Cloughmills Primary School

Overview

The inspection was conducted during industrial action, with teaching staff refusing to cooperate with inspectors. Consequently, the Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) was “unable to assure... of the quality of education being provided for the children.” The report states that “no performance level available” for outcomes, provision, or leadership, and the school is designated a “high priority for future inspection with no further notice.”

Strengths

• The school participates in a “shared education partnership” with a local maintained primary school.
• Safeguarding arrangements “reflect broadly the guidance from the Department of Education.”
• Year 6 children met by inspectors “reported that they feel safe in school.”
• The principal cooperated with the inspection team regarding safeguarding responsibilities.

Areas to improve

• The report identifies no specific pedagogical or leadership improvements as these areas could not be evaluated.
• The employing authority, governors, and staff must “plan for, and manage, issues related to the sustainability of the school provision and school budget.”

Safeguarding

The report states that safeguarding arrangements “reflect broadly the guidance from the Department of Education,” though the ETI was “unable to evaluate fully the outworking of the arrangements” due to the industrial action.