A total of 84 of Scotland’s primary schools ensure that almost ever primary seven pupil is up to standard in reading, writing, numeracy, listening and talking according to a new league table.
The Sunday Times report used data submitted by schools in each of the four categories to come up with a mark out of a maximum of 400.
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A total of 1,197 primary schools provided data for the annual Achievement in Curriculum for Excellence Levels publications, with the remaining 729 on the government database not participating, either because no children were up to standard, the school roll was too small or the data was not collected centrally.
Schools with a higher proportion of deprived pupils were weighted to rise up the league table to recognise their achievement in delivering a good education despite the challenges of poverty.
The schools were then placed in a league table according to how well they were performing.
Chapelside Primary, in Airdrie, came top of the list - scoring a maximum of 400 points, despite over 90 per cent of pupils coming from ‘very deprived’ families.
The North Lanarkshire school has attempted to instil a “reading culture”, opening a new library in 2024 with input from staff and pupils on the genres and authors to be included.
Inspectors recently praised the school’s “wonderful writing” initiative, which was “impacting positively on pupil motivation and ability to write independently”.
Here are the top 10 best performing primaries according to the report.
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1. Chapelside Primary School
Chapelside Primary School in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, tops this year's league table. It scored the maximum 100 points across all four core skills despite 90 per cent of pupils being deemed “very deprived” in the Scottish government’s index of multiple deprivation (SIMD). | Google Maps
2. Hurlford Primary School
Hurlford Primary School, located just outside Kilmarnock in East Ayrshire, takes second spot with the full 400 marks despite 60-70 per cent of pupils being classed as 'very deprived'. The school has 13 teachers with an average class size of 23.6. | Google Maps
3. St Margaret’s Primary School
Third spot goes to St Margaret’s Primary School, in the Renfrewshire town of Johnstone. The school has the perfect score of 400 with 60-70 per cent of its 206 pupils coming from very deprived backgrounds. | Google Maps
4. Tannochside Primary School
The second of four North Lanarkshire schools to feature in the top 10, Tannochside Primary School, in Uddingstone scored full marks with 50-60 per cent of its 538 pupils classified as being 'very deprived'. It has a pupil attendance rate of 89.2 per cent. | Google Maps