Commitment to raising attainment for all

3rd December 2014

Education Secretary pledge as £1.5m awarded through Access to Education fund.

Schools across Scotland have secured funds totalling £1.5 million to help reduce barriers to learning experienced by pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning Angela Constance confirmed the Access to Education funding awards are part of wide-ranging work by the Scottish Government to ensure that all pupils, regardless of background, have an equal opportunity to succeed.

Making her first school visit in her new post, Ms Constance also announced a further £1.5 million will be made available for another round of awards next year.

Ms Constance was speaking at Forthview Primary in West Pilton, which was one of 247 successful applicants from across Scotland for funding. The school has received £5,000 to further develop its ‘whole school reading culture', which has improved attitudes to reading for enjoyment across the school community and has been well received by pupils and parents.

Computing, mentoring experiences and parental engagement are among other projects at Scottish schools to receive funding today.

Ms Constance said:"I congratulate all of today's successful Access to Education applicants. We know that too many children are held back by barriers to learning.

"That’s why initiatives such as the Access to Education fund are so important. At Forthview Primary, great strides are being made to improve reading within the school, led by teachers and fully supported by parents.

“The Access to Education fund has an important role to play and that’s why I’ve committed a further £1.5 million to support many more projects across Scotland. While attainment in Scottish schools is good, and improving, we must continue to do all we can within the powers and resources to narrow that attainment gap and drive up standards at all levels."

Access to Education Fund 2014 - Successful Applications - Overview

Funding allocated
Aberdeen City
10, 000
Aberdeenshire
30, 460
Angus
14, 800
Argyll and Bute
2, 000
City of Edinburgh
96, 525
Clackmannanshire
10, 022
Eilean Siar
5, 000
Dumfries and Galloway
26, 350
Dundee City
9, 121
East Ayrshire
27, 039
East Dunbartonshire
45, 709
East Lothian
10, 350
East Renfrewshire
35, 110
Falkirk
94, 753
Fife
76, 618
Glasgow
173, 568
Highland
51, 552
Inverclyde
25, 810
Midlothian
24, 340
Moray
27, 102
North Ayrshire
55, 544
North Lanarkshire
107, 962
Orkney
5, 000
Perth and Kinross
29, 764
Renfrewshire
67, 181
Scottish Borders
14, 987
Shetland
71, 305
South Ayrshire
17, 154
South Lanarkshire
122, 634
Stirling
28, 197
West Dunbartonshire
23, 873
West Lothian
160, 193
TOTAL
£1, 500, 023