TOP MARKS FOR SCHOOL
A CYNON Valley primary school is celebrating a trio of successes which include a glowing inspection report from Estyn.
Blaengwawr Primary School’s staff, pupils and governors have had a fantastic 2017 that saw a report from the education watchdog recognise the “evident features of its excellent practice in teaching”, before it received accolades for its environmental work and another for promoting healthy eating and lifestyles.
Speaking after the inspection outcome, headteacher Imogen Baker said: “We are absolutely delighted that the inspection team confirmed the judgements made by the school and local authority, recognising the excellent progress made by our pupils, the outstanding care provided and the rich quality of experiences provided for our children.”
During the February inspection, the school’s current performance and prospects for improvement were both ranked as “good”, with aspects such as attendance rates and pupils’ literacy, numeracy and ICT skills ranked highly.
That included some “sector leading” practice in the Foundation Phase, and Estyn invited the school to prepare a written case study, describing the “excellent” methods identified during the inspection.
The report also said the school provided a “well-balanced” range of stimulating learning experiences for all pupils.
The provision to promote pupils’ knowledge and respect for the environment was also described as a strength of the school, and that quality was reflected as they recently received the Platinum Eco School Award – one of few schools in Wales to have received it.
A spokeswoman from the Aberaman school, which has pupils age three to eleven, described it as a “fantastic achievement” that recognises the hard work and commitment of both staff and pupils.
She said due to the high quality of care and support for the pupils and the promotion of healthy eating and lifestyles, the school has also recently received the “coveted” National Quality Award from Public Health Wales.
She said only five schools in Rhondda Cynon Taf have ever received this award, and described it as a “real credit”.