory'.

Both evaluations are on a six-point scale, with 'good' the third highest rating and 'satisfactory' the fourth.

The inspectors said that the head teacher, senior leadership team and staff had brought "a sharper focus to school improvement and professional learning".

It also stated that staff have created a nurturing and supportive learning environment, while a focus on literacy and numeracy has helped increase attainment for young people.

The majority of pupils are described as being polite and considerate to their peers – and feel safe and secure in their surroundings.

When addressing possible areas of improvement, inspectors said the school should raise expectations of its young people to increase attainment levels even further.

The report added: "The school should also review their approaches to wellbeing, equality and inclusion to ensure that all young people feel valued, included and respected in the life and work of the school."

Responding to the inspectors' findings, Ms Hegarty said: “We are pleased that the report highlights the wide range of positive work already in place in our school and recognises the improvements which have been achieved as a result.

“A lot of good things are happening at the school and we are on a journey to try and make Greenwood the best possible school it can be.

"There is always going to be room for improvement in every school and the inspection report has allowed us to engage in dialogue about our next steps on our improvement journey.

"I look forward to working with our staff, pupils, parents, carers and wider community on building on our successes and making even more improvements in the future.”

Councillor Shaun Macaulay, North Ayrshire Council's cabinet member for education, added: “Well done to all the staff at Greenwood Academy. This report highlights the positive work undertaken by the school in the last few years and this work is already starting to pay off.

“The school’s Developing the Young Workforce programmes are outstanding and I am very pleased that this work was specifically highlighted by the inspection team as an area of good practice worth sharing more widely across the education system.

“As with all inspections, there is always scope for improvement but everyone should be incredibly proud of all they have achieved so far.

"I know the school is determined to continue their good work to make further improvements on a range of fronts for the benefit of our children and young people.”