A CLAIM in an online BBC news report that an Estyn inspection of Pembrokeshire’s schools found performance in literacy and numeracy is ‘poor’ is WRONG.
The fifteen-page Estyn report into Pembrokeshire County Council’s handling of education in our county does not contain that assertion, The Herald can confirm.
The Estyn report says that Pembrokeshire’s education is IMPROVING but that the rate of improvement is too slow, inconsistently achieved, and there is too much variation in standards in schools.
The report does, however, state that literacy and numeracy was something the County’s schools needed to improve upon.
Estyn has left the local authority with clear recommendations. These include:
• raising standards in literacy numeracy and Welsh second language.
• improving outcomes for learners eligible for free school meals.
• improving teaching and leadership
• evaluating its work and planning for improvement.
The Estyn report states that Pembrokeshire’s education service is causing ‘significant concern’. However, our Friday print edition will contain an interview with both Cabinet Member Guy Woodham and Acting Director of Education Steven Richards-Downes which suggests that concerns are being addressed and that the Council has been repeatedly reassured by Estyn it is on the right track.
There are significant challenges for Pembrokeshire’s schools which should not be downplayed. There is a significant disconnection between the performance of primary schools and secondary schools and a growing feeling that pupils in Key Stage 3 are let down by being in ‘a holding pattern’ between the end of their primary education and the start of their GCSE courses.
Strong progress has been made in child safeguarding and the report recognises a much-improved picture in that respect.
Pupils’ behaviour in ‘a minority of secondary schools is not good enough’, the report’s authors state. They also state that poorly-behaved students are the subject of a disproportionate number of short-term exclusions from school.
Councillor Guy Woodham, the Council’s Cabinet Member for Education and Lifelong Learning, commented: “While there is recognition by Estyn of the progress made since 2012, the pace of change across the local authority has been inconsistent and has not taken place fast enough.
“In going forward it is important that all those involved in education now focus on urgently raising performance outcomes and improving the quality of teaching across all our schools.
“Our ambition remains the same that every learner achieves more than they thought possible.”
Our detailed coverage is in this Friday’s paper
