Headteacher/Prifathrawes:

H. HOUSTON-PHILLIPS

I HEAR AND I FORGET, I SEE AND I REMEMBER, I DO AND I UNDERSTAND’ (Confucius 551-479BC)

Dear Parents/ Carers,

Ynystawe Primary School Governors Report to Parents and Carers 2013/2014

Head Teacher’s Introduction

It gives me great pleasure to present this report to you on behalf of the Governing Body of Ynystawe Primary School. Governing Bodies of maintained schools are required to produce an annual report for parents and carers in which their statutory duties must be clearly defined. Yet again, this past year has seen all manner of events, activities and educational experiences for the children, both in and out of school. Various people have visited the school in order to support the children’s learning. Our celebrations linked with the Enterprise groups such as our Victorian Challenge and our entrepreneurial work were particularly memorable, adding an extra special dimension to the life and work of our incredibly busy school. For such a relatively small school it is pleasing to see our sporting and musical and artistic achievements go from strength to strength. It was indeed a wonderful achievement and an honour to be one of only three schools in Wales to be noted for the excellent quality of learning and teaching in our school. Estyn stated

‘The school gives pupils very many engaging, challenging and stimulating learning experiences within a broad and balanced curriculum. ‘Across the school, teachers provide an interdisciplinary, thematic approach to teaching and learning, which develops pupils’ skills, knowledge and understanding very well. The taught curriculum is both creative and inspiring.

Once again, this year we have received an ever increasing number of requests from parents for their son/daughter to attend Ynystawe Primary School. Over 60% of learners who attend Ynystawe are from outside the school designated catchment area, significantly above the Swansea average of 33.4%. At the end of the academic year the school has maintained the high number of learners on roll at 201.

I am delighted to say that the performance achieved by the school, in both academic and extra-curricular fields, was excellent and, in some areas, outstanding. Where improvement was needed we achieved it and where we needed to maintain high performance the school has done that also. I believe that the graphics and commentary within this report clearly show this. In fact, in some areas they understate the achievements by the children purely in the way in which data is necessarily presented.

As a Governing Body we are very aware that pupil’s learning is greatly enhanced by visitors coming into school to share their expertise, and through opportunities to take children out to experiences that the school classroom cannot offer. We are very aware that in these hard economic times these invaluable opportunities cost money. However, we aim to support these events, where possible, from the school’s delegated budget so that they may continue.

As a school we cannot afford to stand still and, consequently, we need to continually maintain and improve the infrastructure of the school. Every year the school receives many visitors to view the impressive outdoor learning environment provided at Ynystawe. We have made every effort to develop and maintain the learning environment and the appearance and safety of the building and, within the funds available, to make the school a more attractive place for our learners. We would like to take the opportunity to thank all the families who have supported tirelessly in this. Indeed, the pupils’ voice within the school is very strong and instrumental in deciding what they would like to see within the school. I am sure that you would agree that they do an excellent job.

As a result of our excellent inspection the school has been asked to submit best practice case studies to Estyn, and to contribute to Professor Graham Donaldson’s independent review of assessment and the national curriculum. It is quite accolade to be asked to help shape the future of Education in Wales and we will continue to put children at the very centre of our recommendations. In addition the school has been approached by Estyn to contribute to a paper celebrating the effective ness of our Creative Arts provision and its impact on our standards.

As prospective new parents consider Ynystawe to be the right school to place their child, it does pose the question ‘Why do so many choose Ynystawe as the place of education for their children?’ My answer to this question would be that your children will enter an environment, both indoors and out, that will bestow on them vast opportunities to develop their talents and fulfil their potential. It is an exciting and fun school which puts children at the heart of everything it does. Whilst ensuring that the basics of good reading, writing and numeracy are focal points within all themes taught in class, children at Ynystawe are guided to become positive, independent learners.

In concluding, I wish to thank all members of the school community at Ynystawe – each of them provides a service that enables the children’s education to be greater than a sum of its parts. I believe that you will find this report informative and agree that the 2013/2014 academic year has been a good year for the school. I would like to thank all staff, both teaching and non- teaching, for their hard and support. The academic year 2014/2015 looks like being another challenging year with: pupil numbers at a maximum; high performances to maintain; and continued pressure on expenditure. However, I am confident that the school is well equipped through its staff, pupils and parents to meet these challenges.

I remain confident that Ynystawe Primary School continues to provide your children with the education, care and opportunities to which they are entitled.

Yours sincerely

Helen Houston-Phillips

Headteacher

“The right to healthy food”