In their report, dated March 23, they found that Dumfries and Galloway schools have improved all measures investigated.
And they found the regio was second in Scotland for closing the attainment gap for pupils gaining National 5 qualifications between 2014 and 2019.
Releasing the information, council officials pointed out that Dumfries and Galloway is not a ‘Challenge Authority’ so has made these gains without the significant additional funding allocated to such councils. Audit Scotland also emphasises that school education is wider than exam results and the local authority has set out the areas they will now focus on:
* the need to focus on recovery
* supporting those who need it most
* increased focus on supporting the health and wellbeing of children and young people, and of staff, in the light of Covid-19
* more emphasis placed on the needs of children and young people with additional support needs.
These areas identified will continue to be addressed by the annual update of the Dumfries and Galloway Education Plan and this will be reported to the Education and Learning Committee in May.
Committee chairman Cllr Jeff Leaver said: “This report is evidence of the continued hard work that young people, parents, carers and staff are putting in each day. To see that we are positively impacting the attainment gap is to be congratulated.”
