Secondary

Early Insights 2024-2025

Teaching and learning

Many secondary schools provide positive and supportive learning environments with constructive teacher-pupil relationships and, while there are strengths in teaching, in too many cases there are important shortcomings in its quality and impact on learning, and in the provision for the progressive development of pupils’ skills.

What’s going well

In many schools, teachers maintain constructive working relationships with pupils, manage behaviour well and create positive and supportive learning environments.

In a minority of cases, teachers plan lessons that secure strong progress in pupils’ subject knowledge and understanding; in the few best cases, teaching captures pupils’ imagination and encourages them to think for themselves and develop independence.

In a minority of schools, there is suitable planning for the progressive development of pupils’ literacy, numeracy and digital skills; in these schools, teachers exploit opportunities to develop pupils’ skills along with their curricular subject knowledge and understanding.

In a few strong schools, there is an established and ambitious culture of reading; this has resulted in pupils developing strong reading habits.

Many pupils make at least suitable progress in basic numeracy skills in their mathematics lessons.

The majority of pupils display positive attitudes towards learning Welsh, despite shortcomings in provision.

Many schools have experimented with their planning for their Curriculum for Wales for Years 7-9; in the most effective cases, schools keep a consistent focus on developing pupils’ subject knowledge whilst exploiting beneficial cross-curricular links and planning engaging learning experiences.

The few best schools maintain a continuous focus on improving the quality of teaching alongside developing the curriculum and this has resulted in pupils making strong progress in subject skills and in a broad range of other competencies.

In many cases, pupils in sixth forms make strong progress in their ability to understand complex ideas. They are generally positive about their subjects and often play valuable leadership roles.

What needs to improve

In a few schools, teachers struggle with the poor behaviour of a small number of pupils, and this has an impact on pupils’ learning across the school.

In two-thirds of schools, there are shortcomings in aspects of teaching in at least a minority of lessons, in particular poor planning for learning; this includes a lack of consideration around what pupils should learn, setting low challenge tasks and having too low expectations of what pupils can achieve.

Planning for the progressive development of pupils’ literacy, numeracy and digital skills remains underdeveloped in the majority of schools; this is especially the case in terms of developing pupils’ advanced reading skills and in developing a reading culture. This lack of skills limits pupils’ ability to develop their broader curricular knowledge and understanding.

Too often in mathematics lessons, teachers do not teach the understanding of mathematical concepts securely enough; they teach procedural shortcuts rather than helping pupils understand these concepts and make connections between topics.

Teaching and provision for Welsh in the majority of English-medium schools is not strong enough; lessons are not planned carefully enough or are not challenging enough to enable pupils to make strong progress, or there are too few opportunities for pupils to hear and use the Welsh language outside of lessons.

In some cases, there are shortcomings in the breadth of learning or in the sequencing of subject knowledge and skills due to changes in curriculum planning; this is particularly true regarding humanities subjects.

There are too few opportunities for pupils in Key Stage 4 and in the sixth form to discuss important aspects of personal and social education.

In a few cases, pupils do not make enough progress in their studies. They do not make the best of wider opportunities offered by the school.

Well-being, care, support and guidance

Most schools continue to prioritise pupil well-being and provide strong care, support and guidance. Although strategies to improve pupils’ attendance are beginning to have a positive impact, low attendance rates remain a significant concern in many schools across Wales, in particular the attendance of pupils eligible for free school meals.

What’s going well

Most schools place strong importance on securing high levels of pupil well-being and safeguarding.

In many cases, schools offer pupils suitable opportunities to develop their personal and social skills, together with an understanding of how to stay healthy.

There are secure and effective systems to support pupils’ social, emotional and behavioural challenges in many schools; in the most effective schools, there is a high degree of consistency in how staff deal with poor behaviour and attitudes.

Many pupils have positive attitudes to learning and school.

Most schools communicate the importance of good attendance, and many schools employ a range of helpful strategies to improve pupils’ attendance; in a few schools, a well-considered strategic approach has led to a substantial increase in their attendance rates and a reduction in the number of pupils who miss school regularly.

Provision for pupils with additional learning needs is a strength in the majority of schools; generally, school-based specialist provisions provide good quality support for pupils with complex needs.

What needs to improve

In a few cases, pupils exhibit poor behaviour and attitudes to learning and disrupt learning.

Attendance remains substantially lower than it was before the pandemic; the low attendance of pupils eligible for free school meals is concerning.

The rate of persistent absence among secondary school pupils is still too high.

In a majority of cases, leaders do not analyse attendance data carefully or regularly enough and strategies to deal with poor attendance are too reactive.

In a minority of cases, pupils with additional learning needs do not make enough progress. Often this is because of a lack of expectations or poor communication from leaders around how to support these pupils and a lack of professional learning.

Leading and improving

In most schools, leadership is having a positive impact on the provision for care, support and guidance. However, leaders’ impact on the quality of teaching, the provision for developing pupils’ skills and securing whole-school improvements is insufficient in the majority of schools.

What’s going well

Generally, leaders are working hard to balance strategic improvements against operational challenges and a backdrop of ongoing reform.

In nearly all schools, leaders place a high priority on safeguarding their pupils.

In most cases, the leadership of well-being, care, support and guidance is strong.

Because of a continued focus on promoting the importance of attendance, there are modest improvements in attendance across many schools; in the few more successful schools, leaders’ strong strategic approach to promoting good attendance is effective in securing good improvements.

In the few very best schools, leaders’ continuous focus on ensuring high quality teaching and assessment has resulted in many pupils making strong progress in learning over time; leaders ensure that professional learning is closely aligned to any areas of practice requiring improvement.

In many schools, leaders are taking suitable actions to reduce barriers to learning for pupils impacted by poverty.

In the majority of schools, leadership of additional learning needs is effective and staff receive useful guidance to support their pupils’ needs.

In a few effective schools, leaders evaluate a range of first-hand evidence very carefully and use their findings to plan for specific improvements.

In the majority of cases, governing bodies discharge their responsibilities suitably and have a reasonable understanding of the school’s work.

What needs to improve

Leadership has not led to a strong enough increase in the rates of attendance of secondary school pupils, and particularly that of pupils from low-income households.

In two-thirds of schools, leadership is not effective enough in ensuring consistent good-quality teaching.

In the majority of schools, leadership of provision for pupils’ literacy, numeracy and digital skills across the curriculum remains underdeveloped; this has been the case for many years.

There is an ambiguity around responsibilities and a lack of clear accountability regarding leadership roles in around half of schools.

Leaders’ ability to evaluate the impact of their work and to plan for improvements remains insufficient in many schools; overall, there is an over-emphasis on compliance and not enough consideration of the impact of leaders’ work on pupils’ standards and well-being.

In too many cases, leaders are employing ineffective approaches to developing their curriculum; planning provision around the four purposes and increasing lessons that encompass broad areas of learning at the expense of developing strong subject knowledge is having a negative impact on pupils’ progress in subject skills.

In a minority of schools, professional learning lacks a strategic focus, and leaders do not evaluate the impact of it on pupil standards, provision and leadership.

Many schools are facing budgetary difficulties; in a few cases, this is due to poor financial management and a lack of oversight from governors.

Overview of recommendations from inspections

In total, 30 providers were inspected in the 2024-2025 academic year, of which 13 were placed in a follow-up category. We gave a total of 109 recommendations:

A total of 25 providers (83%) were given at least one recommendation related to teaching and learning, of which 20 were recommended to improve provision for skill development, including Welsh, literacy, numeracy, and digital skills.

A total of 20 providers (67%) were given at least one recommendation related to well-being, care, support and guidance, most often to improve attendance.

At total of 24 providers (80%) were given at least one recommendation related to leading and improving, most often related to strengthening leadership and self-evaluation processes.

Effective practice identified during inspection

Fitzalan High School

Inspection report: Fitzalan High School

Read about how Fitzalan High School has worked to develop a strong reading culture.

Ysgol Penweddig

Inspection report: Ysgol Penweddig

Read about how Ysgol Penweddig has set about improving attendance.

Pencoed Comprehensive School

Inspection report: Pencoed Comprehensive School

Read about Pencoed Comprehensive School and how they’ve developed a culture of professional learning.