Young children across West Dunbartonshire are receiving good quality care and learning from pre-school facilities, a new report has found.

A report to the council's educational cervices committee shows 100 per cent of the 15 early learning and childcare centres (ELC) inspected by the Care Inspectorate received good or very good gradings in every inspection.

Figures show a five per cent increase in early writing and mark-making and a three per cent increase in concepts of print.

The strong trend shows children are achieving ambitious targets set in early learning and childcare centres, with 67 per cent of all children on track to achieve the benchmark in Concepts of Print and 33 per cent of children will achieve the benchmark in number and number processes.

Convener of educational services, Councillor Clare Steel, said: “We are fully committed to ensuring children get the best start to their education.

"Recent inspections show our centres are achieving grades of good and very good and these are the grades we want for all our centres.

"I am also pleased our plans to expand our early years estate are progressing well. This expansion will be a great asset to families.”

Alongside the encouraging feedback from the national inspectorate, West Dunbartonshire Council has set up a new working group to support ELCCs to accommodate children with additional support needs (ASN).

The group will look at all additional support needs and in particular, autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Part of the work will look at the specialist work within Kilpatrick Early Years with children with complex learning needs and how the service could support mainstream centres by sharing their expertise.

Plans to expand the One-ery model of curriculum delivery, based around play pedagogy and nurturing approaches, are progressing with work underway at Linnvale Early Learning and Childcare Centre and St Mary’s Early Learning and Childcare Centre in Alexandria.

Plans have also been drawn up for an early years expansion in Christie Park Primary School which is progressing well and due to open at the start of the school term in August.

Vice convener of educational services, Councillor John Millar added: "We are committed to continuing this positive trend of inspection results and I would like to thank all our staff who have worked hard to achieve these great grades.”