Cullivoe Primary School receives ‘good’ HMIE inspection 

In May 2026, a team of HM Inspectors of Education visited Cullivoe Primary School and talked to parents/carers and children, and worked closely with the headteacher and staff.   

The inspection team found the following strengths in the school’s work - 

• Across the school, children are polite, friendly and participate well in their learning. They embody the school’s values very well in the school and local community. Children are supported by warm, nurturing and positive relationships with other children and adults. 
• Children are supported very well by effective partnerships in the local and wider community. These partnerships enrich their learning experiences and support them well to extend and strengthen their wider achievement.
• Children benefit from extensive opportunities to learn about sustainability. They experience meaningful learning which extends well their environmental knowledge and skills.

The following areas for improvement were identified and discussed with the headteacher and a representative from Children’s Services – 

• Teachers should now improve approaches to planning children’s learning across the curriculum. They need to ensure that children experience more consistently learning that builds upon what they already know and can do.
• The headteacher and teachers need to track more robustly children’s attainment and achievement across all areas of the curriculum. They should use the data collected more effectively to identify children’s strengths and next steps in learning. This should help them plan learning which provides appropriate support and challenge to better meet the needs of all learners. 

HMIE’s evaluations for Cullivoe Primary School are as follows – 

• Evaluation Learning, teaching and assessment - Good
• Raising attainment and achievement - Good 

Inspectors are confident that the school has the capacity to continue to improve and no more visits will be made in connection with this inspection. Parents/carers have been informed about the school’s progress as part of its arrangements for reporting on the quality of its schools.

Cullivoe Primary School on the island of Yell has a current school roll of 11 pupils, taught in a single multi-stage class.  

Davie Sandison, Chair of the Council’s Education and Families Committee, said: “This is a good inspection report for Cullivoe Primary School, and I am pleased to see the inspectors recognise the strengths of the school’s work.   I’m sure that the headteacher and other staff will deliver on the areas for improvement identified by inspectors.” 

The full inspection report for Cullivoe Primary School is available on the HMIE website