A friendly and warm ethos is a strong feature of Ysgol Ysbyty Ifan, where pupils, staff and parents take pride in the school’s homely environment. Pupils’ respect for each other and visitors is obvious. They play happily with each other and staff encourage them to be polite and friendly. As a result, nearly all pupils behave very well. Leaders identify some of the school’s strengths and are aware of the improvement priorities. However, they are not successful enough in addressing fundamental weaknesses in the quality of provision and pupils’ outcomes. For example, the quality of teaching is not robust enough at the school and leaders do not address these weaknesses effectively enough. In general, staff know the pupils and their families well and ensure that nearly all pupils feel that they belong to the school. However, teachers do not plan strategically enough to build adequately on pupils’ knowledge and understanding and do not provide learning activities that are challenging enough for them across all areas of learning. As a result, most pupils make limited progress in their skills from their starting points, particularly their basic skills. The governing body supports the school and knows its community well. Members are beginning to identify strengths and areas for improvement, but there are obvious gaps in their knowledge regarding the quality of teaching and learning. They do not challenge leaders effectively enough and hold them to account as a critical friend. In addition, the safeguarding policy and training arrangements are not robust enough. The headteacher has created a clear vision to promote a caring community that prioritises respect, Welshness and local pride. The school has a strong relationship with parents and includes them in events and shares information effectively. Strong links with the local community promote pupils’ pride in their heritage.