School self-assessments to be distributed shortly

Parents of pupils at five Island primaries will soon be receiving end-of-term reports on the schools themselves.

Schools now carry out self-evaluations, the appraisal job which was previously in the hands of the schools inspector OFSTED.

Five primary schools, namely Ashley Hill, Ballacottier, Laxey, Michael and Rushen, have just completed the exercise.

They have examined their own performance under headings such as 'teaching and learning', 'achievement', 'leadership' and 'care and support'.

Those assessments have been validated by an external specialist, and the key points will now be summarised in a newsletter to parents.

Deputy Director of Education Stuart Dobson says the current system should act as a driving force for improvements: