Autumn Core Visit 2014
School
Ysgol
Cefn Saeson Comprehensive School
Headteacher
Mr David Cole (Deputy Head Teacher, Senior Assistant Head Teacher,
Assistant Head, Assistant Head Teacher, Chair of Governors)
Advisor’s Name
Mr Rhys Harris (Shadow – Anne Stoker)
Date:
09/12/2014
School Category:
3 B Yellow
Progress Against Main Priorities for the School 2013-2014
ESTYN recommendations
R1 devise and implement further strategies to maximise the potential of all pupils
From the Inspection in 2010 the school feels that they have made significant progress. Groups of pupils are
identified for intervention and support. The progress is tracked and monitored by the SMT. Significant
progress is being made by the identified pupils with good evidence of added value.
There is a robust system in place for school improvement, this feeds into the Self-Evaluation. Individual
Departments feed into the SIP, with Performance Management objectives linked into improvement targets.
The SIP has three year overarching aims based on the recommendations of the Estyn Inspection and Local
Authority targets for improvement. It is linked to outcomes and has measurable targets. The top three
priorities have been identified and are the focus for improvement. Priority One is to improve standards and
outcomes in English at KS4 and at Level 2 Inc. Priority Two is to improve capped points score and move Level
1 to 100%. Priority Three to improve outcomes for specific groups of pupils, i.e. FSM,LAC,MAT.
Whilst good progress is being made this has not fully impacted on pupil outcomes and is still an area for
development.
R2 strengthen the role of all managers in quality assurance and self-evaluation arrangements
Whole school Development and Improvement Plans are well developed and available for all staff. All staff are
involved as part of the whole school cycle of improvement. The Departmental Improvement Plans form an
integral part of the monitoring and evaluation process.
The Departmental and Thematic Reviews ar quality assured by the SMT. This is feedback and any areas for
development included in to practice.
Heads of Departments and the SMT regularly check the monitoring processes to ensure consistency and
accuracy. The annual quality planner highlights the schedule of the monitoring process.
R3 ensure consistency in all aspects of assessment and reporting;
School generated data is analysed to good effect. This is used to inform learner progress and group progress.
It also informs the setting of targets and planning. The data from external examinations is analysed to
inform individual learner achievement, achievements of target groups and cohort achievement. CAT Data is
utilised at both pupil and cohort level.
The SMT use the available data effectively to target and track progress. Most Heads of Department also use
this effectively. All data is made available for staff via the intranet.
The Lisol Pathways system of electronic reporting is used to provide reports for parents. There is a parental
response page in all end of year reports. The assessment and reporting system is discussed with parents. The
school considers this is a strong feature.
R4 improve the standards and provision of Welsh in key stage (KS4)
At KS3 Welsh 2nd Language outcomes have now reached for 87%, this places the school 2 nd in the Family.
At KS4 the results for 2014 Full and Short Course show an improvement in the numbers achieving Grade C or
better 93%.
Pupil entry to the Welsh Short Course has increased, to 39%, which equates to 22% of the cohort achieving
the standard.
The appointment of a fully qualified Welsh teacher has enabled greater consistency of practice and
strengthened the provision.
Bilingualism and the use of everyday Welsh is still an area for further development.
In the lessons observed, pupils were able to build on previous skills. In KS3 progress was at least Good,
Progress at KS4 progress is adequate, but it is improving.
R5 accredit all key skills at the appropriate level in each key stage in support of pupils’ progression
When identified pupils require additional support they are withdrawn from the timetable and given
appropriate, focused teaching in the key learning skills in the Learning Support Unit. Core and “soft” skills are
further developed in a wide range of activities outside the formal curriculum.
The school considers that standards in skills are at least Good, especially in oral communication skills.
Essential Skills are integrated into SoW and emphasized in lessons. All skills are covered in subjects, including
PSE and Careers. All pupils are given the opportunity to achieve the Communication, Application of Number,
ICT and Working with others, Essential Skills Wales qualifications. 90% of pupils achieved the qualification on
the first attempt, this can be difficult with pupils coming in to the Key Stage without them. The impact of the
LNF and the work with the NSP Partner assists the process but has yet to be fully evaluated. The school has
recognised the need to carry out an in depth audit and review of all skills. The further development of skills
remains one of the development priorities.
Recommendations from ACV 2013
To improve Level 2 inc. results to 60%+ in 2013/14 putting the school back into Quartile 1
The school did not reach the target that was set. This was due mainly to the underperformance in English,
with ten pupils not achieving. This brought the final percentage down to 56%.
Level 2 inc pupils were identified and appropriately supported. The change in the emphasis of the GCSE also
impacted on outcomes.
The analysis of the papers identified the lack of factual accuracy as an issue. This information has now been
included in the SIP. The Head of Department has put in place a plan to ensure the intervention is focussed in
the correct areas. When compared to other departments it is not doing as well.
The SLT now monitor progress on a fortnightly basis with half termly meetings with the HoD. This is fed back
into the main SLT meetings.
A target of 65% has been set, which would place the school into Quartile 1. In 2014, the school achieved 56%
placing the school in Quartile 2. The school were targeted by Welsh Government for coaching support from
Educating London which had some impact on pupils targeted to achieve a C grade. However the school
achieved 56% in English due to the performance of 10 pupils (9 boys). Also the change in emphasis in the
new GSCE, which saw a change from narrative to factual writing. The school have reviewed the results and
have scrutinised the papers and the Head of Department has created a plan to ensure an improvement from
last year’s results. The Department have set a target of 65% in English, which would place the school in
Quartile 1.
The Departmental Review was carried out this term, which included lesson observations. These showed that
lessons observed were at least Good.
The Vice chair of Governors has become the link with English and is aiming to be part of future reviews. Also
pupil voice and the opinions of the previous year 11 were sought and fed back to the current year 11.
The Vice Chair of the Governing Body is linked to the subject and reports to the full body. The views of the
Year 11 leavers were sought and this information has been fed back into the planning for this year.
The pupils identified as near misses were identified in the Autumn Term. They then became the focus for
additional support and intervention. The CATs and year 7 reading test scores, were used to identify pupils for
early identification. They are given an estimated minimum/ average grade; pupils know what is expected of
them.
In Maths the picture is more positive. The Maths Department is a strong department. Visits have been
carried out to some of the Family schools to share good practice. The ERW numeracy officer visited the
school and offered support.
The Mathematics Department achieved 66%, which placed them in the 1 st Quartile. They are placed 1st in
their family and as a result of being quartile 1 for the past three years an ERW numeracy officer visited. The
results at KS 4 for 2014 were;
 Level 2+ 63%
 Level 2 88%
 Level 1 98%
Discussion took place to see whether a Leaders of Learners could work with the English Department and the
Literacy Coordinator as an area of support. The school agreed to this support and the Challenge Advisor will
broker the support.
To improve outcomes for pupils at L5+ in KS3 in English, Maths and Science
The data for KS4 is better than that at KS3. The KS3 data places the school mostly into the 4 th Quartile. The
school queried the fact that across Wales KS3 had improved by 9% and they questioned the accuracy of this
data. The school believe that THEIR Teacher Assessment is robust and accurate and that it correlates with
the Test Data. The trends for the school are improving across all areas apart from English. The core subjects
are in Q4 whilst the foundation subjects are showing an improving picture.
The school has identified MAT as a priority and a teacher has been made responsible. The Identification
procedures and from working with Neath College the aim is to create scholarship. The school have been
involved in a school to school e-media project on Dylan Thomas “A Child’s Christmas in Neath”.MAT pupils
in year 7 and 8 were identified and produced work which was exhibited at The Gwyn Hall in December.
To narrow the gap in performance between FSM and Non-FSM pupils
The PDG grant has been drawn up and is published on the school website. The grant is spent on intervention
and support strategies across the school that target FSM pupils specifically in Literacy, Numeracy and
tackling deprivation. There is specific support in English and Maths.
The pilot project last year was targeted at Year 7 families, with a range of activities and events to improve
and foster increased engagement. At Level 2 incl and Level 2 the gap is closing and the projected data
shows that the gap will close at end of year. Pupils are clearly identified and all Teachers are aware of target
pupils.
The FSM pupils enter KS3 with low baseline of skills. The time is spent particularly at KS4 catching up with
key skills, this does impact on key stage performance. Governors are fully engaged in the process and have
attended training on data; this has enabled them to challenge the school on performance.
Estyn questionnaires are used with pupils’ issues identified and followed up. Governors work closely with
families of children entering the school in year 7. The feedback to the Chair of Governors has been very
positive.
The school is very positive about the increased attendance. The 2014 target was 94.4% and the target for
2015 is 95% . The school is on track to attain this. There are strong links between the EWO and parents, with
good lines of communication. There is a programme of first day responses in line with the attendance plan.
If attendance drops there iface-to-face interview highlighting the importance of pupils being in school.
Exclusion rate is dropping – ER (Exclusion room) is utilised to reduce incidents and prevent escalation into
exclusion.
Nurture group is in place within the ALN department (was VI resource room). Every child is mentored by their
form tutor and a peer support group has been created to support reading and numeracy.
To continue to upgrade tracking systems from KS2 to KS4 to enable all pupils to reach their potential by
continually assessing of their performance
Historically, the Staff were using current performance data which was difficult to use to predict KS4 results.
As a result, SLT have devised a new system, which is being rolled out from Year 11 down. Using FT data, the
pupils are given predicted targets. These are shared with pupils by the subject teachers which is far more
holistic. There is a monitoring focus group (carry cards) which allows the teachers to let pupils know if they
are on track. At present the feeling is very positive regarding the new system.
Set up meaningful transition processes between KS2 and KS3
The school believe there is good transition between primaries to ensure that pupils come to the school and
making sure they are prepared for KS3. A good example was a school refuser at end of KS2 was brought in
early with a home tutor, attendance now is good and also involved in FSM pilot.
The Literacy project for boys reading and writing with primaries also included Cwrt Sart cluster. Pupil
response to transition is positive pupils fully equipped. The cluster Primary schools were involved in musical
performance – ‘Hairspray’ and the Holocaust evening. Open evening for year 5 and 6 not just year 6 included
treasure hunt for pupils to find different departments with parents
Numbers predicted 141 coming in 117 signed up, losing them to Dwr Y Felin. School focusing on what they
are good at pastoral, results, benchmarking and end of key stage performance. Pupil numbers are at a
critical level, with staffing currently being supported by Hillside funding.
To ensure attendance remains a priority and remains above family mean.
See above 2014 94.4% target for 2015 95% on track since September. This has placed the school as te
highest performing school in the Local Authority. The school is in Quartile 1.
Recommendations from Work Scrutiny 2014
Allow Literacy and Numeracy Leaders to monitor implementation of LNF. Is provision in subjects
appropriate?
The joint working with the NSP has not been as good as school would like. As a cluster they have 1 SEG plan
which has Literacy and Numeracy targets. The Literacy and Numeracy Co-ordinators work with each
department on how they can develop and integrate the aspects of the LNF and impact on results.
There has been a focus on reporting – WG guidance put recording and reporting as a focus in 2015. The
school has looked at what other schools in LA are doing, working with LA (Jayne Thomas) to try and utilise
the SIMS system. SIMS releasing LNF recording and reporting in Spring Term, school will be part of a pilot,
the system will auto generate reports.
Subjects are aware of strands they are going to deliver which are most suitable for the subjects. Each subject
has a link English and maths teacher and will make judgement for reporting. On target for the summer if
SIMS isn’t ready they will have a back up plan.
There is a PLC across the cluster creating toolkits for English and Maths, along with booklets of
standardisation.
Head of Department meeting led by Head of English e.g. follow up marking, sharing practice, highlighting
good practice and areas for further development. Science identified as best practice following Estyn report.
Follow up by pupils needs to be subject specific, this has been agreed and reviewed.
Continue to address the issues with consistency particularly with regard to IEPs, differentiation and
portfolios of evidence
ALNCO writes all the IEPs, meets with pupil’s ½ termly to up date IEPs. Meeting with ALN department
developed online form for individual departments to use in setting targets to improve outcomes in the
subject. Targets put on pupil’s planner. Differentiation in year groups set so the range in ability within a class
is cut down. This is a focus in observations by SLT.
Training is required on formative and summative comments
Training has been given to all staff. Work scrutiny is being carried out with books being monitored for
consistency of approach. Feedback is given where appropriate.
Training is required to support the development of an in-house approach to reading across the curriculum
The training has been delivered in school and the impact is being monitored. The focus in school in English
lessons is on factual reading and writing
Actions To Improve pupil Outcomes after Analysis of Data 2014
To improve the standards in English at KS4 from 56% (Q4) to 66% which would move the
school into the upper quartiles
The school will:
 Use the comprehensive data and tracking available to identify near miss pupils for
additional support
 Using assessment tracking systems to plan differentiated activities
 LoL to support the English Department
 Show an improvement in data in line or above the family average in 2015
Prioritise Literacy and Numeracy at both Key stages and improve measurable outcomes at all
levels
The school will:
 Use the comprehensive data and tracking available to identify near miss pupils for
additional support
 Using assessment tracking systems to plan differentiated activities
 Target groups identified and effectiveness of intervention evaluated.
 Show an improvement in data in line or above the family average in 2015
Enhance MAT programmes at KS3 and KS4
The school will:
 Develop the role of the MAT Coordinator
 Use the comprehensive data and tracking available to identify MAT pupils
 Using assessment tracking systems to plan differentiated activities
 Target groups identified and effectiveness of intervention evaluated.
 Show an improvement in data in line or above the family average in 2015
To increase the number of A* - A grades
The school will:
 Use the comprehensive data and tracking available to identify near miss pupils for
additional support
 Using assessment tracking systems to plan differentiated activities
Show an improvement in data in line or above the family average in 2015
By
Challenge Adviser to review
progress in February 2015
July 2015
Challenge Adviser to review
progress in February 2015
July 2015
Challenge Adviser to review
progress in February 2015
July 2015
Challenge Adviser to review
progress in February 2015
July 2015
Rationale and Agreement on the School’s Provisional Support Category
School leaders have a good understanding of the school’s strengths and areas for development. There is beginning to be impact
on some areas. The self-evaluation process involves all Departments and does focus on outcomes. Policies and initiatives to
meet local and national priorities are in place but some are at an early stage of development. The Governing Body use data and
performance information to monitor and challenge the performance of the school.
Leaders across the school generally use data well to set challenging targets at individual, group and cohort level. Most staff
have clear defined roles and responsibilities for the quality of teaching and learning. Most teaching staff have a clear
understanding of what is needed for good teaching, learning and feedback to pupils. There is correlation between teacher
assessment and national testing.
The judgement that best reflects the current position of the school is B Yellow. All agreed on this judgement.
Key Strengths and Practices
Required to be Shared
Areas of Improvement
School’s use of Hwb+ recognised by WG digital leaders – case
studies
Improve the standards in KS3 in most subjects.
Attendance procedures at the school
Raise the standards in English at both KS3 and KS4
To improve the schools L2 inc which will place the school in
Quartile 1
Menu of School Support for 2014-2015
(Yellow Category Schools = 12 days)

Autumn Core Visit & Performance Management.
1 day

LoL to support the Literacy Coordinator to improve the levels of Writing.
2 days

LoL to support the English Department to improve the levels at KS3 and KS4.
2 days

TDO or LoL to work with the Numeracy Coordinator in supporting the maths department.
2 days

School to school transformation to raise standards in Science.
2 days

2nd Core visit (Spring/Summer Term 2015)
2 days

Additional support to be arranged by agreement.
1 day