Ysgol Bro Tawe

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Pupils' well-being is at the heart of Ysgol Bro Tawe and staff work hard to make sure the school is a thoughtful and inclusive environment.

This togetherness is demonstrated by the positive working relationships between staff and pupils. Teachers generally think carefully about how pupils learn best and use a range of appropriate methods to engage them successfully in their learning. All staff develop their professional skills and knowledge together well, and this enables them to adjust provision to meet the needs of individual pupils.

The standard of care, support and guidance provided across the school community is strong and underpins the school's vision, 'learning to live, living to learn'. Pupils enjoy attending schoo...l. They are eager to talk to adults and speak confidently about how proud they are of their school.

Pupils feel safe and well cared for, and they trust that adults will always support them through difficult times. As they move through the school, most pupils make good or better progress from their individual starting points and use their knowledge and skills effectively in their work across the curriculum. The school genuinely values the pupils' opinions.

They have suitable opportunities to influence the work of the school and are delighted to work alongside school leaders to bring about change. Across the school, pupils develop positive attitudes to reading and writing and enjoy many opportunities to be physically active. They use digital tools well to support their learning and develop their Welsh language skills highly effectively.

Teachers engage with their pupils to plan learning experiences that capture their interests, such as staying healthy and in the world of work. Pupils' number skills develop well across the school. However, opportunities for pupils to learn other aspects of mathematics, such as shape, area and time, in more depth, are less well developed.

When given the opportunities, pupils are keen to do well and to take on new challenges. However, too often work to extend and challenge pupils during lessons is underdeveloped. The headteacher shows strong, compassionate leadership.

Along with the support of school leaders and governors, she has developed an enthusiastic team of professionals, who have a robust understanding of the needs of the pupils and the local community. Partnerships with parents are strong and the school has earned their confidence. These partnerships prove particularly beneficial when leaders and staff are deciding the right approaches to adopt so that their pupils can flourish.

Leaders and staff are well on their way to implementing a curriculum that is authentic and reflects the needs of the community. School leaders and governors keep the work of the school under close review and there are good arrangements for monitoring the quality of ongoing school improvements. Recommendations R1 Ensure that all pupils are suitably challenged to extend their learning within lessons R2 Ensure that the mathematics curriculum is broad and balanced What happens next The school will draw up an action plan to address the recommendations from the inspection.