Scottish Government
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School autonomy guidance
The process of devolving responsibility towards schools and headteachers is to be revised after the publication recently of the Devolved School Management Review carried out by David Cameron.
The main recommendation of the report is that existing guidelines on Devolved School Management should be revised and implemented to provide more opportunities to give headteachers meaningful control.
The process of revising the guidance will be led by COSLA and is expected to be completed in spring 2012.
The review was commissioned by the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning, Mike Russell in December 2010 and included engagement with representatives of a range of stakeholder groups. Other recommendations in the report include:
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Schools to present plans for improvement and budgets to a group representative of the school community, including parents,teachers and pupils
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Delivery of a joined up curriculum from 3 to 18 in partnership with other local schools
Speaking of the report Mr Russell said:
"I would like to thank David Cameron for his report. I am aware of many schools across Scotland that have benefitted from having greater control of their own management. Building on this, we want to work with our partners and ensure that guidelines are reviewed and updated to allow all schools to take advantage of opportunities for greater say over their own affairs.
"Improving our schools is vital in improving the life chances of our children and young. We want to see improvements in the management of schools that are in the best interests of the school, pupils, teachers and parents."
COSLA Spokesperson for Education, Children and Young People, Cllr Isabel Hutton said:
"Education is a top priority for local government and for that reason we look forward to leading the development of the new guidance. The new guidance will be developed with the support of ADES and will take into account developments on education and children's policy over the last 5 years. It will also be informed by the best of current local practice which will help ensure the new guidance is practical and relevant to the delivery of a modern education service."
In December 2010, David Cameron, former Director of Children's Services for Stirling Council and former President of Association of Directors of Education Scotland, was commissioned by Scottish Ministers to undertake a review of Devolved School Management in Scotland.
The review process consisted of a literature search, a series of interviews, events and meetings, and engagement with a Reference Group. This group includes representatives from Association of Directors of Education Scotland, Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, Association of Headteachers and Deputes, Association of Head and Deputy Heads Scotland, School Leaders Scotland, Education Scotland, Educational Institute of Scotland and National Parents' Forum Scotland.
