Further details have been revealed on plans to overhaul how teachers are trained and how schools help each other to improve.
Following a Welsh Government review, in November 2024 BCBC’s Cabinet was presented with a report. There was a recommendation that local authorities take on more responsibility for school improvement.
In the updated report presented to BCBC’s Cabinet this week (pdf), it’s confirmed that a regional element (the current regional consortia) will remain. In November, there were hints that the regional element would be dropped.
Under the proposal, a regional school support service – covering Bridgend, Cardiff, RCT, Merthyr Tydfil and Vale of Glamorgan – will be led by Rhondda Cynon Taf (in the same way as the South Central Consortium currently is).
The regional support service will be responsible for professional learning & development, as well as school curriculum support. The regional body will lead Welsh language training for staff in partnership with the National Centre for Learning Welsh.
School improvement will be more locally focused. A new School Improvement Team for Bridgend will be established. This body will group schools into clusters (i.e. secondary schools with their catchment primary schools) where they help each other improve. At the moment this work is done regionally by the South Central Consortium.
This improvement team will also be responsible for helping schools meet recommendations from the school inspectorate, Estyn – though they can call on support from the regional support service when needed.
The new arrangement will cost BCBC £1.26million – £340,000 less than the council’s current contribution to the South Central Consortium. There will, however, be costs to BCBC related to the downsizing of the regional consortium and there are existing budget pressures relating to school improvement in the county.
