Support for school after Estyn report
A CYNON Valley school has been placed in special measures after it was judged to be unsatisfactory – the lowest rating given by education watchdog Estyn.
Cwmbach Church in Wales Primary School was given the ranking following an inspection that took place in February that found a number of failings.
It will now face regular visits from the body.
Not only was its current performance ranked as unsatisfactory, but its prospects for improvement were also given the lowest ranking.
The damning report said its main failings included a lack of leadership, while many pupils read at a level below that expected of their age and boys in particular were not developing a wide enough vocabulary.
Other observations made by the report included:
The majority of pupils in the Foundation Phase read at a level below that expected of their age;
In Key Stage Two, more able pupils do not develop their higher order reading skills well enough;
The ability of many pupils across the school to write independently at length in a wide range of contexts is weak;
Throughout the school, pupils’ ability to apply their numeracy skills in work across the curriculum is limited;
Teachers do not differentiate work for pupils of different abilities and this hinders their progress;
Pupils use a limited range of information and communication (ICT) skills to support and enhance their work across the curriculum;
In the Foundation Phase, the majority of pupils lack confidence in asking and answering basic questions in Welsh.
The report, published on the Estyn website, read: “In accordance with the Education Act 2005, HMCI [Her Majesty’s Chief Inspectorate] is of the opinion that special measures are required in relation to this school.
“The school will draw up an action plan that shows how it is going to address the recommendations. Estyn will monitor the school’s progress on a termly basis.”
Cwmbach CIW, which has 111 pupils, is 16th out of the 104 primary schools in RCT in terms of its school budget per pupil.
A council spokesperson said: “Support will be provided for the school in partnership with the Central South Consortium to address the recommendations contained in the report.
“The progress made by the school will be closely monitored by local authority officers and the school’s allocated Challenge Advisor, working with the governing body and staff.”