Ysgol Bryn Alyn is an English-medium 11 to 16 mixed comprehensive school and is maintained by Wrexham local authority. There are currently 702 learners on roll, which is less than at the time of the last inspection. The school serves several village communities in the north west of Wrexham and is situated in the village of Gwersyllt. Slightly less than 20% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, which is higher than the national average of 17.0%. About 25% of pupils live in the 20% most deprived areas of Wales. Very few pupils receive support to learn English as an additional language and very few pupils come from a minority ethnic background. The school has resourced provision for pupils who have moderate learning difficulties. Currently the school has about 2% of pupils with statements of special educational needs, which is very close to the national average. Only about 1% of pupils speak Welsh fluently. The acting headteacher took up her post in September 2017, but has worked at the school since 2016 as a deputy headteacher. The senior leadership team consists of the acting headteacher, an acting deputy headteacher, two assistant headteachers, two associate assistant headteachers and the business manager. An associate headteacher also works in the school part-time. 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 Ysgol Bryn Alyn December 2017 Summary Ysgol Bryn Alyn has a supportive and caring ethos. Most pupils feel safe at school and many understand how to live healthy lifestyles. The majority of pupils are polite and courteous. However, around half of pupils show little interest in lessons and the behaviour in lessons of a minority disrupts their learning and that of other pupils. Many pupils enter the school with weak literacy and numeracy skills and a majority do not improve those skills well enough. Pupils’ performance at the end of key stage 4 is poor and generally pupils make much less progress from previous key stages than expected. Teaching is not effective and overall staff expectations of what pupils can do are too low. Furthermore, assessment does not improve pupils’ learning sufficiently. Since taking over her present role, the acting headteacher has developed a clear vision for the school. However, over a period of time senior and middle leadership have not been successful in improving the most important areas of the school’s work, such as raising standards, pupils’ behaviour and the quality of teaching. Inspection area Judgement Unsatisfactory and needs urgent improvement Unsatisfactory and needs urgent improvement 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 Leadership and management 2 A report on Ysgol Bryn Alyn December 2017 Recommendations R1 Improve standards at key stage 4 and the progress that pupils make including the development of their skills R2 Improve pupils’ attendance and behaviour R3 Improve the quality of teaching and assessment so that pupils engage fully with their learning R4 Strengthen leadership at all levels including the rigour and accuracy of self-evaluation and the precision of improvement planning R5 Provide robust financial management to eliminate the deficit budget 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 which shows how it is going to address the recommendations. Estyn will monitor the school’s progress on a termly basis.