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The Leader of Denbighshire, Councillor Hugh Evans has welcomed the Assembly Government’s commitment to work together with the authority to improve education standards in the county.

This afternoon (Tuesday), Assembly Minister Jane Hutt announced she was setting up an independent education recovery board that will work with the authority to monitor progress with the Action Plan, produced following the Estyn inspection into three of the county’s education services.

This external board will be set up in January and will meet on a monthly basis, reporting directly to the Minister.

The Minister also asked Denbighshire to continue working with the Welsh Local Government Association.

Councillor Hugh Evans said: “I warmly welcome the commitment shown by the Assembly Government, in announcing the creation of this independent board, to work together with our councillors and officers to improve education standards.

'The Council fully accepts that radical changes are needed to improve standards in education and all councillors in Denbighshire have made it clear that education is the number one priority in the county.

'Improvements are already being made and we will work to the best of our ability to provide a first class education to all the children and young people of Denbighshire.

“I must also pay tribute to the tremendous dedication shown by staff, councillors, headteachers and governors who have worked tirelessly on the Action Plan and this work will continue.”

“The Minister and I agreed that we should meet regularly to discuss progress, and I have invited Jane to visit Denbighshire when her diary permits, so that she can view our work at first hand.”

The Council has also received initial feedback from Estyn which states:

 “The Action Plan demonstrates a clear acceptance that the approach to getting better outcomes requires radical change in the way that the local authority is working. The Action Plan changes the priorities and activities in the education service in a way that is necessary. The Plan recognises that it is vital that the authority ensures that the changes envisaged become part of the everyday working across the whole of the education services. There are good specific plans in place to improve communication within the Council and with stakeholders.”

The letter also includes recommendations for some changes to strengthen the document and improve ways of challenging, monitoring and implementing the recommended actions. 

The issues raised in Estyn’s response have been accepted by the Council and are already being addressed.  They will be included in a revised Action Plan which will be submitted to Estyn by its December 27 deadline.