Why a Clear Literacy Strategy Matters for Local Authorities

Literacy is embedded in improvement planning across Scotland. It is a standing priority within the National Improvement Framework; attainment is measured at P1, P4 and P7, and the results are published nationally.

Fewer authorities have a literacy strategy in the fuller sense, meaning a single connected line that runs from that national priority, through the council's own plans, down to what a child has in front of them on a Tuesday morning in P4. For local authorities, the challenge is connecting that national priority with council plans, individual settings and, ultimately, what learners experience in the classroom.

A clear connection between each level can help literacy improvements become embedded and continue beyond an individual initiative or funding cycle.

From National Priority to Classroom Practice

The National Improvement Framework names improvement in attainment, particularly in literacy and numeracy, as one of its priorities. That gives every authority a starting point, but it still needs to be translated into plans and practice across local settings. East Ayrshire Council provides one example of how these different levels can be connected. Its Education Service Improvement Plan for 2024 to 2027 is aligned directly with the National Improvement Framework and the council's own community planning, and sets out 4 priorities covering leadership, learning, wellbeing and belonging, and attainment.

It sets out four priorities covering leadership, learning, wellbeing and belonging, and attainment. Each school and early childhood centre then develops its own plan within that wider direction. Linda McAulay-Griffiths, who leads education in East Ayrshire, describes the connections between national priority, council plan and service direction as easy to see. This reflects the work undertaken to align the different plans and create a clear direction across the authority.

This alignment also provides continuity. Staff and funding arrangements may change, but a commitment set out in a three-year plan and reflected across different levels of planning has a stronger foundation for the longer term.

Connect the Measures to the Strategy

A connected strategy also provides an opportunity to agree how progress will be measured from the outset.

East Ayrshire Council’s published plans include stretch aims covering literacy and numeracy at P1, P4 and P7. These consider both overall attainment and the poverty-related attainment gap, connecting the wider ambition with measures that can be reviewed over time.

Looking at overall attainment alongside the poverty-related attainment gap provides a fuller picture of progress. It helps an authority understand not only whether outcomes are improving overall, but whether that improvement is reaching learners across different communities.

Connect Literacy With Wider Council Priorities

A connected literacy strategy can also create opportunities beyond schools and early years settings.

East Ayrshire began with schools and early childhood centres. The programme then extended to additional support needs provision, community learning and development, adult learners, and young adults and adults with English as an additional language. Working with services beyond education helped the authority reach learners across the wider community.