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There is no summary of this meeting yet. Summaries are written once the council publishes the minutes, which are its official record of what a meeting decided. They usually appear a few weeks after the meeting.
1.1 The Chair welcomed all to the meeting. 1.2 There were apologies from Mr. Cunningham and Councillor Richard Clark, as Executive Member.
The following declarations were made: • Councillor Cowles declared a personal interest as a Governor at both Abersychan School and Blaenavon Heritage VC Primary School. • Councillor Cowles declared a personal interest as his brother attends Abersychan Comprehensive School. • Victoria Horlor declared a personal interest as a Governor at Ysgol Panteg. • Councillor Janet Jones declared a personal interest as a Governor of Blaenavon Heritage VC Primary School. • Councillor Janet Jones declared a personal interest as her Grandson attends Abersychan Comprehensive School. • Councillor Janet Jones declared a personal interest as her Niece attends Ysgol Bryn Onnen. • Councillor Keyte declared a personal interest as his children attended Croesyceiliog Comprehensive School. • Councillor Seabourne declared a personal interest due to being a Pupil Referral Unit Management Board Member. • Councillor Seabourne declared a personal interest as her Grandchildren and Great Grandchildren attend Ysgol Gymraeg Gwynllyw, and Coed Eva and Blenheim Road Community Primary School. • Councillor Simons declared a personal interest as his wife worked at George Street Primary School. • Councillor Thomas declared a personal interest as a Governor at Nant Celyn Primary School. • Councillor Thomas declared a personal interest as her Grandchild attends Cwmbran High School. • Councillor Watkins declared a personal interest as a Governor of Our Lady of the Angels Primary School and Cwmbran High School.
3.1 The minutes of the meeting dated 12th February 2026 were confirmed as an accurate record.
4.1 The Scrutiny Officer gave an update on the action sheet. The remaining action would be circulated to the Committee once available. 4.2 The committee noted the action sheet.
5.1 The Chair formally welcomed Mr. Hall, a public questioner, and invited him to ask his question. Mr Hall asked Officers, “What learning provision is in place for a child who is out of school for an extended period of time?” 5.2 In response to the question the Strategic Director, Children and Families and Head of Learning and Achievement confirmed the following points: · Provision for pupils unable to attend school for medical, emotional or other verified reasons was determined on an individual basis, with schools acting as the first point of contact to assess need and coordinate support. · Medical tuition was provided through the Pupil Referral Unit for children admitted to hospital settings or receiving ongoing medical treatment, delivered either online or in direct contact as appropriate. · For pupils with significant anxiety or emotionally based school avoidance, tailored online tuition could be provided alongside a structured reintegration plan supported by the school, Inclusion Service and Education Welfare Service. · Modified timetables were used where gradual reintegration into school was necessary, designed in partnership with schools, families and the local authority. · SNAP Cymru advocacy was available to parents and could be accessed directly or through referral with parental consent. · Electively home‑educated pupils were educated under parental responsibility; however, the local authority had a monitoring role to ensure that education remained suitable. 5.3 Mr. Hall asked a supplementary question; “Does the local authority have a duty of care to provide learning provision for a child, and what does this duty involve?” 5.4 The Head of Learning and Achievement confirmed the following points: · The local authority had a statutory duty to ensure that all children of compulsory school age received suitable education, whether through school attendance or alternative arrangements where required. · This duty was fulfilled through coordinated support between schools, the Inclusion Service, Additional Learning Needs (ALN) teams, the Education Welfare Service and partner agencies, ensuring that appropriate provision was identified and delivered. · Duty of care responsibilities varied depending on circumstances, including medical need, emotional or psychological vulnerability, or long‑term absence, and often required multi‑agency planning to ensure continuity of education · While the local authority retained overall responsibility for ensuring access to education, parents continued to hold primary responsibility for their child’s attendance and engagement, particularly where elective home education was chosen. 5.5 It was agreed to move straight into member questioning. Following questions by the Committee, the Strategic Director for Children and Families, Director of Education, Head of Learning and Achievement, Head of ALN, Wellbeing and Inclusion, Head of Resources and Planning, Assistant Director School Improvement Partners and Principal School Improvement Partner confirmed the following points: · Horizontal collaboration across secondary schools had progressed from informal arrangements to structured peer‑partnership activity, and collaborative working across primary clusters continued to strengthen through both established and emerging models. · All cluster transition plans met statutory requirements. Although clusters were at differing stages of development, each was progressing appropriately and had identified suitable priorities for improving learner progression. · Governance oversight of cluster planning was being reinforced, with cluster plans now identified as a standard item for consideration at full governing body meetings to ensure improved accountability and monitoring. · Cluster working had become more sharply defined, with schools selecting a limited number of focused areas—such as reading, numeracy, writing development, or learner independence—and gathering evidence to evaluate the impact of these priorities on progression. · Examples of effective practice included shared approaches to mathematics delivery, consistent writing for purpose, cross‑cluster moderation processes, and the development of common assessment procedures to support continuity between key stages. · Members were assured that leadership engagement in cluster work had improved markedly over the previous year, supported by regular engagement, guidance and challenge from local authority officers. · Variations in data collection across clusters reflected differing improvement priorities., National test outcomes, reading age assessments, numeracy reasoning measures and cluster‑agreed indicators were widely utilised as part of monitoring arrangements. · Support for newly appointed leaders included a comprehensive induction programme, structured mentoring arrangements with experienced headteachers within clusters, Additional Learning Needs Co-ordinator (ALNCo) induction, and opportunities for middle‑leadership development through professional networks. · Evaluation of impact within clusters drew upon a broad evidence base, including national test data, internal assessments, moderation outputs, learner and parent voice, and staff reflections on strengthened consistency of practice. · The Education Improvement Plan provided a shared strategic framework across all schools, co‑constructed with headteachers, governors and Members, ensuring alignment between cluster priorities and local authority objectives. · National and international best practice informed cluster development. External experts contributed to cluster practice, and Torfaen schools were actively involved in wider research networks and professional exchange. · Three clusters had adopted cluster‑wide attendance policies consistent with Welsh Government guidance. These arrangements promoted consistency for families and staff, and examples of good practice were disseminated through the termly attendance forum. · Overall attendance had improved since the pandemic, although levels had not yet returned to pre‑pandemic norms. Reducing the attendance gap for pupils eligible for free school meals remained a central priority. · The use of Fixed Penalty Notices remained at the discretion of individual governing bodies, though most schools applied them in accordance with national criteria. · Attendance at strategic and working groups was generally strong. Capacity challenges within smaller schools were recognised, and hybrid meeting options had supported wider participation. · Each cluster was formally represented within strategic groups under agreed terms of reference, and officers continued to follow up with schools where representation at working groups had been absent. · Verification of 2024–25 (Not in Education, Employment, or Training) NEET data was expected shortly, and only minor adjustments were anticipated due to established local tracking processes. · Recent restructuring within early‑intervention and youth support services had temporarily affected capacity, although measures were being implemented to stabilise provision and enhance the tracking and support of young people. · Work continued to improve the consistency and accessibility of post‑16 performance reporting, including arrangements for a forthcoming Members’ seminar with Coleg Gwent. · Variation between clusters created opportunities for sharing strong practice more widely, while sustained oversight would be required to ensure continued progress and avoid any loss of momentum once external focus diminished. · National arrangements for comparing progression expectations remained limited. Officers were engaging with Welsh Government and Estyn regarding the potential role of national test data in improving consistency across clusters. 5.6 The Chair thanked Officers for their contributions to the meeting and they left the meeting. On completion of their scrutiny activity, the Committee concluded by offering the following comments and recommendations for consideration: Recommendation 1 - Members welcomed the increased data alignment taking place within clusters. However, they recommended that schools and clusters be encouraged to strengthen this alignment further, where appropriate, as doing so would enhance their ability to monitor and demonstrate the impact of cluster working on learner progression. Recommendation 2 - Members recognised the potential capacity and resource constraints that might limit the number of working or strategy groups schools could participate in. However, they recommended that schools be encouraged, and supported where possible, to ensure that all primary schools are represented on at least one of the groups. Recommendation 3 - Members expressed concern about the limited availability of standardised assessment data prior to Key Stage 4 across Wales. Officers confirmed that this continued to present challenges in monitoring learner progression and evaluating the impacts of cluster working. Members recommended that the Executive Member for Children, Families & Education continues to liaise with Welsh Government to highlight this issue, in line with the previous recommendation made in February 2026. Recommendation 4 - Members noted that the reduction in Shared Prosperity Funding (SPF) had contributed to an increase in the number of learners who were Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET). However, they were pleased to hear that overall numbers remained relatively low and that further improvement was anticipated in the near future. As a result, Members recommended that officers explore all available funding opportunities that could be used to support work relating to NEETs. Members praised officers for the report and thanked them for the way in which they answered the committee’s questions during the meeting. The Chair commented on the value of the recent governor training delivered to the Torfaen Association of School Governors (TASG), during which representatives from the Abersychan cluster presented on learner progression. She strongly recommended that all governing bodies consider adopting the examples of best practice highlighted within the presentation. In addition to the above, members offered the following comments: · They welcomed the recent progress towards a more standardised approach to the performance information received from Coleg Gwent and looked forward to an update on Post‑16 education and Coleg Gwent at an upcoming Members’ Seminar; and · They noted that some governing bodies had not had sufficient sight of their cluster plans. However, Members were reassured to hear that support and professional learning were in place to address this where identified, and they suggested that all governing bodies be reminded of their responsibilities in relation to cluster plans.
6.1 The Committee received an update regarding the agenda for the next meeting. 6.2 Members were reminded that, during the earlier work programme review, the Committee had already agreed the remaining scrutiny items for the current cycle. The forthcoming report would therefore focus on School Catering.
7.1 The date of the next meeting was confirmed to be 6th May 2026.
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