Brynmawr Foundation School is an 11-16 mixed comprehensive school in Blaenau Gwent local authority. The school became grant maintained in 1992 and assumed foundation status in 1999. There are 699 pupils on roll, compared with 751 pupils at the time of the last inspection in 2013. The school serves Brynmawr and the surrounding area. About 22% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, which is above the Wales average of 16.4% for secondary schools. A very few pupils come from minority ethnic backgrounds and English is spoken as the first language in nearly all pupils’ homes. Nearly 21% of pupils are on the school’s special educational needs register, which is just under the national average of 22.9%. Around 2% of pupils have a statement of special educational needs compared with 2.2% for Wales as a whole. The headteacher took up his post as temporary headteacher in September 2018. He became the substantive headteacher in April 2019. The senior leadership team consists of the headteacher, one deputy headteacher, three assistant headteachers and one business manager. None of the current team was in post at the time of the last inspection. Further information is available from the Welsh Government My Local School website at the link below. http://mylocalschool.wales.gov.uk/Schools/SchoolSearch?lang=en 1 A report on Brynmawr Foundation School October 2019 Summary Since 2018, the headteacher has worked positively with staff and pupils to create stability following a period of uncertainty and change. He has instigated a programme of change across the school that focuses appropriately on strengthening leadership at all levels and developing teaching. Staff are engaging enthusiastically in professional learning. However, these changes have not had a sufficient impact on important areas of the school’s work such as teaching and pupils’ standards. Although pupils make strong progress in a few lessons, in a majority of lessons, many pupils do not make enough progress. The school has a supportive and inclusive ethos. Many pupils are confident in their social interactions. However, many pupils are not suitably resilient or motivated in their lessons, and this hinders their learning. Inspection area Judgement Unsatisfactory and needs urgent improvement Unsatisfactory and needs urgent improvement Unsatisfactory and needs urgent improvement Standards Wellbeing and attitudes to learning Teaching and learning experiences Care, support and guidance Adequate and needs improvement Leadership and management Unsatisfactory and needs urgent improvement 2 A report on Brynmawr Foundation School October 2019 Recommendations R1 Improve pupils’ standards across the school, including their literacy and numeracy skills R2 Improve pupils’ behaviour and their attitudes to learning R3 Improve the effectiveness of teaching to motivate, engage and challenge pupils to make good progress in lessons R4 Strengthen leadership at all levels to improve leaders’ ability to identify areas for development and to plan effectively for improvement What happens next In accordance with the Education Act 2005, HMCI is of the opinion that special measures are required in relation to this school. The school will draw up an action plan to show how it is going to address the recommendations. Estyn will monitor the school’s progress on a termly basis.