Headteacher:

Mrs. M.C. Werrett

Aberdare Town C/W Primary School

Wind Street

Aberdare

CF44 7HF

Tel: 01685 871520

Chair of Governors:

Mrs. J. Close

Aberdare Town C/W Primary School

Wind Street

Aberdare

CF44 7HF

Clerk to the Governing Body:

Mrs. J. Jenkins

Governor Support RCT

Contact details as above

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Chair of Governors Report

Summary Annual Report to Parents 2019

(The full report is published on the School Website and hard copies will be available on request from the school).

This summary report contains information relating to the last academic year, 2018 -2019. The results and data are for July 2019. The report for the current academic year 2019-2020 will be published on the school website in November 2020.

We hope that you find the information in this report useful and informative about the school.

Please do not hesitate to contact the school should you have any queries.

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Membership of the Governing Body

The following people are currently members of the Governing Body.

Name Category of Governor Appointed By

Mrs. J. Close Chair of Governors Governors

Mrs. N. Crowley Vice Chair of Governors Parents

Fr. Robert Davies Ex-Officio

Mr. A. Lewis Foundation Governor Diocese

Mrs. S. Haughty Staff Teaching Staff

Mrs. A. Pittard Teacher Non Teaching Staff

Mrs. M. Morris LEA Committee Members

Mr. P. Green Foundation Governor Diocese

Vacancy Foundation Governor Diocese

Vacancy Foundation Governor Diocese

Mrs. M.C. Werrett Headteacher

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The Finance and Premises CommitteeRoleThe Finance and Premises Committee is responsible for the strategic oversight of:

The management and development of the school buildings and estateFinance, fund raising and the school budgetHealth and safety policy and management

In carrying out this duty we hold regular meetings with the head teacher and other members of staff, carry out regular inspections of the premises and monitor the annual planned maintenance programme and review and monitor the budget and other school funds. We may also from time to time receive and review the reports of various specialist and local authority advisors and assist the head teacher and staff in developing and implementing the appropriate policy and action resulting from them. This is particularly true of health and safety and fire prevention requirements.

Development this year

During the last academic year the school renewed the pathway between the main school block and the upper junior class block (‘top block’). The work was undertaken by Rhondda Cynon Taff and funded from the Diocesan Capital Repairs and Maintenance Programme (CRAMP).

In the half term of February 2020, the school hall and two adjacent classrooms will be decorated, again funded by the Diocesan CRAMP fund. The school are hopeful that the refurbishment of the Foundation Phase toilets will be included in the RCT capital repairs programme for 2020-2021. We will know more about this in the new financial year.

School Improvement PlanEach year as a school we have priorities for improvement. There are national priorities, shared by all schools in Wales, local priorities, shared by authorities/consortia and individual school priorities. The national and local priorities are based on improving standards of literacy and numeracy and reducing the impact of poverty on pupil attainment.

The targets for school improvement for 2018-2019 were:

Target 1 : To develop the principles of Donaldson (‘Successful Futures report) along with the New Curriculum in order to create ambitious, independent and capable learners.

Target 2 : To continue to embed the principles of Foundation Phase Practice, ensuring that all pupils are able to access all aspects of experiential learning in a stimulating and appropriate environment.

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Target 3: To effectively use and embed new assessment procedures and tools across the school to ensure that the needs of each individual are met and that they make appropriate progress from their starting points. To ensure that the needs of MAT learners are fully met.

Target 4: To develop the leadership capacity of teachers, distributing leadership effectively throughout the school. To continue to develop staff professional learning with particular relevance to the new curriculum.

Target 5: To embed ‘Understanding Christianity’ across the school ensuring that teachers are confident in the delivery of this new Diocesan RE resource.

Estyn School Inspection – November 2018The school was inspected by Estyn in November 2018 and we were delighted with the report which can be accessed on the school website or on the Estyn website. The school were inspected for Religious Education and Collective Worship. That report may also be found on the school website.

School Attendance DataIn 2018/2019 there was 95.4% attendance across the school.

Authorised absences : 2.6%

Unauthorised absences : 1.9%

It is the school policy that any holidays taken within school time are deemed as unauthorised absences – this follows current Welsh Government Guidance. There are special circumstance exceptions to this and details may be found on the RCT website. Regular, sustained attendance at school is vital for the development of all pupils.

Parents are regularly informed as to the level of their child’s attendance and the school aims to support parents in improving attendance where appropriate.

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Foundation Phase Outcomes 2019

SCHOOL & NATIONAL

The following table shows the percentage of pupils attaining each outcome. The expected level is Outcome 5. The Foundation Phase Indicator shows the % of pupils attaining Outcome 5 in combination.

Z S G N D W 1 2 3 4 5 6+ 5+

Language, Literacy, and Communication Skills in English (LCE)

School 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 15 48 33 80

National - - - 0.1 0.3 0.7 0.4 0.9 3.1 10.5 50.5 33.5 84.0

Language, Literacy, and Communication Skills in Welsh (LCW)

School 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

National - - - - 0.1 0.1 0.3 0.7 2.2 10.6 52.9 33.2 86.1

Mathematical Development (MDT)

School 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 15 50 33 83

National - - - 0.1 0.3 0.5 0.3 0.6 2.2 9.5 52.6 33.9 86.6

Personal and Social Development, Well-being and Cultural Diversity (PSD)

School 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 8 25 65 90

National - - - 0.1 0.3 0.5 0.3 0.5 1.2 3.8 34.0 59.4 93.4

There were 40 pupils in the group.

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Foundation Phase Outcome IndicatorSchool 80

National 82.6

Summary of National Curriculum Assessment results of pupils in the school (2019) and nationally (2018) at the end of Key Stage 2 as a percentage of those eligible for assessment.

N DNCO

1, 2, & 31 2 3 4 5 6+ 4+

English School 0 0 0 0 0 5 36 56 3 95

National 0.2 0.3 - 0.5 1.2 6.5 45.1 44.2 1.7 91.1

Oracy School 0 0 0 0 0 3 36 51 10 97

National 0.2 0.3 - 0.4 1.1 6.3 45.0 44.6 1.8 91.5

Reading School 0 0 0 0 0 5 33 59 3 95

National 0.2 0.3 - 0.5 1.2 7.0 43.0 45.6 2.0 90.6

Writing School 0 0 0 0 3 5 33 56 3 92

National 0.2 0.3 - 0.5 1.6 10.5 49.5 35.6 1.5 86.7

Cymraeg School 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

National 0.1 0.2 - 0.5 1.7 7.9 49.3 39.0 1.3 89.7

Oracy School 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

National 0.1 0.2 - 0.5 1.5 7.0 48.3 41.1 1.5 90.8

Reading School 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

National 0.1 0.2 - 0.5 1.8 8.6 46.3 40.9 1.6 88.9

Writing School 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

National 0.1 0.2 - 0.6 1.9 12.4 53.3 30.4 1.2 84.9

Mathematics School 0 0 0 0 0 5 36 59 0 95

National 0.2 0.3 - 0.4 1.1 5.9 44.0 45.6 2.2 91.8

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ScienceSchool 0 0 0 0 0 8 36 56 0 92

National 0.2 0.3 - 0.4 1.0 5.7 45.6 46.1 0.4 92.1

The expected level is Level 4. The Core Subject Indicator shows the % of pupils attaining Level 4 in combination.

Core Subject Indicator

School 92

National 89.5

CharitiesThroughout the year we support a variety of charities. The School Senedd are closely involved in the charity work of the school. Lent is a particularly important time for charity fund raising as we undertake four weeks of class ‘Lent Charities.’ During Lent the children prepare their own activities for fund raising and manage the activities themselves where possible. Charities are often selected as they are close to the heart of the school.

Charities supported include the following:

British Legion Poppy Appeal Children in Need

Latch Macmillan

Bobath Cynon Valley Pals

Merthyr Cynon Foodbank Comic Relief

Noah’s Ark Appeal Ty Hafan

Parish LinksOur links with the parish are very important to us. This year we have been unable to visit St. Elvan’s due to the temporary closure for renovation. However, we have still been able to lead services at St. John’s Church, Aberdare and also hold our monthly Eucharist services here at school. We are also regularly invited to attend Worship at St. John Baptist High School.

Father Robert is a regular visitor to school and is always warmly welcomed by pupils and staff. He is also a member of the Governing Body. On occasion we are joined by other visiting priests, such as Father Matthew Gibbon.

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East Window of St. John’s Church, Aberdare

Transfer to Comprehensive SchoolYear 6 transferred to the following Comprehensive Schools in September 2018:

St. John Baptist High School : 35

Aberdare Community School : 2

Promoting Good behaviourWe are very proud of the behaviour of the pupils at school. Our policy is to encourage positive behaviour. Self-discipline and self-control are essential for effective teaching and learning to take place. Effort in school work and behaviour is encouraged and rewarded. Each week we celebrate achievement in our Worship and teachers nominate pupils for merits in recognition of effort. A Headteacher’s award is given to a pupil who has been commended for outstanding effort Class rules are set by the pupils with their teachers and a set of shared rules apply throughout the school. Our School Senedd promote good behaviour strategies in all aspects of school life.

When rules are broken we have a system of sanctions which may be applied. We strive to be fair in our delivery of these sanctions. Parents are informed when sanctions are applied and invited to discuss the matter further with the Headteacher.

Bullying is an issue which no school can ignore and we always investigate any allegation relating to an act of bullying. We have an anti-bullying policy in school, copies of which are available on request. This is also available on the school website. NB: Our updated code of conduct and behaviour policy may be found on the school website. Hard copies may be requested from the school office.

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Friendship Day

Friends’ AssociationThe school have a most active ‘Friends’ Association who work hard throughout the year to raise funds also for the ‘extras’ that school may not be able to purchase. The work of the ‘Friends’ benefits all pupils and they hold fantastic events throughout the year. The ‘Friends’ have raised enough funds for us to resources the school with regard to information technology. We have purchased a whole range of equipment for use across the school Thank you all! The ‘Friends’ also provide us with treats such as Easter eggs for all pupils in the school and an ice cream van in the Summer! We have a relatively new committee of ‘friends’ who are very keen to have new members, so please come along and join in!

Cultural and Sporting ActivitiesThere are a wide range of after school activities offered at school, with clubs altering each term in order that we are able to provide a wealth of opportunity for the children. Clubs are accessible for all pupils at some point during the year. School clubs include sport activities (rugby, football, ball skills); creative activities (art, choir) along with eco – club, cross-stitch, Welsh, coding and film club.

Clubs are a great way for children to further develop certain skills and certain clubs lead to links with other schools. The school choir has formed strong links with the local community and regularly perform in venues other than the school. We are always grateful to parents who volunteer to help with our after school clubs – it is good to have the whole school community involved. Well done to all who participate!

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The school wish to thank parents for their continued support – it is much appreciated.

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