Item 10 is next, and that's the debate on the Estyn annual report. I call on the Minister for education to move the motion. Jeremy Miles. 

Motion NDM8227 Lesley Griffiths

To propose that the Senedd:

1. Notes the Annual Report for 2021-22 of His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education and Training in Wales that was laid in Table Office on 1 February 2023.

2. Notes the report’s assertion that although many of the issues that arose during the pandemic started to show signs of gradual improvement, challenges remain.

3. Welcomes the report’s conclusion that education and training providers have responded with fortitude to the challenges, placing learners at the heart of their work.

4. Welcomes the report’s findings that all providers have rightly focused on learner and staff well-being, with the strongest providers continuing to have open and honest self-evaluation and an unrelenting focus on teaching and learning.

Motion moved.

Thank you, Llywydd. I’d like to open this debate by thanking Owen Evans, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education and Training in Wales, for his annual report. It’s an independent picture of how providers of education and training are performing and helping our learners to develop. The report provides a valuable source of evidence, helping to steer the development of policy at a national level.

I’d like to begin by welcoming the new approach taken by Estyn for its annual report this year—trying to improve its impact as much as possible by publishing interim messages in September, giving an early snapshot of what works and what needs to be strengthened. The final report was published in January with a series of questions and self-reflection resources, and the chief executive has shared with me that there has been more engagement this year in terms of the findings of the annual report. It’s good to hear that.

It's worth noting that this annual report draws on direct evidence since inspections restarted in the spring term of 2022, which reminds us of the ongoing impact of the pandemic on our learners and the education workforce. We know that the impact of COVID on language and reading is still felt by many learners, and that’s why I have invested in a programme that will support over 2,000 children to improve their language, communication and reading skills. The 10-week programme, led by Bangor University, provides a language and literacy programme that is intensive and interactive, for children aged between seven and 11. We’ve also established and will continue to fund a purpose-built funding programme to support schools as they deal with the ongoing impact of the pandemic. We’re also monitoring the impact of the pandemic on the education and well-being of children and young people over the medium and longer term, and this will ensure that any issues that emerge will be recorded early, and appropriate mitigation steps will be put in place quickly.

I was pleased to read that, despite the challenges from the pandemic, the report recognises that education and training providers have responded with fortitude and institutions brought closer to their learners and the communities they serve. I'm continually grateful, Llywydd, to everyone working in the education sector for all they have done and continue to do to support our learners. I'm pleased to see that providers across sectors have placed a strong emphasis on supporting well-being. As I've previously said, when learners are happy, supported by a secure, contented teaching workforce, they are more likely to be confident and motivated in their learning. It is not surprising that, due to the pandemic, the report highlights that there has been an increasing demand for well-being and mental health support. We recognise this need. 

We published our whole-school approach to mental health and well-being and increased the budget available to help meet the needs of pupils and the school community. We've also allocated additional funding to local authorities, to health boards and to third sector organisations, recognising the importance of the wider public and third sector working in partnership to provide direct support to schools. In 2022-23, we also allocated additional funding to support mental health and well-being in the further education sector. However, there is of course more that we can do. The pandemic has demonstrated why, more than ever, we need our new Curriculum for Wales. The new curriculum has well-being at the heart of what we want for our learners, giving them the tools to be enterprising, to adapt and respond to an ever-changing world. 

The report’s findings helpfully set out areas of curriculum reform that are working well, and some aspects to focus on. These align closely with our understanding of how this significant change programme is moving forward, and how schools and settings should be supported this year and into the next. I have always been clear, Llywydd, that this roll-out will take time. Indeed, it is only from this September that all schools in Wales will be teaching the new curriculum, and only from 2026 that it will extend to all years in all schools. I fully recognise the variability of progress in developing teaching and learning to align with the curriculum for Wales. This is not new or distinct to curriculum reform, but nevertheless, something that we take very seriously system-wide. Indeed, I raised this issue in my curriculum annual report last July.

I am clear that schools should be receiving bespoke support to help them roll out their curriculum. We have also provided resources to support progression and assessment, have continued to bring practitioners together as part of a national network to ensure that teachers’ voices are core to our reforms, and we have published school improvement guidance to underpin the new curriculum.

Llywydd, the report provides a welcome insight into the steady progress and strong commitment across Wales to ALN reform. This is consistent with the feedback from the national ALN implementation lead and steering group. As part of the ALN transformation programme, we have invested in a comprehensive package of awareness-raising activities to support workforce development. This includes a professional learning offer for all teachers to promote person-centred practice and differentiated learning to close learner gaps and respond to the needs of learners.

Lastly, Llywydd, I want to refer to the findings in the report, that children and young people from deprived backgrounds were disproportionately affected by the pandemic. Low levels of attendance in schools and pupil referral units, and among our most disadvantaged learners, was a key concern highlighted within the annual report. This is a huge concern for me. As you know, above all else, our national mission is to improve standards and aspirations for all by tackling the impact of poverty on attainment. The annual report very helpfully highlights key features of the work of providers who have been effective at tackling the impact of poverty and disadvantage on their learners. We need to learn from these providers and share that across the system. The pupil development grant has had a key part to play in supporting this agenda, and we will build upon existing effective practice by ensuring that we target the funding as effectively as possible. Year on year, we have extended the pupil development grant, with funding for 2023-24 now at around £130 million. In addition, community-focused schools are also at the heart of our agenda to tackle the impact of poverty on attainment. Our ambition is for all schools in Wales to be community-focused schools, responding to the needs of their communities, building a strong partnership with families, and collaborating effectively with other services. We have also been increasing the number of family engagement officers employed by schools to focus on improving pupil attendance.

Llywydd, there are many findings within the annual report. I have picked out just a few to begin our debate. I am grateful, once again, to the chief inspector for producing this report. It is only by capturing and sharing such learning, and tackling the issues and challenges, that we will continue to build the best education system for all learners in Wales.

It's a pleasure to take part in this debate tonight on the Estyn annual report 2021-22. I want to start by paying tribute to our dedicated members of staff up and down the country, who work hard, day in day out, to ensure that our learners are given the best opportunities to learn possible. 

This is the first Estyn annual report since the pandemic began that has remained largely unaffected by lockdowns impacting Wales or, indeed, the wider UK. However, it was concerning that there are some identifiable lasting impacts of that time picked up within the report, as 2021-22 was characterised in all sectors with their handling of the ongoing impacts of the pandemic. Some of the negative consequences, such as the damage it did to the literacy and numeracy skills of learners, particularly regarding the oracy skills of younger pupils, as well as their slow rates of improvement since. And let's not forget that we on this side of the Chamber in the Welsh Conservatives called for mask mandates in schools to end sooner, and instead, this Labour Government allowed them to stay in place longer than needed, thus stifling class participation and social development.

When it comes to the new curriculum, the report claims that the majority of providers recognised the importance of adapting and improving their teaching, as well as their curriculum content. However, as I keep hearing myself on a tour of local schools in my constituency, leaders remained concerned about the assessment and progression and what progress through the curriculum should look like. 

It was also found that support received by schools from local authorities and consortia was often too generic, rather than bespoke for each school's needs. The implementation of the CfW was not sector-limited either. In fact, the report distinctly notes that very few primary schools used curriculum guidance confidently, and only half of secondary schools have already begun to introduce the Curriculum for Wales. By pressing for curriculum reform, the Welsh Government have caused schools to prioritise curriculum design over improving the effectiveness of teaching, and have failed to acknowledge sufficiently the significant impact that improving the quality of teaching has on ensuring the progress of pupils. Yet, the Welsh Government have cut the teacher development and support by £2.2 million in real terms in the budget, and that just doesn't add up.

We in the Welsh Conservatives called for the curriculum's roll-out to be delayed so that schools in Wales would have time to focus on recovery from the pandemic and to shore up teacher numbers, rather than having their efforts and focus distracted at such a critical time. Myself and colleagues in the Chamber, on various occasions, have called for a more concrete end goal and for the Ministers to address concerns around assessment and progression, and what progress is meant to look like. It's very clear that we have an issue with too much flexibility and when it comes to the additional learning needs that the Minister mentioned, and the recent reforms, the report noted that the understanding of individual members of staff about their responsibilities in supporting pupils with ALN needs is variable.

We in the Welsh Conservatives acknowledge that a National Association of Head Teachers Cymru report from November 2021 highlighted that 92 per cent of school leaders believed that funding for pupils with special education needs in their schools was insufficient, and that 94 per cent believed that the funding was insufficient to meet the needs of reforms, and so call for funding for pupils with SEN in their schools to be increased. We want the Welsh Government to take steps to ensure that children are identified as having ALN far sooner than they currently are, so that they can join waiting lists quicker, and sooner get the help that they require. It's not rocket science, but it's having a massive effect on ALN and non-ALN learners in classrooms up and down Wales.

As with previous reports, leaders confirmed that they continue to face significant challenges around the recruitment and retention of suitably qualified and experienced staff. This is a Welsh Government staffing crisis that only appears to be getting worse, not better, and something that, once again, we've brought up in this Chamber time and time again. 

There are so many more points of this report that I could go over from the serious issues in Welsh-medium education to the mental health crisis sweeping our schools, but I can see that time is quickly running out. Overall, we have a report that clearly shows that Welsh education has a long way to go to claw back from the damage that the pandemic has caused. However, after 25 years of failure and neglect from this Labour Government propped up by Plaid Cymru, and a budget that cuts education funding in real and cash terms, I do not hold out much hope.

Thank you for the opportunity to contribute to this debate today. Clearly, it aligns with our previous discussion in terms of the Welsh Government's vision for education. I'd like to add my thanks to Owen Evans; I think that the report, certainly, is very comprehensive. I welcome the new format, as mentioned by the Minister, and I think that thematic reports, specifically, give us a clear picture in terms of some of the major challenges that our schools face.

I also think that it contrasts, perhaps, with some of the things that we discussed earlier in terms of there being a positive picture in terms of education in Wales. Because one of the things that you look at in terms of the report is the genuine challenges. Clearly, there are positives in the report, as it offers solutions too and talks about the role of so many partners in terms of the contribution that they can make. But I think one of the questions that remains with me is in terms of the Minister, there are so many challenges posed in this report—it's a very honest report regarding those challenges, which you have previously referred to in terms of the disproportionate impact on children and young people specifically. We were in a challenging situation pre COVID, but this outlines an image that shows clearly those additional challenges that have been created.

Clearly, one of the things that we know is a major challenge for the Government is in terms of budgets. Do you believe that you have the resources to genuinely get to grips with all of the challenges outlined in the report? Clearly, there is funding going into several areas, but in general, there are so many—so many—things that we need to improve here in order to be able to achieve the vision that you mentioned earlier in terms of giving the best possible opportunities to all of our learners. I think that this is a moment for us to reflect here on how we work together and how we ensure that all of these things are going to come together.

Some further reflections. Clearly, we have already discussed one of the themes, namely sexual harassment, but looking again at that section, the fact that half of the pupils—the majority of them girls—have personal experience of sexual harassment; that three quarters of all pupils have seen another pupil suffer sexual harassment—these are frightening statistics in our schools now. And I think that one of the other things that I would like to see is how we are going to ensure that the school environment is safe for every single one of our learners. And it aligns with the work that we're trying to do in terms of ensuring that Wales is a nation that provides equal opportunities for everyone, but it concerns me that this is the learner experience in educational institutions at the moment.

I'd also like to just refer to some of the issues regarding teacher training, which you have specifically referred to, but I think one of the things outlined in the report was in terms of the inconsistencies in the experience of training. I just wanted to know how you think we can tackle that.

You've also referred, as is clearly stated in the report, to the impact of the pandemic in terms of mental health—we've already discussed attendance—and the additional funding that's been allocated to that. But one of the things that schools mentioned is the challenges regarding their current budgets in terms of continuing with some of the additional provision that they've been able to offer. For example, counselling in schools; we know that some schools provide that service, and others are entirely dependent on services outwith schools, such as the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. How are we going to ensure that that experience, regarding access to services, is consistent wherever you may live in Wales? And certainly, there are solutions there regarding attendance and so on, and we need to see where it is possible to get those services in schools and how a school is able to do more than a conventional school in terms of offering that support and that it can make a difference, particularly in those areas where, perhaps, there are social issues that mean that there is a disproportionate impact.

I'd also like to touch on the Welsh language. We've seen specifically in the report the inconsistency with regard to the Welsh language in English-medium schools. There is going to be a great deal of emphasis on the Welsh-medium education Bill certainly in that regard, but do you think that that criticism is fair at the moment? Do you think that sufficient measures are going to be taken via the Welsh-medium education Bill to tackle that? Careers advice is certainly something that I would like to see certainty on and that that should be something that the Government is going to tackle further. 

I know that I'm out of time. That just demonstrates how many important issues are raised in this report, and I hope that we will be able to work together as a Senedd to ensure that we can implement these recommendations and ensure that the Government has the funding too to tackle these issues, because, clearly, there are genuine challenges with regard to education that are outlined here, and it's up to us to get solutions now. 

As a former teacher, lecturer and council cabinet member for education and consortia chair, I have immersed myself for many years in the educational challenges that face our practitioners every day, day in, day out, but never in more challenging economic and social circumstances. Teachers, as well as us, face the deepest UK inequality since records began, as our schools tackle poverty on the ground and its impact on attainment every day. And having once taught across most of the primary and secondary schools of Islwyn, I have also so far this year visited a number of schools, including Newbridge and Islwyn high schools and Markham and Bryn primaries, so that I can understand first hand, on the ground, the situation as it is today.

And Minister, though never more challenging, the dedication and enthusiasm of students, teachers, school staff and governors has been manifest and has shone through in the face of that challenge. Our teachers and governors and school leaders do not need, though, to be beaten by politicians and autocrats, but supported, nurtured and enabled by excellence and structural agencies. And today, as well as real challenge, there is a genuine excitement about education in Wales, at the cusp of a new renaissance in outcomes, led not by old and tired models, but rather the very best practice internationally, praised by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development internationally, alongside New Zealand, Ireland and Estonia. And it's especially uplifting when we stop and consider that, just three years ago, all schools across Wales were being closed in the brunt of the COVID world pandemic.

Islwyn itself is incredibly proud of excellent Estyn reports that have been recently published for Cefn Fforest Primary School, Markham Primary School and Pontllanfraith Primary School. And I note from the annual report that the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continued to be felt throughout the academic year. Islwyn teachers and school leaders are to be commended for the utmost agility and innovative thinking that they have shown during truly extraordinary times. So, thank you. Estyn note that there has been a notable increase, however, in demand for well-being and mental health support. This presents a fundamental challenge to schools, local authorities and the Welsh Government as to how this need will be addressed. It probably needs underscoring and revisiting, as it will inevitably be one of the pandemic's most profound legacies. We owe it to our children to meet those needs. I was also, though, encouraged to read that Estyn comment that the provision for pupils with additional learning needs is a strength in the majority of secondary schools. Our secondary schools are now becoming far more adept at responding to the individual needs of the learner before them, whilst creating an inclusive learning community. That is excellent news, and we should celebrate that.

I sincerely hope that Estyn's commentary around leadership, evaluation of teaching, means that Estyn itself will undertake some developmental work on this, as it is suggestive of a fundamental issue that requires universal understanding of the issues and potential ways forward. It is important to know what 'good' looks like. The Welsh Government needs to ensure that there is a clear communication between teachers, learners and school leaders as to what constitutes effective teaching and learning, and this does continue around assessment, initial teacher training, the new curriculum and ALN reform. It is vital that this work is done in a sensitive and progressive manner. We only have to look at the tragic circumstances of a recent Ofsted inspection in Newbury that saw the very tragic death of headteacher Ruth Perry to know that all involved in making judgments must offer accountable and clear communication to those that they sit in judgment upon.

And I wish to state, finally, that teachers are human beings who have offered their lives, their energy and their careers not just to future generations but to Wales and all of our collective futures. 

The Minister for education now to reply to the debate. 

Thank you, Llywydd, and thank you to everyone for their contributions to this afternoon's debate. It has been an important opportunity for Members to express their views on the annual report. As more than one contributor has said, education in Wales is changing, and we are implementing major changes and reforms in terms of the curriculum and additional learning needs and in other ways too. There are a number of challenges in terms of how we mitigate the impact of deprivation on the attainment of our young people, and more than one contributor has mentioned the importance of that in this afternoon's debate on the annual report. The report demonstrates that we have a great deal to take pride in in the education system. It also highlights the challenges that we have to address.

I agree, Llywydd, that this includes a number of the items that Members have raised today. Gareth Davies spoke about the importance of investing in oracy, and whilst I disagree with him that the solution to that lay simply in a policy approach to masks, and take the view that the challenges are much, much more profound than that, I mentioned in my opening remarks the investment that we are making in oracy and in relation to supporting young people in very innovative ways, but this is a very significant challenge, as he in his comments recognised.

He once again made the call for the curriculum reforms to have been delayed. Having been through a period during COVID when the focus of the entire school system was on more creative approaches to teaching and learning, putting well-being at the very heart of everything the school does, that seemed to me to be fundamentally consistent with the values of the new curriculum, and continuing with the introduction when we did, last September, reflected very much the level of enthusiasm in the school system, which I don't think he reflected in his comments. And if we are looking for evidence of that, when secondary schools were presented with the opportunity of delaying the introduction of the curriculum in secondary schools, almost half of them decided not to do that but to press forward in September of last year. I think that gives us a clear indication of the level of commitment across the system and the appreciation that teachers have of the value of the new curriculum.

A number of Members made very important points about resourcing, and I can confirm in response to Heledd Fychan, whether it's the recruit, recover and raise standards funding or the PDG funding or the investment in mental health and well-being initiatives that both she and Rhianon Passmore rightly identified as being essential, the work that Lynne Neagle and I have done together has meant that there has been a substantial increase in the level of funding available to support the whole-school approach, and that will include the extension of counselling services to meet what is absolutely a recognised and increasing demand in relation to that as well.

Llywydd, as we embark on these reforms, I think it's more important than ever to have an independent inspectorate to examine progress and to share candidly with us strengths and weaknesses in the system and to do so in the way that Rhianon Passmore was reminding us is so important, to do it in a way that is supportive of the profession and learners. So, I would like to thank Estyn and the whole team of inspectors for their ongoing work and their dedication in providing an objective and independent analysis of the performance of the—[Interruption.] Certainly.

I'm grateful for the Minister taking an intervention. We heard from the Member from Islwyn about the tragedy in England, obviously, with the headteacher taking her life. What discussions have you had with the Welsh inspectorate to make sure that there is that pastoral care and that understanding? I appreciate we do have a different system, but there are various pressure points and stress points that obviously put a huge burden on our headteachers and senior management teams and governors. I think it would be, especially in the current climate, good understanding what discussions you as the Minister have had with the inspectorate to understand what measures are put in place.

Well, that's a very important point. It's a part of our ongoing discussions with the inspectorate. He will know that the reforms that the inspectorate have undertaken in Wales have moved away the focus of accountability in schools from that single, summative judgment, which is where, often, some of the tensions have arisen, and we, I think, have seen some of the consequences of that elsewhere. What we know from those discussions is that heads and the inspectorate have been able to have much richer, much more supportive conversations, recognising both the strengths and the areas of challenge for a school, and that, when those reports are issued, they reflect the breadth of that picture rather than focusing on one or two, often, words. And I think that has created, and is beginning to create, a much more constructive culture in our schools, which I know that he would also support. 

I'm pleased that we've been able to increase funding to Estyn to enable the inspectorate to complete the inspection of all schools in the current cycle by July 2024. And in conclusion, Llywydd, as the debate today has reflected, we are all of course aware of the ongoing challenges of the pandemic, and the importance of alleviating the impact of poverty on educational attainment. Just in the way that a number of speakers have said today, it's only by working together at all levels of the education system, and also in this Chamber, that we will succeed in giving the best possible education to every single learner in Wales. 

The proposal is to agree the motion. Does any Member object? [Objection.] There is objection. We will therefore defer voting on the motion until voting time. 

Voting deferred until voting time.