All Welsh local authorities now out of special measures

Education Minister, Huw Lewis has welcomed news that all four local authorities in Wales have now been removed from special measures, but urged all of the authorities to keep making progress.

Merthyr Tydfil is the fourth local authority to have been removed from the category in the last two months. The authority follows in the footsteps of Blaenau Gwent, Monmouthshire and Torfaen and means that no Welsh local authority is now in special measures.

Education Minister, Huw Lewis said:

“I very much welcome Estyn’s judgement that all four authorities in Wales in special measures have made sufficient progress to be removed from special measures. This brings to an end my interventions in these areas, but I want it to be the start of sustained improvements in those local authorities.

“Estyn have particularly recognised the contribution of the recovery boards, which  were put in place to challenge and support the authorities,  and I too would like to thank them for their hard work.

“Members of each board have provided challenge and support to local authorities on a range of issues. Their advice and support  has injected pace and rigour to the recovery as well as bringing in additional expertise and experience, and this combined with a huge amount of work and determination from the authorities has resulted in the necessary improvements.

“It’s important to recognise that the constructive external challenge that the boards brought helped local authorities to drive forward change.  I’ve already started working with these authorities to make sure that grit in the system is maintained and the upward momentum in results continues. As a system we should keep striving for ever greater success.

“The work of the boards has sat alongside a huge amount of work and determination from the authorities, their elected members and officers and their school communities.  I think there are lessons here we can learn and spread across the whole system of Welsh education.

“Welsh Government will continue to work closely with both the WLGA and the authorities to consider how best to learn all the relevant lessons from our intervention.  I want to make sure that moving forward we develop a clear strategic approach which continues to build on this momentum.

David Hopkins, chair of the Blaenau Gwent recovery board said:

“In my opinion both boards and authorities believe that this type of intervention has proved its worth.  As with any external intervention, the key issues are clarity of purpose, the composition and skills mix of the board and a will by the local authority to recognise the need to work with board members.

“The suggestion from Estyn that some ongoing external support is in place is a message that authorities appear to be heeding which confirms the value they seem to place on the work of the boards.”