Secondary

Early Insights 2025-2026

Teaching and learning

Many schools foster positive relationships and a majority provide suitably challenging activities that support pupils to make sound progress and develop positive attitudes to learning. A few effective schools enable pupils to make strong progress. However, there is too much variation in the quality of teaching, curriculum planning and skills development across schools.

What’s going well

In many schools, teachers generally develop positive working relationships with pupils. In the majority of cases, they plan sequences of suitably challenging activities that help pupils to make sound progress. In a few instances, teachers inspire pupils to make strong progress.

Many pupils demonstrate positive attitudes to learning. They listen carefully to their teachers and peers, participate willingly in discussions and maintain their concentration.

In a minority of schools, provision to develop pupils’ skills (especially literacy) is well planned and coordinated.

In English medium schools, many pupils have a positive attitude to learning Welsh and the majority make broadly suitable progress. In Welsh medium schools, pupils have a positive attitude towards the language.

In the majority of schools, leaders have developed a clear vision for their curriculum and plan a variety of engaging learning experiences.

In general, sixth form pupils have positive attitudes to learning, enjoy their courses and develop as confident, independent learners. Many make valuable contributions to wider school life, including through leadership roles and supporting young pupils.

Teaching in sixth forms is often strong and suitably challenging. Many schools provide a broad range of general and vocational courses, although the breadth of provision varies between schools.

What needs to improve

In a minority of cases, shortcomings in teaching restrict pupil progress.

Provision to develop pupils’ skills across the curriculum is not strategically coordinated in the majority of schools. As a result, pupils do not consistently have sufficiently challenging opportunities to apply and develop their skills across subjects.

A minority of pupils are passive in lessons. In a few schools, poor behaviour has a negative impact on progress and well-being.

Overall, pupils spend too much time undertaking basic information retrieval activities and do not have sufficient opportunities to develop advanced reading skills such as inference, synthesis and evaluation.

In English medium schools, pupils are too often over-reliant on teacher support when developing their Welsh skills, especially oracy.

There is too much variation in how well leaders plan a coherent curriculum that supports pupils’ progressive development of knowledge, understanding and skills.

Well-being, care, support and guidance

Most schools prioritise pupils’ well-being, and many have established effective provision to support those pupils most in need. Whilst a minority of schools are having a positive impact on attendance, overall, pupils’ attendance, particularly those eligible for free school meals, remains a notable concern.

What’s going well

Most schools place a strong emphasis on establishing an ethos of inclusion and have established a strong culture of safeguarding.

Pastoral support is an overall strength in many schools, with valuable support provided for those pupils who need it.

Most schools have a strong focus on improving attendance. A minority use effective approaches to support pupils with barriers to regular attendance.

Many schools have sound provision for pupils with ALN.

Many schools provide pupils with suitable opportunities to develop their leadership skills and helpful guidance about their next steps in learning.

What needs to improve

In a few schools, specific safeguarding issues were identified.

In the majority of cases, provision to improve attendance is not effective enough to secure sustained improvements, particularly for pupils eligible for free school meals.

Too often, teachers do not use information provided by the ALN team well enough in their lesson planning.

In a few schools, there are limited opportunities for pupils to develop their leadership skills.

Leading and improving

In the most effective schools, leaders evaluate provision carefully and plan for improvement successfully. However, overall, the impact of leadership on pupil standards and well-being is too variable. Shortcomings in self-evaluation and improvement planning in particular reduce the impact of leadership.

What’s going well

In many schools, the headteacher sets out a clear vision for school improvement that is well understood by staff.

In around half of schools, robust line management arrangements focus clearly on pupil progress and well-being.

In many schools, leaders carry out an appropriate range of self-evaluation activities, but only a few have a precise understanding of the school’s specific strengths and weaknesses.

In around half of schools, middle leaders provide strong leadership.

In the best schools, professional learning focuses closely on the areas for development identified through self-evaluation.

Around half of schools have a strong track record in addressing many national priorities, for example reducing the impact of poverty on pupil attainment.

In many cases, governors are enthusiastic supporters of the school and provide senior leaders with helpful challenge.

What needs to improve

Too often, line management arrangements are not sufficiently robust, leading to inconsistencies in how effectively staff are held to account for carrying out their roles. In a few cases, senior leadership responsibilities are not distributed equitably, which limits leaders’ ability to fulfil their roles effectively.

In general, self-evaluation focuses on whether policies and procedures are in place rather than evaluating their impact on pupils’ learning and well-being. As a result, improvement planning lacks sufficient precision.

Too often, variability in middle leadership reduces the pace of improvement.

In a minority of cases, professional learning has little impact on teaching and learning.

Around half of schools do not have a consistent enough impact on addressing national priorities.

In a few instances, governors do not provide senior leaders with sufficient challenge.

A minority of schools have a deficit budget.

Overview of recommendations from inspections

In total, thirty-three secondary schools were inspected in the academic year 2025-2026, of which thirteen (39%) were placed in statutory follow-up.

All thirty-three schools were given at least one recommendation related to teaching and learning. Twenty-six schools (79%) had a recommendation related to skills provision, and twenty-four (73%) had a recommendation to improve teaching.

Twenty schools (61%) were given at least one recommendation related to well-being, care, support and guidance, with twenty (61%) concerning attendance and six (18%) related to concerns regarding safeguarding.

Thirty schools (91%) had a recommendation related to leading and improving. Most often, this concerned arrangements for self-evaluation and improvement planning.

Effective practice identified during inspection

Heolddu Comprehensive School

Read how Heolddu Comprehensive School improves attendance through a structured whole-school response.

Croesyceiliog School

At Croesyceiliog School staff build respectful relationships to create an effective learning culture.

The Maelor School

Staff at the The Maelor School plan successfully for the progressive development of pupils’ digital skills.

Olchfa School

Read how leaders and staff at Olchfa School develop a sense of belonging within the school and its community.

Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf

Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf provides a range of valuable opportunities for pupils to express their opinions openly and honestly on issues relating to well-being.

Ysgol Gyfun Y Strade

At Ysgol Gyfun Y Strade, purposeful planning and co-ordinating of provision for skills enriches subjects across the curriculum effectively