Baltasound school gets thumbs up from inspectors

Baltasound Junior High School has received a glowing report from HM inspectors who visited in March and who were so confident that no follow-up visits are planned.

Inspectors praised the school for its pupils’ enthusiasm in learning, a strong sense of belonging, caring staff, a vibrant community and the achievements of its young people.

The inspection took in every part of the school curriculum, from nursery to the fourth year of secondary. It also looked at other learning opportunities for young people and adults provided by the council and partners through community learning and development.

Among the particular strengths identified by the inspectors was an inclusive ethos across the school and learning community, which provided “a strong sense of belonging”.

The enthusiasm of young people “who are keen to learn and who have an influence on their school and community” was also praised, as well as the achievements of local young folk “in a wide range of settings, in and beyond school.”

Within the school the “caring staff” were found to “work together to ensure the health and wellbeing of young people and adults”, providing an “active and vibrant community in which to grow and learn”.

Among the recommendations made by the inspectors were that the school should develop “consistently strong approaches” to help young people reflect on how well they are doing and how to improve.

The school should continue to develop young people’s literacy and numeracy skills across all aspects of learning, and continue current plans to improve approaches to planning and monitoring learning.

In addition the school should build on existing strengths in the community to support sustainable economic development.

The inspectors said they were sure that the school and the learning community would be able to make the necessary improvements.

Their report stated: “We are confident that the school and learning community will continue to provide good quality learning and development. We will make no further visits in connection with this inspection.”