4. What action is the Welsh Government taking to raise educational standards in Islwyn? OQ59097

The Curriculum for Wales remains key to raising education standards for all learners. Our school improvement guidance aligns with the principles and practice of the curriculum, setting out a framework for the education system to support schools to provide the best possible learning experiences and outcomes to their learners.

Thank you for that response, Minister. Markham Primary School sits in the constituency of Islwyn, built over 110 years ago in 1913, serving the local community. It's a green but not a leafy suburb. Will you join me in congratulating Markham's headteacher, Mrs Lindsey Pritchard, her staff, governors and pupils for a glowing report from Estyn that extolled praise on the school in its recent inspection report? The school's motto is, aptly, 'Making the Most of Every Day'. Estyn observed Markham primary as a

'nurturing and vibrant place for pupils and staff', which children felt 'proud to be a part of', and 'ambitious' staff help pupils make very good progress in their time at schools, and all classes have 

'a strong focus on developing literacy, numeracy and digital skills'.

Minister, what message, then, can you give to the community of Markham about their proud school? And will you make every endeavour to visit Markham primary during your busy schedule in 2023 to see for yourself how the partnership working of Welsh Government, local education authorities and proactive community schools can transform communities and change the lives and pathways of Welsh children forever? Diolch.

Yes, I'm very happy indeed to extend my congratulations to Mrs Pritchard and the staff and pupils of the school. I thought it was really telling, the phrase that the Member used, I think reflecting what Estyn said, which was the school had a focus on making children feel proud to be a part of it. And the reason that's so important is because it reflects how important the agency of young people is in our schools and in the new curriculum in particular. And what better mark of success of a school than that the pupils who the school is there to support and to serve feel proud of being part of that school community?

I also gather there is a very impressive digital education offer at Markham, including a fully equipped radio station, so I'll be very keen to come along and visit the school at some point later on this year. 

Minister, you've read a lot of reports; I've read a fair number of reports now on education, having had many questions with you over the past few years. Now, statistically, we all know that children growing up in poverty and disadvantaged areas are less likely to do well at school. Research from the Education Policy Institute into the impact of educational inequalities reveals that, sadly, Welsh schools suffer a wide disadvantage gap compared to English schools. They go on to say that progress is narrowing this disadvantage gap, and it has, indeed, been modest over the last 10 years, and that local authorities in Wales need to learn from deprived areas in England with similar demographics, such as Barnsley and Salford, which have managed to achieve smaller disadvantage gaps over time. So, Minister, what action are you taking now to address the disadvantage gap in Wales to raise educational standards for pupils in Islwyn, and, ultimately, throughout Wales? Thanks. 

The report to which she refers in her question is an important contribution to the discussion and to the debate, and it certainly reflected, at least in broad terms, our own understanding of the challenges that we face in parts of the system. She will recall, perhaps, in the many reports that she's read, the speech that I gave to the Bevan Foundation last year and the statement that I made in the Chamber, which outlined a very extensive programme of actions that we are taking to close the attainment gap in Wales. The most recent of those, she may have seen in the press a few weeks ago, was the announcement of our cohort attainment champions, of heads who've shown particular success in their schools in closing the attainment gap and making sure that every single young person in their school has the opportunity to flourish. They are now working with other heads to share that best practice in the way that we just heard earlier is so important. That is one of a range of interventions.

We are also, as she may know, commissioning research into mixed ability teaching, and also what more we can do to encourage teachers to some of those most disadvantaged areas so that we make sure that young people have the support that they need. I am, in fact, planning on making a statement to the Chamber in the coming weeks that will set out in detail progress against the whole range of items that I set out last year, and I'd be very happy to answer any further questions at that point.