Primary
Early Insights 2024-2025
Teaching and learning
Positive relationships and increasingly well-designed learning experiences ensure that a majority of pupils engage confidently and make strong progress in learning. Teachers do not always have high enough expectations for all pupils to ensure that they make the individual progress they should. They do not always enable them to develop as effective independent learners.
What’s going well
- In most schools, staff develop positive working relationships with pupils, helping them to feel valued, respected and listened to.
- A majority of pupils, including those with ALN and those from low-income households, make good or better progress in many aspects of their learning.
- Around half of schools are beginning to review and refine the learning experiences on offer to fully reflect the aims and aspirations of Curriculum for Wales and a few provide meaningful contexts for learning, carefully designed to meet pupils’ needs.
- In many schools, teachers support pupils to improve their work during lessons.
- A few schools provide purposeful opportunities for pupils to discuss and reflect on their progress over time.
What needs to improve
- In a minority of schools, the quality of teaching remains variable as teachers do not have high enough expectations and do not provide pupils with an appropriate level of challenge in learning experiences.
- In a minority of schools teachers’ understanding of how to teach aspects of the curriculum to ensure pupils develop their knowledge and skills is not secure.
- In a few schools, teachers do not support pupils to make consistent progress over time.
- Schools do not consistently support pupils to become effective independent learners.
Well-being, care, support and guidance
Most schools establish inclusive environments where safeguarding and positive relationships help pupils thrive. A minority do not address low levels of attendance effectively.
What’s going well
- Most schools maintain a strong safeguarding culture, creating a safe and supportive environment for staff and pupils.
- Many schools have continued to improve attendance levels to return to or exceed pre-pandemic rates.
- Most schools identify pupils with additional learning needs (ALN) early and many work closely with partner agencies to provide effective support for pupils with ALN.
What needs to improve
- A minority of schools do not address persistent absenteeism, particularly among pupils eligible for free school meals and those with additional learning needs (ALN) effectively.
- A minority of schools do not provide meaningful opportunities for pupils to develop their leadership skills.
Leading and improving
Leaders prioritise community engagement and professional development to support pupils’ well-being, learning and progress. They do not always focus self-evaluation and professional learning sufficiently on improving the quality of teaching.
What’s going well
- Many schools develop leaders at all levels to strengthen the shared responsibility for pupils’ outcomes.
- In a majority of schools, leaders have high expectations for teaching, learning and well-being; in these schools, staff benefit from a collaborative culture of continuous improvement that includes thoughtful professional learning.
- Many schools engage purposefully with families, fostering strong relationships that support pupils’ learning, well-being and attendance.
- Leaders in many schools are committed to tackling the impact of poverty on pupils and align school improvement to community needs.
What needs to improve
- A minority of schools do not focus their school improvement priorities, their evaluation of performance or their professional learning sharply enough on pupils’ learning and progress, or on improving the quality of teaching.
- In a minority of schools, leaders do not measure the impact of grant spending on pupils’ outcomes effectively over time.
- In a minority of schools, governors are supportive but do not focus suitably on strategic development and their direct engagement with teaching and learning remains underdeveloped.
Recommendations
In the 2024-25 academic year, we visited 207 providers in the primary sector. Each provider was given at least 1 recommendation, and in total we provided 445 recommendations to providers.
195 providers (94%) were given a recommendation relating to teaching and learning. Of those, 16 are in a follow up category
- 66 providers (32%) had at least one recommendation about improving the quality of teaching or reducing its variability across the school to ensure pupils make progress
- 59 providers (29%) had a recommendation about ensuring an appropriate level of challenge for pupils’ learning
- 45 providers (22%) had a recommendation relating to independent learning skills
32 providers (16%) were given a recommendation related to well-being, care, support and guidance, of which 7 are in a follow-up category.
- 19 providers (9%) received a recommendation about improving attendance and punctuality
A total of 82 providers (40%) were given a recommendation related to leading and improving, of which 16 are in a follow up category:
- 62 providers (30%) were given a recommendation relating to developing or strengthening self-evaluation and improvement
- 19 providers (9%) were given a recommendation about strengthening leadership
In total, across all three inspection areas, 28 providers were recommended to improve attendance and/punctuality
Effective practice identified during inspection
Teaching and learning
Oakfield Primary School
Inspection report: Oakfield Primary School
Read how Oakfield Primary School in the Vale of Glamorgan developed a creative curriculum through the expressive arts and inquiry-based learning.
Ffynnon Taf Primary School
Inspection report: Ffynnon Taf Primary School
Read how Ffynnon Taf Primary School in Rhondda Cynon Taf developed rich and highly engaging learning opportunities that encourage pupils to apply their skills to new situations with growing independence.
Ysgol Esgob Morgan VCP School
Inspection report: Ysgol Esgob Morgan VCP School
Ysgol Esgob Morgan VCP school in Denbighshire is a good example of a school where pupils develop their cross-curricular skills through authentic learning experiences.
The Gwynedd Immersion Education System
Inspection report: The Gwynedd Immersion Education System
Pupils in The Gwynedd Immersion Education System benefited from highly effective Welsh immersion support.
Well-being, care, support and guidance
Ysgol Gynradd Llanbedrgoch
Inspection report: Ysgol Gynradd Llanbedrgoch
Read how a focus on pupil participation has improved attendance at Ysgol Gynradd Llanbedrgoch on Anglesey.
Leading and Improving
Newton Primary School
Read how leaders at Newton Primary School in Porthcawl planned professional learning to ensure high quality teaching and learning.
Ysgol Gymraeg Rhydaman
Inspection report: Ysgol Gymraeg Rhydaman
Read how Ysgol Gymraeg Rhydaman in Carmarthenshire involve staff and governors effectively in self-evaluation.