Across Scotland, primary school performance figures show hard-working teachers, staff and families at dozens of local schools have cause for celebration.
The summer holidays are flying by for Scottish schoolchildren, most of whom wrapped up the 2024/25 school year around June 26. This means that there are mere weeks to go until it’s time to return to the classroom - with the 2025/26 school year set to begin around August 13.
This also means a whole new cohort of children will soon be starting at a new primary school, setting out on their years-long learning journey by building a solid foundation of key academic skills. To mark the approach of the new school year, we’re celebrating the state-funded primary schools across Scotland that have excelled at teaching their pupils these important skills - namely reading, writing, numeracy, and listening & talking.
We’ve based this on the latest official performance data available on the Scottish Government’s primary schools dashboard for the 2023/24 academic year - as well as some supplementary information from independent data site Scotland’s Data on a Map. More specifically, we’ve looked at ACEL (or Achievement of Curriculum for Excellence Levels) figures showing the percentage of each school’s pupils across a range of different year groups, who are achieving at the expected levels in all four measurements.
While it’s important to acknowledge success, it’s also worth noting that performance is far from the only thing that makes a primary school a great place to learn - and figures can naturally fluctuate year-on-year. On top of that, data for some very small schools has been withheld to protect pupil privacy.
5. Clackmannanshire
There were fewer than 20 primary schools overall with published data in Clackmannanshire. The area’s highest achievers were Menstrie Primary School and St Bernadette's RC Primary School – both of which had over 90% of pupils reach two of the four target skill levels, and 80-90% reach the other two. | Menstrie Primary School/Google
6. Dumfries & Galloway
While Dumfries & Galloway also had no schools where more than 90% of pupils met all four key skills targets, it still had some high achievers. Its top schools were Glenluce School and Whithorn School – both of which had over 90% of children reach three of the target levels, and 80-90% reach the other. | Whithorn School/Google
7. Dundee
In Dundee, there was one school where at least 90% of children met all four key skills targets: Victoria Park Primary School. But others came in close behind it, including Forthill Primary School – which had over 90% of pupils meet listening & talking and reading targets, and 80-90% meet numeracy and writing targets. | Victoria Park Primary School/Google
8. East Ayrshire
In East Ayrshire, there was one school where at least 90% of children met all four key skills targets: Dalmellington Primary School. But others came in close behind it, including Kilmaurs Primary School and Logan Primary School – both of which had over 90% of pupils meet three of their core skills targets, and 80-90% meet the other. | Dalmellington Primary School/Google