Attainment Scotland Fund Evaluation: Fifth Interim Report - Year 6

This document describes an evaluation of the Attainment Scotland Fund (ASF) within the Scottish Attainment Challenge (SAC) during the 2020/21 academic year, focusing on its efforts to close the poverty-related attainment gap in education amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The ASF's goal is to enhance literacy, numeracy, and well-being for disadvantaged children. The evaluation employs various data sources, including administrative data, progress reports, and surveys, to assess the ASF's effectiveness. Despite pandemic-related challenges, there has been progress in narrowing the attainment gap, with schools and local authorities adapting to support remote learning and mental health needs. The evaluation highlights the positive role of the ASF in fostering collaboration and the importance of continued funding and data-driven decision-making for sustainable improvement. However, the pandemic has disrupted data reliability and exacerbated inequalities, indicating a need for a refocused strategy in future evaluations. **This summary was written by an AI model and therefore should not be considered a definitive summary of the report. If you are aware of inaccuracies, please email evaluation.registry@cabinetoffice.gov.uk.**

Description

• Lead department: The Scottish Government (The Scottish Government)
• Evaluation stage: A complete evaluation report
• Other departments: No other departments listed
• Evaluation types: Impact evaluation; Process evaluation
• Impact methods: Quasi-experimental method
• Quasi-experimental methods: Difference-in-difference
• Process methods: Other; Output or performance modelling; Surveys and polling
• Grant information: This intervention is not distributing funding via a grant
• Government Major Project information: This intervention is not a major project
• Policies: No policies provided

Event Dates

• Event Name: Publication of final results
• Event date: June 2022

Evaluation Costs

• Cost: Not provided

Evaluation sharing

• Link(s) to published report(s): Yes
• Links to evaluation plans: No link provided
• Findings: Not provided
• Permission to share confirmed: Yes