Agenda item

1.    To approve Option 2 for the project on Post-16 Education in Arfon.

2.    The Cabinet approved the Head of Education Department to hold discussions on revising the memorandum of understanding with the stakeholders who make up the Gwynedd and Ynys Môn Post-16 Education Consortium with the aim of strengthening the arrangements and to report back to the Cabinet with recommendations for the agreed amendments.

3.    The Cabinet gave its permission to redirect part of the Arfon Post-16 Education project's budget in accordance with the report, in order to address the financial deficit in Band B projects that cannot be progressed at present due to the insufficient budget for them as a result of increased costs.

The report was submitted by Cllr Beca Brown.

DECISION

1.    To approve Option 2 for the project on Post-16 Education in Arfon.

2.    The Cabinet approved the Head of Education Department to hold discussions on revising the memorandum of understanding with the stakeholders who make up the Gwynedd and Ynys Môn Post-16 Education Consortium with the aim of strengthening the arrangements and to report back to the Cabinet with recommendations for the agreed amendments.

3.    The Cabinet gave its permission to redirect part of the Arfon Post-16 Education project's budget in accordance with the report, to address the financial deficit in Band B projects that cannot be progressed at present due to the insufficient budget for them as a result of increased costs.

DISCUSSION

Members were reminded that the Cabinet had permitted the commencement of an engagement process with key stakeholders to consider the current post-16 provision, and highlight the key considerations in order to identify the direction and opportunities to strengthen the provision in Arfon, at a meeting held in March 2020. It was detailed that two working groups had been held with learners, parents, teaching staff and governors to give them the opportunity to voice their opinions and ask any questions.

It was reported that the main messages gained from this engagement process were that:

·       The main priority was the quality of education.

·       ICT should be used to reiterate and support the face-to-face learning.

·       Welsh and bilingual education was of integral importance (despite some comments to the contrary).

·       The capital funding should be used to improve the facilities of our secondary schools in general so that all 11-18 year-old learners could benefit from the investment.

·       There was general objection to any proposal to centralise the provision or have a tertiary provision.

·       Many comments were received regarding the Grŵp Llandrillo Menai provision in terms of quality, medium and pastoral care.

It was acknowledged that the case for change was not as strong today as it was back in 2020. It was considered that the aspirations and needs of young people had changed as a result of the pandemic and that the Council had learned lessons about the importance of technology in education. It was noted that strong comments had come from headteachers that it was necessary to look at secondary education as a whole, rather than focusing on post-16 education only. It was reported that some other counties dealt with post-16 education as part of the secondary system, but Gwynedd chose not to do so because of strengths and positive inspections about the current arrangements.

It was acknowledged that investment in secondary schools had been lower than in primary schools. The intention to invest in secondary schools in the county was welcomed as it was sorely needed. The Assistant Head of Education Department: Corporate Services emphasised that investment in secondary schools had been less significant than for the primary sector because that sector had a significantly higher number of schools than the secondary sector. However, it was ensured that the secondary sector was addressed by the department and reference was made to a number of projects in the pipeline to assist in this.

Concern was shared about the challenges of attracting staff to teach key subjects, together with the low numbers of pupils studying some specialist subjects. In response to an enquiry, the Assistant Head of Education: Secondary confirmed that not all A Level subjects were taught in all schools at present. Despite this, it was hoped that the Gwynedd and Anglesey Education Consortium would adapt to meet the needs of pupils, such as offering hybrid courses where there was an element of face-to-face teaching and elements of remote learning.

It was explained that there were two options for the future of the project based on findings following a period of engagement with stakeholders. These options were confirmed as:

1.    Investing in the existing Post-16 Education System

2.    Re-directing the Arfon Post-16 Education Budget

It was reported that the Department felt that Option 2 above was the way forward since it was a means to address the actual needs of Ysgol Hirael, Ysgol Tryfan and Ysgol Brynrefail, and made a genuine difference to the learning environment and learner experiences at these schools.