We rely on primary schools to guide the young children in their care through some of their most important milestones.
These schools will oversee much of their pupils’ early social, emotional, and intellectual growth - and what children learn there will serve as the foundation for the rest of their educational journey. That is why it’s so important that parents choose a school that works for their child, and their family.
Each part of Scotland, from Edinburgh to the Orkney Islands, has its own collection of primary schools, including some which shine particularly bright. But how do Scotland’s different regions stack up when it comes to which has the best schools, those that are getting the most children across the goal line in learning essential school skills?
Using Scottish education statistics, Scotland’s Data on a Map publishes annual league tables for council areas across the country, rating how well the country’s state primary schools have performed each year. Schools are ranked using ACEL (or Achievement of Curriculum for Excellence Levels) data. This shows the percentage of pupils across a range of different year groups who have achieved the expected levels in important school skills; literacy, numeracy, and speaking and listening.
Using the most recent data currently available (currently the 2022/23 school year until this year’s data has been finalised) we’ve ranked each of Scotland’s local authority areas based on the percentage of their state-funded schools to be placed in ‘Band 1’ - the highest available, reserved for those with more than 80% of their pupils hitting the mark.
We have also included the top-performing schools in each part of the country, those with the very highest percentage of children in their care meeting key targets for each age group. It is worth noting, however, that some primary schools - mostly those with very small class sizes - have been excluded from the data.
Here’s how each of the regions did:
9. Angus
Of all Angus primary schools with published performance data, 61% made it into the top band, representing 20 schools. Its top schools were: Letham Primary School, Murroes Primary School, Rosemount Primary School and Woodlands Primary School (all with 95% of children meeting the target level in key skills). | (Letham Primary School/Google)
10. Renfrewshire
Of all Renfrewshire primary schools with published performance data, 61% made it into the top band, representing 30 great local schools. Its top performers were: Houston Primary School, St Catherine's Primary School and St John Bosco Primary School (all 95%). | (St Catherine's Primary School/Google)
11. Falkirk
Of all Falkirk primary schools with published performance data, 60% made it into the top band, representing 27 excellent local schools. Its top schools by the percentage of pupils to meet key performance targets were: Bainsford Primary School (95%), St Joseph's RC Primary School (95%) and St Bernadette's RC Primary School (92.5%). | (St Bernadette's RC Primary School/Google)
12. South Ayrshire
Of all South Ayrshire primary schools with published performance data, 57% made it into the top band, representing 17 excellent local schools. Its top-performing schools were: Alloway Primary School and Symington Primary School (both 95%), followed by Coylton Primary School (92.5%). | (Alloway Primary School/Google)