More than £45 million will be provided to primary and secondary schools in 2017/18 to help close the poverty-related attainment gap, Deputy First Minister John Swinney announced today. Nine local authorities and an additional 72 individual schools have been allocated funding from the Scottish Attainment Challenge, for education initiatives and projects targeting Scotland’s most deprived children.
Edinburgh will receive just over £800,000 from the Fund.
Mr Swinney (pictured above at Drylaw’s Ferryhill Primary School) made the announcement during a visit to Newark Primary School Holiday Club in Port Glasgow, where a range of opportunities for families to learn and play together over the school holidays has been made possible by previous Scottish Attainment Challenge funding.
He said: “Improving the education and life chances of our children and young people is the defining mission of this government. Central to this is the Scottish Attainment Challenge, which is providing £750 million during the course of this Parliament to tackle the poverty-related attainment gap by supporting hundreds of schools develop approaches to improve literacy, numeracy and health and well-being.
“During my visit to Newark Primary School I was able to see first-hand the very real benefit this funding is having on children and young people, their families and the wider community. Today’s announcement ensures local authorities and individual schools where the need is greatest have substantial additional funding for the coming year to tailor their plans based on their own circumstances.
“This work, along with the introduction of Pupil Equity Funding, forms the backbone of our focus to target resources where they are needed the most whilst also empowering schools to ultimately improve the life chances of all of children and young people in Scotland.”
Inverclyde Council Leader Councillor Stephen McCabe said: “We have been able to more than double the provision of lunch clubs across Inverclyde this summer and hundreds of families have been enjoying the range of activities and lunches on offer.
“We recognise that key to closing the attainment gap is the involvement of parents and families in a child’s education – from attending parents’ evenings, parent councils and home learning – so that teaching in the classroom can be supported in the home.
“Families spending time together over the summer in a fun, relaxed and informal setting is a great way to start that process and also an opportunity for us to let people know about other resources and added support we have available to them.
“Inverclyde is performing very well when it comes to education and our £270 million investment in new and refurbished schools alongside the excellent work being undertaken as part of the Scottish Attainment Challenge to reduce the attainment gap linked to deprivation is playing a major part in that success.”
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