ASCL Cymru position statements

What is the context?
It is accepted that the needs of children entering education are significantly different than pre-pandemic years. School readiness has decreased and is continuing to do so annually (see the 2024 School Readiness Survey, conducted by Savanta on behalf of Kindred).

At all levels of education, schools have seen a regression in skills and an increase in the additional support required to ensure milestones are met.

Currently, our school and local government system does not have consistency in its delivery of support for additional needs. 

The ALNCO role differs within and across local authorities. The ALNCO role is fundamental to the success of the ALN bill and needs the time and status to ensure delivery.

There is an urgent need for increased leadership capacity across our schools to ensure implementation.

ASCL position: ASCL Cymru believes that the ALNCO role needs to be standardised to ensure: 

• QTS with an accredited route to QTS for those in the system without this qualification.
• professional qualification is statutory within two years in post and a robust, statutory annual update training 
• ALNCos are members of the school leadership teams with no additional leadership roles 
• sufficient time and resources are allocated consistently for ALNCOs to complete the role, using a standardised Welsh Government model for calculation.

Quality assured system needs to be established within each local authority to ensure consistency of benchmarks and approach and remove the postcode lottery for children.

Local authorities must:

•  provide the resources or the venue able to meet the ALP, without impeding on the parental right of choice
• ensure children with an LA IDP do not automatically to move to a school-based IDP on transition
• clarify the threshold of complexity where IDPs are decided and looked after by a local authority. 
• be quality assured to ensure the advice and offer is valid and provides parity across Wales
• increase the provision of specialist resources and provisions to meet the increased needs within the system 
• provide funding for ALNCOs directly to schools through the S52

Welsh Government must compel Health to engage.
  
Welsh Government must ensure all aspects of the bill align with the law.

Why are we saying this?
For successful implementation of this bill, appropriately educated and supported school leaders are required to deliver it. Currently too much of this system is the responsibility of schools; the responsibility of Local authorities and health boards must be standardised and monitored.
 

What is the context?
Currently, all-age schools:

• report separately for primary and secondary 
• appoint separately for those primary and secondary trained 
• compare within the family of schools for both primary and secondary
• are funded differently in each local authority, usually as a combined primary figure and a secondary figure
• does not exist staturorily as there is no school grouping for all-age schools 

ASCL position: ASCL Cymru believes that all-age schools should:

• report as a single school 
• be identified as all-age schools within the core data set and be in families with only other all-age schools
• be funded as a single school from 3 to 16

ASCL Cymru believes that:

• specific PGCE qualifications for those wishing to train to teach in an all-age school should be identified
• statutory grouping for all-age schools should be created

Why are we saying this?
All-age provision is becoming an increasing provision for education in Wales and as such should be treated as a single entity, not the joining of different organisations. 

 

What is the context? 
There is no national pay framework that specifically recognises business leadership roles, and as a result there is a disparity in the level of pay and recognition in these roles. 

The situation is exacerbated by the fact that job profiles, used by some local authorities, were created many years ago, and do not always reflect how the responsibilities and accountabilities of these roles and the profession has evolved.

Business leaders are not in the scope of the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Wales Document (STPCWD).

ASCL position: 

• Fully funded, highly trained business leaders should be appointed in each cluster of schools across all local authorities.
• Business leaders should be members of the senior leadership team. 
• ASCL Cymru believes that the status of this should be reflected in their remuneration and be in line with the leadership pay scale.
• ASCL Cymru believes business leaders must be brought into the scope of the STPCWD alongside their leadership colleagues.  
• A Wales-specific suite of qualifications for school business leaders, as per the Institute of School Business Leadership Professional Standards, should be created.
• A national benchmarking tool, using integrated curriculum and financial planning (ICFP) techniques which will help schools to use resources as effectively and efficiently as possible, should be created. 

Why are we saying this? 
We believe that business leaders, who undertake whole-school responsibilities, should be paid to ensure parity to other leadership colleagues holding the same level of responsibility.

Where this isn’t the case, we ask employers to review the remuneration of their business leader to ensure that it truly reflects the seniority of their role and that they are paid in parity with, and receive the same recognition as, senior leadership colleagues who hold the same level of responsibility. Where possible, they should be paid on the leadership pay range. 
 

What is the context?
Welsh Government has proposed the implementations of TIMSS (the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) and PIRLS (the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study), international assessments that monitor trends in student achievement in mathematics, science, and reading. They are conducted every five years by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA). PIRLS is recognised as the global standard for assessing trends in reading.

Our Curriculum for Wales is based on a progression model; it is questionable how these tests sit alongside this model.

There are several potentially harmful unintended consequences that are likely from pursuing the published proposals. These may have a negative impact on the workload and wellbeing of the workforce and may prevent the development of a culture of trust and collaboration required for sustained school improvement. 

The emotional impact taking part in further testing, alongside nation testing for primary-age children has not been considered.

ASCL position: ASCL Cymru believes that for data and information to support a collaborative, sustained school improvement system: 

• Welsh Government needs to consider the role of this further assessment and if they add value to our system 
• Welsh Government needs to consider the role of this further assessment in a progression curriculum, where the individual progression of a child is central 
• Welsh Government should seek to work with teachers and leaders to co-construct how this data should be used including how it should be contextualised, this should also include funding per pupil
• clarity is needed on when and how these tests should be taken and a standardised delivery method identified 
• there is due consideration of use of international testing availability in Welsh Medium 
• if this data is used to create a new data system, it should be fully trialed prior to roll-out across schools nationally and using three years' worth of data 
• how this data will be used by ESTYN should be carefully considered
• a full assessment of workforce workload and wellbeing impact is carried out prior to the implementation of a new data and information system
• any data or information published in the public domain cannot be collated, compared and manipulated by the media or other bodies so that it can become contrived accountability measures.

Why are we saying this?
Accountability measures have a proven record of driving for negative behaviours . The Cabinet Secretary has stated that Wales will not return to high-stakes accountability but wishes to capture data and information that will enable the system to drive improvement together.

The opportunity must be grasped to develop the most effective data and information landscape:

• to support sustained school improvement.
• to support the development of a collaborative culture based upon trust and a collective vision for high quality education for young people in Wales. 

What is the context?
In 2024, the School Readiness Survey, conducted by Savanta on behalf of Kindred, states:

1. Teachers reported a third of all pupils were not ready for school.

2. The main issues impacting school readiness being:

• readiness for statutory attendance 
• toilet training
• ability to dress themselves
• eating and drinking independently
• ability to communicate their needs and use basic language

Due to this, primary school staff lose on average 2.4 hours of teaching time per day, and almost half (49%) reporting the school readiness problem is worse than last year.

Primary school staff remain clear: there will be a long-term impact when children do not meet their initial developmental milestones. When milestones are missed, this gap in learning continues throughout a child's education, reducing their attainment and life chances.

ASCL position: ASCL Cymru believes that:
1. All agencies should work together, and speak with one voice, to promote the need for school readiness and the impact milestone loses creates when school readiness is ignored, including:

• the role of the Health Visitor should be reconsidered to empower parents and children for timely school readiness
• the role of Social Services should be reconsidered to reinforce the importance of school readiness and highlight potential neglect 

2. Greater information for parents should be available on the impact of school readiness on children attainment.

3. The responsibility of parents to ensure school readiness should be communicated widely, reinforced and supported by all agencies.

4. Parental expectations of schools be appropriately challenged to ensure they are measured and proportional.

5. Children, without additional needs, should enter reception when they are school ready: 

• toilet trained 
• able to dress themselves independently
• able to eat and drink independently
• able to communicate their needs and use basic language

Why are we saying this?
It is clear the pandemic has affected education settings in different ways and continues to do so. The skills needed for school readiness have regressed and if not addressed urgently will continue to do so, and children will not meet their developmental milestones.

Primary teachers need to be given the time to teach all pupils and ensure learning loss, particularly in reading, is not compounded as children continue their educational journey.

Missed milestones in early childhood education are compounded throughout a child's learning journey and damage their attainment.

Until this situation is resolved, fully funded, consideration of staff to pupil ratios within foundation learning should be considered by local authorities and appropriate support given.

What is the context?
Our National Mission states:

• Learning for life so that everyone in Wales learns and continues to learn.
• Breaking down barriers so that excellent education opportunities and outcomes can be achieved by all learners.
• A positive education experience for everyone.
• High-quality teaching and leadership, where everyone benefits from the best professional learning.
• Community-based learning, with strong institutions engaging, integrating and being empowered by their communities.
• Cymraeg belongs to us all.

The expectations placed on mainstream schools have changed. They are not empowered by their communities; they mitigate for their reducing service.  

As well as centers for education, schools have also become: 

• coordinators of multi-agency working
• parenting support
• behaviour and learning need specialists: parents and children 
• health providers: given direction from health for health intervention 
• mental health provider: mitigating for waiting lists without finance or expertise
• specialist school and social care providers 
• local authority officers and regional school improvement leads
• food banks
• community policing:directed intervention from the police, returning responsibilities to schools for incidents outside school

ASCL position:  ASCL Cymru believes that the role of schools in our communities should be thoroughly reviewed and either 

• establish a true multi-agency approach to community support, with all agencies taking an equal full, purposeful and active role to empower education

or 

• fully fund schools to deliver these services effectively, with specialist staff who are trained to carry out this role 

Why are we saying this?
Schools want their children to thrive and for too long they have been left to fill the gap when other community services reduce their offer. When they stepped back, we stepped forward.

We want all our children to receive the service they need and deserve, independent of where they live in Wales from fully funded specialist either driven by the school or a true multi-agency approach. 
 

What is the context?
School funding in Wales is systemically broken. Too little is allocated to education, and what is allocated is not ringfenced. There is no parity across funding in Wales and schools are expected to deliver too much with too little. Funding is reactionary and short term.

In response to Dylan Jones' review of the middle tier, school leaders stated they felt deep frustrations with the grant funding process - the bureaucracy associated with it and uncertainty it causes for school leaders. They also sought transparency around the funding process and delegation to schools. Despite the changes made to complex grant streams, there is still no equity of funding.

There are 22 local authorities in Wales, all with different and historically complex funding formulae, meaning there is no equity in the funding of schools in Wales. 78% of secondary schools receive less than £6390 stated in Local authority budgeted expenditure on schools: April 2024 to March 2025 which states:

• Delegation rates are falsely reported using in/out funding and non-optional SLAs to hide real delegation rates
• Schools’ expenditure is budgeted to be £3,591 million, an increase of 7.4% over the previous year.
• Schools' expenditure per pupil is budgeted to be £7,926, a year-on-year increase of 8.2% or £599.
• The budget per pupil can be broken down into £6,390 per pupil delegated to schools and £1,536 per pupil retained for centrally funded school services.

ASCL position: ASCL Cymru believes that within Wales there should be:

1. A single, transparent and easily understood national funding formula

• Fairly funding all schools, to an adequate level, that allows our curriculum to be delivered effectively
• Directly from Welsh Government, providing parity in educational offer across Wales
• To ensure appropriate delegation rates, not hidden in SLA’s and in/out costs, reported accurately by local authorities
• That clearly show any efficiency savings made 

2. Enhanced funding through direct grant funding to learners and mitigate for 

• Poverty, additional need and Welsh language 

3. Provide direct funding, into school budgets, for pay increase at core costs not averages

• To annually provide inflation increases to funding, equally to all schools.
• To provide fully funded, highly trained business leaders in each cluster of schools across all local authorities 
• To create a bespoke, Wales specific, suite of qualifications for school business leaders, as per the Institute of School Business Leadership Professional Standards 
• Create a national benchmarking tool, using integrated curriculum and financial planning (ICFP) techniques, which will help schools to use resources as effectively and efficiently as possible.

Why are we saying this?
At the time of writing, schools in Wales are funded differently and unfairly. 22 complex funding formulae are in place, that cannot be compared. Funding from Welsh Government to local authorities for education cannot be ringfenced for education, therefore is not always delegated to schools. Luke Sibieta’s report contained identification of reduced funding and recommendations to the WG to provide fairness and transparency in funding across schools and areas. These, as yet, have not been actioned.

ASCL Cymru urges the government to address our significant and real funding concerns to correct the level and parity of funding across Wales and put an end to the disparity that exists for children in Wales.
 

What is the context?
School funding in Wales is systemically broken. Too little is allocated to education and which is allocated is not ringfenced. There is no parity across funding in Wales and schools are expected to deliver too much with too little. Funding is reactionary and short term.

In response to Dylan Jones' review of the middle tier, school leaders stated they felt deep frustrations with the grant funding process - the bureaucracy associated with it and uncertainty it causes for school leaders. They also sought transparency around the funding process and delegation to schools. Despite the changes made to complex grant streams, there is still no equity of funding.

There are 22 local authorities in Wales, all with different and historically complex funding formulae, meaning there is no equity in the funding of schools in Wales. 78% of secondary schools receive less than £6,390 stated in Local authority budgeted expenditure on schools: April 2024 to March 2025 which states:

• Schools’ expenditure is budgeted to be £3,591 million, an increase of 7.4% over the previous year.
• Schools' expenditure per pupil is budgeted to be £7,926, a year-on-year increase of 8.2% or £599.
• The budget per pupil can be broken down into £6,390 per pupil delegated to schools and £1,536 per pupil retained for centrally funded school services.

ASCL position: ASCL Cymru believes that within Wales there should be: 
-    A single national funding formula

• fairly funding all schools, to an adequate level, that allows our curriculum to be delivered effectively
• directly from Welsh Government 
• providing parity in educational offer across Wales

-    Enhanced funding through direct grant funding to learners and mitigate for:

• Poverty
• Additional need
• Welsh Language 

-    Provide direct funding for pay increase - at core costs not averages.

-    To annually provide inflation increases to funding, equally to all schools.

-    To create a bespoke, Wales specific, suite of qualifications for school business leaders, as per the Institute of School Business Leadership Professional Standards 

-    Create a national benchmarking tool, using integrated curriculum and financial planning (ICFP) techniques, which will help schools to use resources as effectively and efficiently as possible.

Why are we saying this?
At the time of writing, schools in Wales are funded differently and unfairly. 22 complex funding formulae are in place, that cannot be compared. Funding from Welsh Government to local authorities for education cannot be ringfenced and therefore is not always delegated to schools. Luke Sibieta’s report contained identification of reduced funding and recommendations to the WG to provide fairness and transparency in funding across schools and areas. These, as yet, have not been actioned.

ASCL Cymru urges the government to address our significant and real funding concerns to correct the level and parity of funding across Wales and put an end to the disparity that exists for children in Wales.

What is the context?
In January 2024, in response to Dylan Jones' review of the middle tier, it was announced by the then minister for Welsh language and Education that the that the existing regional model did not offer ‘best value’ and a new collaborative school improvement system would be explored. The regions were responsible for school improvement function, whilst local authorities retained accountability. The new model would be based upon school-to school-working supported at local authority and national level. 

In 2019, Interim KS4 performance indicators were introduced  that were reestablished in 2023, along with the core data set. These performance indicators are shared nationally through My Local Schools and are not updated or changed with enough regularity.

There is a real concern that regional support will simply move into local authorities without a change in quality, focus or agenda. With the potential for 22 different school improvement systems, all led and funded differently. 

Within the collaborative models shared there is also an absence of clarity about accountability, leaving school leaders unsure who they are accountable to and for what. 

ASCL position: ASCL Cymru believes that within Wales there should be:
-    A re-evaluation of the volume of change imposed on the school system and adjustments made to ensure schools have the capacity to manage this change

-    Clearly articulated national priorities able to drive effective system-wide improvement and improved outcomes for learners, particularly those in the most deprived areas

-    Clarity given for key performance indicators with time for school leaders to act

-    A single school improvement system, delegated to Local Authorities from Welsh Government, including: 

• a parity of provision across Wales 
• clear accountability 
• ringfenced funding
• a reduced and appropriate level of bureaucracy

Why are we saying this? 
It is clear the pandemic has affected education settings in different ways and continues to do so. Any attempt to compare the performance of one school or college against another needs detailed planning and consideration. 

Within a climate of reduced resource and staffing, school and colleges need to focus on priorities and high levels of bureaucracy cannot distract from this core purpose.

The true message of school-to-school collaboration cannot be deflected by 22 different rationales. This is a national priority and as such needs to be nationally driven. There is need for all schools in Wales to receive the highest quality of support for school improvement by the most skilled national advisers.

What is the context?
We are witnessing a recruitment and retention crisis in Wales, in all sectors but particularly at secondary level in English and Welsh language settings. 

ASCL survey on teacher shortages states:

• 95% of those responding were experiencing difficulty in recruiting teachers
• 42.8% were experiencing severe difficulty in recruiting teachers
• With 90.8 % receiving low numbers of applicants and 69.4% receiving no applicants at all for some posts

Educational leadership roles remain unfilled.  A survey of headteachers conducted by the ASCL found that 72.4% of respondents did not feel that they had an acceptable work/life balance, with 47.7% believing their workload to be unmanageable. More than half of the survey respondents said that they were considering leaving the profession. 

The numbers of those training for secondary education has flatlined since 2020 Annual Education Workforce Statistics.

The role of education in our communities has been skewed, and in some cases lost, as other services reduced their offer, schools have mitigated this and provided more outside the core function of education.

ASCL position: Shortages in initial teacher training needs to be addressed by government as a matter of urgency.
 
The retention of teachers should also be prioritized by addressing:

• the erosion of pay and impact of Workload
• the role of education within the community 
• the lack of specialist resources

The recruitment and retention of school leaders should be prioritized by addressing: 

• erosion of pay
• the workload on school leaders and their entitlement to holidays  
• the vision for education in Wales which should be fully funded and appropriately scheduled not a bloated programme of educational reform
• high stakes accountability
• bureaucracy that adds to workload

Why are we saying this?
The Government’s current intervention to secure a workforce for education has not been successful. Without more palatable and appropriate expectation for the educational workforce we will remain in this perilous situation.