School performance
Please see our Governor's Annual Report to Parents 2025-2026:-
School Self-Evaluation and Improvement
Self-evaluation: how are we doing overall?
Summary from Estyn’s report for parents and carers, May 2026
Pwll C.P. School is a highly inclusive and caring school, where the individual learning and well-being needs of pupils are prioritised fully. Warm relationships permeate the school, helping staff and pupils alike to work and interact in respectful and productive ways. Throughout the school, including the Autism Teaching Facility (ATF), pupils are well-behaved, friendly and engage positively with school life.
Provision for pupils with additional learning needs (ALN) both in the ATF and mainstream classes, is strong. Staff are knowledgeable and well-trained. Purposeful relationships with families and external partners help to ensure a shared understanding of pupils’ additional needs, the support they receive and the progress they make.
Staff know pupils well and use strategies such as questioning and feedback successfully to help pupils to move their learning forward. Over time, most pupils make solid progress from their starting points. The prioritisation of pupils’ language development helps them to develop valuable oracy, reading and writing skills as they move the school. A systematic approach to teaching mathematics supports pupils to make beneficial progress in their skills, knowledge and understanding. Pupils’ handwriting and presentation skills are too variable though and their Welsh language development is slow.
The curriculum is interesting and flexible, and staff make sensible and sensitive adaptations to best match the needs of the pupils in their class. They take good account of pupils’ interests to help make the curriculum engaging and accessible. There is a tendency for teachers to over-direct pupils. This reduces opportunities for pupils to make choices about how to express their learning.
Governors support the school well and are a visible presence. Along with leaders and staff they have a solid, first-hand understanding of the school’s strengths and areas for improvement. Recent improvement work has had a positive impact on pupils’ attendance and reading skills.
How did we do with our improvement priorities last year? (2025/26)
Improve progress in reading in the mainstream P2/3 class
The school established literacy catch-up and more intensive support for pupils who needed it. The outcomes recorded in the plan show that targeted pupils with good attendance made good or better than expected progress, and pupils receiving additional support made good progress. Many pupils read for pleasure, and most made good or better progress in reading and applied their skills across the curriculum.
Raise the level of challenge in mainstream classes
There was strong progress in improving the pace and structure of learning. Lesson introductions became shorter and more purposeful, transitions were sharper, and planning provided appropriate differentiated challenge. Staff observations showed pupil progress and included evidence of the contribution made by adults. However, the plan identifies further work to make open-ended tasks and opportunities to extend the thinking of older and more able pupils more consistent.
Improve attendance
The plan records progress against all of the success criteria for attendance. These included sustained improvement in attendance, reduced persistent absence, regular governor scrutiny and stronger communication with families. Pupils and parents were aware of attendance expectations and incentives, and many pupils reported feeling motivated to attend regularly.
Involve a wider range of stakeholders in self-evaluation
The school established regular school council meetings, clear aims and opportunities for pupils to report to governors. Governors completed planned visit days and used first-hand evidence to discuss school improvement. Pupil and governor feedback informed evaluation and future planning. The school council’s influence on policy and decisions developed, although the plan identifies scope to extend that influence further.
Improve the use of reinforcement strategies in the ATF
The plan records progress against all of the success criteria. Monitoring showed reinforcement being used consistently across settings, and nearly all staff confidently used it to extend pupils’ learning. Planning included regular assessments of pupils’ preferred reinforcers and strategies to improve their use.
Embed the Digital Competency Framework in the ATF
The plan records progress against all of the success criteria. Planning and teaching provided appropriate, differentiated opportunities to develop digital skills, including opportunities to extend learning for pupils who were ready for greater challenge. Staff became more confident in identifying next steps and using a range of tools to support pupils’ development.
What are we working on this year? (2026/27)
Each year, we use our School Development Plan (SDP) to set priorities for improving pupils’ learning and wellbeing. Our priorities are informed by self-evaluation and the findings from our recent inspection.
1. Improve pupils’ Welsh oracy skills
We want pupils to become more confident in understanding and speaking Welsh. This year, we are building regular opportunities to practise Welsh into classroom routines and learning. Staff will use familiar phrases consistently, revisit language so that pupils can remember and apply it, and create opportunities to use Welsh beyond Welsh lessons. We will review pupils’ progress and look for increased confidence and spontaneous use of Welsh around the school.
2. Improve handwriting and presentation, and provide more opportunities for pupils to choose how they express their learning
We want pupils to develop clear, legible handwriting and take pride in the presentation of their work. We also want them to have regular opportunities to choose how they record and communicate their learning. This year, teachers will explicitly teach handwriting and presentation skills, provide opportunities for pupils to organise their work independently, and offer appropriate choices about how learning is expressed. We will also support the development of earlier skills in the younger class.
3. Develop and embed a Functional Communication Pathway across the ATF
Pupils in the ATF use a range of communication methods, including speech, signs, PECS, communication devices, visual supports and gesture. This year, we are developing a shared pathway to help staff identify and teach each pupil’s next important communication skills. This will include communication for a wider range of purposes, such as expressing preferences, asking questions, seeking help and taking part in social interaction. We will review pupils’ progress and how well they use their communication skills with different adults, in different activities and across settings.
4. Develop a proactive whole-school approach to supporting staff experiencing significant challenge
Supporting pupils effectively can place considerable demands on staff. This year, we are developing a clear, proactive approach to supporting staff before, during and after periods of significant challenge. This includes opportunities to debrief, reflect and access professional support, as well as involving staff in relevant planning and reviews. We will evaluate the approach during the year to understand what support is most useful and how it can be sustained.