Bryntirion Infants School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Bryntirion Infants school is a warm and caring school. The newly appointed headteacher has in a relatively short period of time developed strong and effective relationships with the pupils, staff, parents, and the wider community. These relationships result in pupils who are happy to attend school and enjoy participating in their learning.

Most pupils' behaviour across the school is good. They are polite and treat adults and each other with respect. During their time at the school, most pupils make appropriate progress in their learning from their starting points including those pupils with additional learning needs (ALN).

They develop their listening and speaking skills well and develop suitable reading and writing skills.... Most pupils develop a sound competency in their mathematical skills. However, they do not always have sufficient opportunities to apply this knowledge to problem-solving activities.

Across the school, the development of pupils' Welsh language skills is a strength. Pupils enjoy learning new vocabulary in their Welsh lessons and many pupils speak Welsh spontaneously in their play and when interacting with their friends. The school has two observation classes for pupils with specific additional learning needs.

In these classes, pupils begin to develop their skills successfully. Well-informed staff identify their next steps for learning and support them effectively to make progress in their development. Leaders and staff are beginning to develop a curriculum that meets the needs of young pupils.

The curriculum offers a suitable range of learning experiences, and visits and visitors to the school provide pupils with authentic and engaging learning opportunities. However, overall, leaders and teachers do not consider well enough how the areas of learning will work together in their thematic planning. In addition, teachers, particularly those of the youngest pupils, have not considered well enough the effectiveness of the learning environment and the valuable role this plays in developing pupils' skills and understanding.

Recommendations R1 Address the well-being issue identified by the team during the inspection relating to the state of repair of the school playground R2 Ensure that activities develop pupils' independent skills successfully R3 Improve the learning environment for younger pupils to ensure that there are greater opportunities for them to develop their skills through play and exploration R4 Develop the school's curriculum to ensure coherence across all areas of learning and experience