School Attendance Scotland Conference

Martin Crewe has been the Director of Barnardo’s Scotland for 18 years and has worked in the charity sector for more than 30 years. He has been a member of several boards including Edinburgh College, OSCR and Evaluation Support Scotland, and has chaired the Scottish Government’s Getting It Right For Every Child (GIRFEC) Programme Board. Martin initially trained as a geochemist and has worked for a trade union, the National Health Service and charities both big and small. He has recently completed a DBA focused on charity leadership and effectiveness.

Tony was first elected to East Renfrewshire Council (ERC) in 2007 and represents Neilston and Newton Mearns North.

He has been part of the administration of ERC since election in 2007 and was Leader of East Renfrewshire Council for the term 2017 – 2022. ERC has an exemplary record for several services. Tony has been a member of the Education committee, an area in which the Council is sector leading.

He has been a member of COSLA Convention since 2007 and COSLA Leaders Group since 2017, and was appointed as COSLA’s Spokesperson for Children and Young People in June 2022

Lucy Henderson began her teaching career in 2005 as a class teacher in Aberdeen before progressing to the role of Depute Head Teacher in Aberdeenshire in 2012.

Her leadership journey continued in Edinburgh in 2014 as Head Teacher at Hillwood Primary School, followed by Corstorphine Primary School in 2016. She has been the Head Teacher at Kirkliston Primary School since 2018, where she is passionate about creating an inclusive learning environment and removing barriers to attendance.

With a focus on supporting all learners, Lucy works to ensure that every child feels valued, included, and engaged in their education.

I have been Depute Headteacher at St Roch’s Secondary School, Glasgow, since August 2019. Previously I was Principal Teacher of Support for Learning in both North Lanarkshire and Glasgow and a teacher of Modern Studies and Politics. I am currently responsible for all aspects of Pupil Support, as well as year group head for S4. I am a member of our Learning Community Joint Support Team and part of the Promise Steering Group for Glasgow City Council.

Laura Millar is the CEO of Fife Gingerbread, a grassroots charity in Fife support lone parents and families in need. Fife Gingerbread work with around 800 families every year, and the common thread connecting these households is poverty & trauma. The work is centred around creating better todays and brighter tomorrows for children and young people living in households facing multiple and complex barriers. Laura will share her experience of working in the third sector, partnership working, a whole family approach, early intervention and the systemic nature of poverty.

I am Lindsey Howland and have been Headteacher at Allan’s Nursery and Primary for 8 years. Allan’s is a 0-12 provision and I feel incredibly privileged to be lead such a unique nursery and school as we are able support families right from the outset. I am passionate about ensuring that our children receive love and feel a sense of belonging when in school and nursery and that our curriculum inspires them to be active change makers! We can only do this if our children and young people want to come to school so let’s break the barriers together!

Sara manages the Cost of the School Day project at Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) in Scotland. Cost of the School Day is a Scottish Attainment Challenge national programme which focuses on reducing cost barriers to learning and participation for children on lower incomes. She oversees anti-poverty youth participation work through the Cost of the School Day Voice network, resource development for practitioners, local authority partnerships, and research and good practice sharing to help reduce financial pressures for families and increase equity in education. Prior to this, Sara worked in research and policy roles in a range of children’s organisations.

Jessica’s background is in secondary education.  She was a Principal Teacher of Guidance and Depute Head Teacher in Ayrshire before joining Education Scotland as an Education Officer for Health and Wellbeing.  Jessica took up post as Quality Improvement Officer in Dumfries and Galloway in 2023 with responsibility for attendance and the Health and Wellbeing curriculum.  Jessica is an Education Scotland Associate.

Dr Jo Inchley is a behavioural scientist and public health researcher, specialising in child and adolescent health. She is a Reader in Mental Health Science within the School of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow where she leads a programme of work on adolescent mental health with a particular focus on the role of schools in health improvement. She co-leads the Scottish School Health and Wellbeing Improvement Research Network (SHINE)  (SHINE), a national network of schools in Scotland which aims to improve health outcomes for children and young people through data-led innovation. She has also recently been awarded funding from the Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Government for the ABSAIL project, a study investigating the management and impact of emotionally-based school non-attendance within the Scottish context. From 2015-2024, she was the elected International Coordinator of the Health Behaviour of School-aged Children (HBSC) WHO Collaborative Cross-national study, the largest study of adolescent health and wellbeing in Europe involving over 50 countries and conducted in collaboration with the World Health Organisation.

Roseann Cartledge was a Principal Teacher of Pupil Support for a number of years before being tasked with creating a specialist wellbeing support unit within Mearns Castle High School.

The space, known as The Hub, was specifically designed to look and feel different to the rest of the school and to provide more focused interventions in response to the changing needs of pupils.

Roseann is passionate about promoting wellbeing. She is a qualified Yoga and Mindfulness Meditation teacher, and has offered sessions on both specialisms to pupils and staff within the school and across the local authority.

I have been a Principal Teacher of Pupil Support for 7 years within Mearns Castle High School. My overall responsibility within this role is for the universal and targeted support needs of pupils within the S2 Year Group. My management remit within this role is based around attendance and looking at alternative strategies to support pupils who struggle to attend school on a regular basis.

After graduating from Jordanhill College in 1988, Colin worked initially in youth work in the East End and Southside of Glasgow. In 1999, he joined West Dunbartonshire Council to work within one of the first Community Schools. Colin was part of a multi-disciplinary team supporting a Scottish Government initiative focused on attainment and community well-being.

In 2004, Colin moved to Quarriers to join their school-based services and since then has contributed to the growth of Quarriers in this sector. In 2022, Quarriers entered a partnership with Glasgow City Council to develop and deliver services for children with chronic non-attendance issues (EBSNA) and The REACH service has been at the forefront of developing services in this area.

I am currently Head Teacher at West Calder High School, having been appointed to the role in August 2024. Over my career, I have been fortunate to work in three local authorities: Glasgow, East Dunbartonshire and West Lothian. I originally qualified as a teacher of Social Subjects covering Geography, History and Modern Studies at Hyndland Secondary. I later moved through the Pastoral Care route at Boclair Academy and arrived in Senior School Leadership working to close the gap in an Equity post. This took me to Depute Head Teacher at Rosshall Academy. My remit was based around attainment before and after the Covid pandemic, eventually moving to my current post at West Calder High School.

I have been Depute Headteacher at West Calder High School with responsibility for Wellbeing, Inclusion and Support since 2016.  I originally qualified as a Music teacher before moving into the role of Faculty Head. My work in seeking to remove barriers and improve outcomes for our most disadvantaged learners led to a role as Local Authority Development Officer for the implementation of the More Choices, More Chances strategy which then led to the role of Headteacher of the local authority SEBN provision. My work as DHT at West Calder High School led to a part time secondment last session as Quality Improvement Officer with responsibility for improving attendance and engagement within West Lothian. I am also responsible for leading the local authority approach to Health & Wellbeing and the self-evaluation of Wellbeing, Equality and Inclusion within our secondary schools.

Born in Prestwick, South Ayrshire, Craig Melrose attended Belmont Academy before gaining a Bachelor of Education honours degree in Music at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. Craig’s career began at Ballerup High School, South Lanarkshire, in the late nineties, followed by roles at St Andrew’s Academy, St Mirin’s High School, and Linwood High School, all in Renfrewshire, where Craig advanced to faculty head and depute headteacher.

In 2016, he joined the Scottish Attainment Challenge (SAC) as a development officer, promoting equity throughout education. After gaining a headship qualification in 2017, Craig became an attainment advisor at Education Scotland, where his work has focused on addressing poverty-related barriers to learning across three local authorities, including his current role with South Lanarkshire.

Collaborating with Scottish Government policy colleagues, Craig helped develop the Refreshed SAC programme in 2022 and became the SAC national project lead for improving attendance in October 2024.

Martin Crewe has been the Director of Barnardo’s Scotland for 18 years and has worked in the charity sector for more than 30 years. He has been a member of several boards including Edinburgh College, OSCR and Evaluation Support Scotland, and has chaired the Scottish Government’s Getting It Right For Every Child (GIRFEC) Programme Board. Martin initially trained as a geochemist and has worked for a trade union, the National Health Service and charities both big and small. He has recently completed a DBA focused on charity leadership and effectiveness.