Ysgol Clywedog Comes Out Of Special Measures

Ysgol Clywedog has been taken out of special measures by the Schools Inspectorate Estyn.

The High School, which is located on Ruthin Road was put into special measures following an inspection back in 2013. However Estyn, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate for Education and Training in Wales have noted in a recent follow up report that the school ‘is judged to have made sufficient progress in relation to the recommendations following the core inspection in January 2013.

“As a result er Majesty’s Inspectorate for Education and Training in Wales is removing the school from the list of schools requiring special measures.”

The Inspectors go onto comment on the ‘marked improvement in the quality of teaching at the school’.

Estyn continues onto note: “Since the last inspection the school’s performance in the level 2 threshold including English and mathematics has improved significantly and it is now closer to the performance of similar schools.

“The school has established an effective and comprehensive system to track the progress of pupils. Teachers record pupils’ attainment regularly and this allows leaders at all levels to monitor closely pupils’ progress against their targets. Any pupil underperformance is readily identified and there are appropriate follow-up activities to act on the information gained.

“The school has also developed worthwhile planned opportunities for pupils to develop their extended writing skills in most subjects. This is beginning to have a positive impact upon the quality of pupils’ work. The school has also made strong progress in addressing the recommendation that the curriculum at key stage 4 enables pupils to follow appropriate courses that match their ability and it now offers a wide range of appropriate options at this stage.”

Attendance rates at the school have also improved and the number of fixed term exclusions has fallen significantly since the 2013 inspection and has been below the national average in each of the last two years.

Speaking about the announcement Cllr Michael Williams, Lead Member for children’s Services and Education, said: “We are delighted that the efforts and hard work of the headteacher, pupils, staff and governors at Ysgol, Clywedog has been recognised by Estyn, which has now removed the school from special measures.”

Cllr Mark Pritchard, Council Leader, added: “This is excellent news and I would like to thank everyone involved in ensuring this very successful outcome. I wish them well for the future and I am sure they will continue to improve into the future.”