Powys council slammed in dreadful education report
Councillors have contacted us overnight following a ‘confidential briefing’ held at County Hall that was hoped to soften the blow, with one telling us the council, and Welsh Government, are “failing our children”.
Powys was criticised across several areas, and “inspectors were of the opinion that the council causes significant concern”.
Senior leaders have responded by saying Powys County Council have pledged to strengthen education services and improve outcomes for the county’s learners following the disappointing inspection by Estyn, Wales’ education and training inspectorate.
Their full reaction is below, but one councillor has broken ranks to say that the Powys response “sugar coats everything”.
They told us: “What was not said anywhere was that rural schools are hopelessly underfunded. No attempt to challenge the Welsh Government funding model that discriminates against rural communities which the Welsh Government is out to destroy.
“There is a line in the report that says officers spend too much time developing paperwork and not enough time delivering support. Bureaucrats being overly bureaucratic? Wow - who knew!
“If you look at Welsh education performance on PISA reports, for the last 25 years Welsh Education has been going down the plug hole. They have failed the children of Wales for a quarter of a Century. How bad does it have to get?”
Here is a glance at the following recommendations to secure necessary improvements:
- Ensure that the local authority addresses urgently important school site security issues
- Strengthen the quality and impact of leadership, including political leadership, at all levels
- Strengthen the quality of support and challenge to schools to improve outcomes for all learners, including those with ALN
- Work with partners to rapidly develop and implement a model for 16-19 education that is financially viable and sustainable, and meets the needs of all learners, and considers Welsh-medium and ALN provision.
Any positives?
In its report, Estyn acknowledged the council’s recent work to strengthen relationships and trust with schools, which has involved engaging with school leaders to consider the barriers preventing them from securing rapid improvements in the quality of the provision for their pupils.
The broad aims and intentions of the council’s 10-year Strategy for Transforming Education in Powys are clear and integrated with the council’s other strategies including the Welsh in Education Strategic Plan (WESP), the inspectorate found. They acknowledged that the WESP has had a positive impact on increasing opportunities for children and young people to access their education through the medium of Welsh.
The inspectorate also found that the council’s early years team have a good oversight and understanding of the non-maintained settings and provide helpful, tailored support, which has had a positive impact on improving the provision and leadership in settings and is valued by staff.
Estyn stated that the council knows the financial position of its schools well and that finance officers provide timely and clear information to education leaders about the financial position of all schools.
What next?
The report and recommendations, which the council has accepted, will form the basis of an action plan to address the key areas requiring improvement.  Estyn will review the council’s progress through a series of monitoring visits.
What has the council leader, Cllr James Gibson-Watt, said?
“I would like to thank the inspectors for their work. We accept their findings and we will act to deliver the change needed to strengthen our education services.
“The report will form the basis of an action plan that we will develop to address the recommendations. We are committed to delivering exceptional education services that support our schools so that they can give our young people the best foundation for their future.
“Despite the need for improvement, Estyn has recognised a number of positive areas such as our work to strengthen relationships and trust with our schools and our Welsh in Education Strategic Plan.
“We will work with Estyn, our schools, and governing bodies to ensure that our action plan focuses on the areas that need improvement. This will ensure that our education services are strengthened and will be better placed to support our schools in delivering excellent education across the county.
“By working with our schools and their governing bodies, I’m confident that we will deliver the necessary improvements and to ensure that we provide the education and opportunities the children and families of Powys deserve and expect.”
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