A Report on Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd-Y-Grug Aberfan
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A report on Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd-Y-Grug Aberfan Merthyr Tudful CF48 4NT Date of inspection: May 2011 by Estyn, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate for Education and Training in Wales During each inspection, inspectors aim to answer three key questions: Key Question 1: How good are the outcomes? Key Question 2: How good is provision? Key Question 3: How good are leadership and management? Inspectors also provide an overall judgement on the school’s current performance and on its prospects for improvement. In these evaluations, inspectors use a four-point scale: Judgement What the judgement means Excellent Many strengths, including significant examples of sector-leading practice Good Many strengths and no important areas requiring significant improvement Adequate Strengths outweigh areas for improvement Unsatisfactory Important areas for improvement outweigh strengths The report was produced in accordance with Section 28 of the Education Act 2005. Every possible care has been taken to ensure that the information in this document is accurate at the time of going to press. Any enquiries or comments regarding this document/publication should be addressed to: Publication Section Estyn Anchor Court Keen Road Cardiff CF24 5JW or by email to [email protected] This and other Estyn publications are available on our website: www.estyn.gov.uk This document has been translated by Trosol (Welsh to English). © Crown Copyright 2011: This report may be re-used free of charge in any format or medium provided that it is re-used accurately and not used in a misleading context. The material must be acknowledged as Crown copyright and the title of the report specified. A report on Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd-Y-Grug May 2011 Context Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd y Grug relocated in September 2010 from Quakers Yard to Aberfan. The school admits children from Bedlinog, Trelewis, Treharris, Quakers Yard, Edwardsville, Merthyr Vale and Aberfan. At present there are 121 pupils of compulsory school age at the school and 30 pupils of three and four years of age. This number is lower than when the school was last inspected in 2005 but it is predicted that the numbers will increase in the years to come. The pupils are taught by six full-time teachers and one part-time teacher in six classes. The school is served by Merthyr Tudful Local Authority. All the pupils will transfer to Ysgol Rhydywaun, which is outside the county, at the end of their period at the school. Seventeen per cent of the pupils are eligible to receive free school meals. Although this is lower than the county and national percentage the majority of the pupils come from homes that are in an area of economic disadvantage and come under Communities First. Eighty five percent of the pupils come from homes where English is the first language. Three children are of ethnic origin. Twenty seven percent of the pupils receive support with additional educational needs. None of the pupils are statemented and the majority are on School Action. No suspensions, temporary or permanent, were recorded during the year before the inspection. There were a number of changes of staff since the last inspection including a headteacher who was appointed for September 2010. A little over half the staff were appointed after 2005. The individual school budget in 2010-2011 per pupil for Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd-Y-Grug is £3,593 which compares with a maximum of £6,431 and a minimum of £3,035 for primary schools in Merthyr Tudful. The school has the eighth highest budget per pupil of the 25 primary schools in Merthyr Tudful. 1 A report on Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd-Y-Grug May 2011 Summary The school’s current performance Adequate The school’s prospects for improvement Good Current performance The school’s current performance is adequate because: although; • standards in all the skills, especially oral communication skills, show acceptable progress in comparison with the results of the original assessments in the Foundation Phase; • achievement in learning and the pupils’ progress in lessons across the school is generally good and is line with their ability; • the percentage of pupils who achieve at expected levels is consistently higher than at similar schools at the end of key stage two; • pupils with additional learning needs are making good progress and pupils who are receiving support in speech and language are making very good progress; • the standard of care is good; and • the standard of teaching is generally good. • literacy standards and skills in Welsh are inconsistent, especially in key stage one; • standards in mathematics and science are weak in teacher assessments at the end of key stage one; • the provision for extending more able children is inadequate; and • there is a considerable difference between the attainment of boys and girls with girls’ attainment being higher than that of the boys. Prospects for improvement The prospects for improvement are good because: • the new headteacher has given the school a definite direction and clear vision to the school within a short period and has managed change very effectively; • the self-evaluation report is comprehensive and includes a detailed analysis of data which shows that the school knows itself well; • the school’s development plan has correctly identified the school’s true needs in raising standards and has prioritised them appropriately over a period of three years; • clear and practical managerial processes are being implemented consistently across the school; • local and national priorities are developing well; and • rapid progress has been made in important areas such as the school ethos, curriculum planning and the quality of the learning environment. 2 A report on Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd-Y-Grug May 2011 Recommendations In order to improve the school should: R1 raise standards in key stage one in science and mathematics and standards of reading and writing in Welsh across the school; R2 decrease the gap between the achievements of boys and girls; R3 raise the attainment of more able pupils so that they can reach their full potential; R4 ensure more opportunities for pupils to undertake extended writing; R5 develop the role of the governing body further as a critical friend; and R6 respond to issues concerning health and safety that were identified in the feedback meeting at the end of the inspection. What happens next? The school will produce an action plan that shows how it will address the recommendations. The progress against the recommendations will be monitored by Estyn. 3 A report on Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd-Y-Grug May 2011 Main findings Key Question 1: How good are outcomes? Adequate Standards: Adequate The results of the foundation assessments as children start school consistently show that their skills are lower than the national average. This is especially true of their language, literacy and communication skills. At the end of the Foundation Phase, standards in all the skills, especially oral communication skills, show acceptable progress in comparison with the results of the original assessments. By the end of key stage one at seven years of age, nearly most of the pupils can communicate effectively in Welsh. Their oral skills are developing well and they make use of their reading and writing skills across the curriculum. When the pupils leave the school at the end of year six, most show good progress in every aspect of their literacy skills in English, but their progress in Welsh is adequate. They use language appropriately in discussions and they are able to read in more than one language, using the information in the other language. The majority read meaningfully and show a good understanding of the text in English but this is not as consistent in Welsh. Standards of writing are generally good in both languages by the end of year six and the work is presented neatly. However, literacy skills are not consistent throughout the school. The range and volume of work varies and consistent examples of extended written work are rare. Achievement in learning and the pupils’ progress in lessons throughout the school are generally good and in line with their ability. Many pupils can recall previous learning for a purpose, while being able to build upon it appropriately. In general, pupils work together well and respond appropriately to the tasks set and to the questions asked by the teachers. By the end of year six the pupils’ thinking skills and their ability to work independently have developed well. Pupils use their information and communication technology skills confidently throughout the school but the modelling skills in using spreadsheets and interrogating a database have not developed adequately. Pupils’ awareness of Welsh artists and the history of their area through the Cwricwlwm Cymreig is good. Their awareness of Welsh authors is not as good. In 2010, 82% of key stage one pupils succeeded in reaching the expected level in Welsh, mathematics and science and through that achieved the core subject indicator. This percentage was higher than the results of the family of schools to which the school belongs and also higher than the Welsh average. However, in comparison with similar schools across Wales in terms of free school meals, the results for the core subject indicator have declined over the last two years and the school is now in the bottom 50% in terms of performance. Mathematics has also been fairly consistently in the bottom 50% and science in the bottom 25% over four years. 4 A report on Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd-Y-Grug May 2011 The percentage of pupils who reach level three, that is the level that is higher than expected in Welsh, mathematics and science, are significantly higher than the family and fairly consistent over the last three years.