Chirk school placed in special measures

Ysgol y Waun in Chirk was visited by officials from Estyn, the Welsh equivalent of Ofsted, who judged that standards were too low and that the school's performance is unsatisfactory.

No-one from the school was available to comment, but a senior councillor at Wrexham County Borough Council said the issues raised in the report would be addressed as soon as possible.

The school was formed in 2012 following the amalgamation of the former infant and junior schools in Chirk and was visited by inspectors in February.

In her report, Estyn inspection team leader Rebecca Lawton said: "Current standards in the majority of classes do not reflect the outcomes of teacher assessment data, they are much lower. The wide variation in the quality of planning and teaching limits pupils' progress and achievement, especially in Key Stage Two."

She also noted that arrangements to safeguard pupils were "a cause for concern".

The team of inspectors agreed there were unsatisfactory prospects for improvement as planned actions are not monitored and staff are not held accountable for their areas of responsibility.

A series of recommendations were made by the inspectors at the end of the visit, including improving the standards of planning, teaching and pupil behaviour in KS2, raising standards in ICT, numeracy and Welsh across the curriculum and raising standards achieved by more able students.

The report also suggested creating a whole school identity across the two sites, and using self-evaluation to identify the main priorities for improvement.

School staff and governors will now have to draw up an action plan to improve the areas highlighted by the report.

Progress will be monitored on a termly basis by Estyn.

While most areas of the inspection found the school to be unsatisfactory, the inspectors did judge some areas to be adequate, including the range of extra-curricular activities on offer, the school's links with the local community, church and council, and the facilities at both sites of the school.

Councillor Michael Williams, Wrexham Council's lead member for children's services and education, said: "This is very disappointing and we can assure everyone that staff, governors, pupils and parents we will be working closely with the school to ensure the issues raised by Estyn are addressed as soon as possible."