Cefn Saeson Comprehensive School

Overview

Cefn Saeson Comprehensive School is described as a "caring school" where staff know pupils well and promote a "sound culture of safeguarding." However, the report states the school is "in need of significant improvement" due to low attendance, inconsistent teaching quality, and leadership that lacks sufficient rigour in evaluating its impact.

Strengths

• Staff and pupils share "strong working relationships," with many pupils behaving well and feeling "valued and safe."
• The Secondary Education Nurture Centre provides a "safe, constructive environment" for vulnerable pupils, who "generally attend well."
• In the majority of lessons, teaching enables pupils to make "sound progress" through "helpful, suitably challenging activities."
• Leaders have developed an "ambitious strategy" for the Curriculum for Wales, offering a "broad curriculum" in Years 7 and 8.
• Pupils benefit from a "wide range of extra-curricular opportunities" and Senedd groups that allow them to contribute to school life.

Areas to improve

• Leadership must improve the "rigour and precision of self-evaluation" and the effectiveness of improvement planning.
• The school needs to implement more "strategic" processes to address "notably low" attendance, particularly for vulnerable groups.
• Teaching and assessment require improvement, as current feedback does not provide "sufficient guidance" and some teachers hold "low expectations."

Safeguarding

The report confirms there is a "sound culture of safeguarding" and that leaders have been successful in promoting the well-being of pupils, particularly those who are vulnerable.