Ysgol Cefn Meiriadog is in the village of Cefn Meiriadog, near St. Asaph in Denbighshire. There are 66 pupils on roll, aged from 3 to 11 years, including six part-time nursery pupils. There are three mixed-age classes in the school. English is the predominant language for nearly all pupils. A very few pupils come from minority ethnic backgrounds. A very few pupils speak Welsh at home. The three-year average of pupils eligible for free school meals is around 13%, which is lower than the Wales average of 18%. The school identifies around 18% of pupils as having special educational needs, which is lower than the national average of 21%. Following a period of change in leadership and staffing, the present headteacher took up her post as headteacher in January 2020. During the inspection, one class was taught by a temporary teacher. The school’s previous inspection was in October 2013. 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 Cefn Meiriadog January 2020 Summary Pupils’ wellbeing is at the heart of Ysgol Cefn Meiriadog’s work. Staff place a strong emphasis on creating an inclusive community in a happy environment. They enjoy positive working relationships with pupils, ensuring that they feel cared for and valued. As a result, pupils enjoy coming to school, behave well and have positive attitudes to learning. Most pupils make suitable progress in the development of many of their skills as they move through the school. Many teachers prepare an interesting range of activities that engage pupils’ interest and build well on pupils’ prior learning. However, they do not plan and deliver activities that consistently challenge pupils at a high enough level or develop their writing skills well enough. Teachers in key stage 2 do not provide sufficient opportunities for pupils to apply their numeracy, information and communication technology (ICT) and Welsh oral skills in a broad enough range of tasks across the curriculum. Leaders identify the school’s strengths well and, on the whole, areas for improvement. However, monitoring processes and improvement plans are not always robust enough to identify and address important areas for improvement. The newly appointed headteacher is a highly motivated leader and, during the very short time she has been in post, she has been very effective in identifying key areas for development. All staff show commitment to promoting improvements in the school that benefit pupils. Inspection area Judgement Standards Adequate and needs improvement Wellbeing and attitudes to learning Good Teaching and learning experiences Adequate and needs improvement Care, support and guidance Good Leadership and management Adequate and needs improvement 2 A report on Ysgol Cefn Meiriadog January 2020 Recommendations R1 Ensure stable and effective leadership at all levels to strengthen the school’s capacity for improvement R2 Improve tracking and monitoring processes so that they focus clearly on pupil outcomes R3 Challenge all pupils in key stage 2 to improve and guide their own learning in order to achieve to the best of their ability R4 Improve pupils’ writing R5 Provide regular and purposeful opportunities for pupils in key stage 2 to use their numeracy, ICT and Welsh speaking skills across the curriculum What happens next The school will draw up an action plan to show how it is going to address the recommendations. Estyn will review the school’s progress.