Plas Derwen, Deeside

Plas Derwen is a school in Wales. Welsh schools are inspected by Estyn rather than Ofsted, and its latest report is published on Estyn's website.

Estyn's report on its October 2022 inspection summarises Plas Derwen like this:

"Flintshire Portfolio pupil referral unit ( PRU) is i n Queensferry and provides education for children and young people from 3 to 16 years old. There are currently 136 pupils on roll, with a very f ew dually registered at a mainstream school. In September 2021, there was an amalgamation of four of the PRU sit es to t he purpose-built Plas Derwen site. The Plas Derwen site caters for pupils from Year 4 to Year 11 with a range of social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (SEBD). Canolfan Enfys is on a separate site and caters for pupils with more complex needs fr om ages three to seven. The PRU also registers pupils in t he local authority’s Fresh Start provision. This provision was not included in this inspection. Since September 2022, the new headteacher has significantly improved staff working relationships and developed a team approach across the PRU. The new leadership team have a clear vision for the PRU and work well with staff to create a calm and nurturing environment where pupils feel safe and valued."

"Staff know the needs of their pupils well and are skilful in supporting them to make progress. The majority of pupils make worthwhile progress from their initial starting points whilst at the PRU, particularly in relation to their social and emotional skills. However, opportunities for pupils to develop their numeracy, digital and Welsh skills progressively are underdeveloped. Younger pupils with very complex needs make limited progress in developing their communication skills as a result of the inconsistent use of practices such as signing and the use of symbols. The ability to effectively plan for the support and teaching needs of the pupils is impeded by a lack information about the pupils prior to their placement at the PRU. The PRU has begun to capture basic baseline information to support this planning. However, arrangements to secure up-to-date information on pupils prior to admission require strengthening. Flintshire PRU is beginning to provide a wide range of worthwhile opportunities for pupils to plan for their pathways to further education or employment. However, leaders have appropriately identified the need to broaden the curriculum and the range of accreditation opportunities for pupils."

"There have been steady improvements in the attendance of pupils over r ecent years. However, overall attendance across the PRU remains too low. The PRU has a valuable outreach team who provide effective support for mainstream schools t o meet t he emotional and learning needs of pupils who are at risk of exclusion. In the short period of time since the change in leadership, appropriate arrangements for quality assurance and self-evaluation processes are being developed. These changes have been significant; however, they are in the early stages of implementation. Progress prior to September was limited. For example, many of the recommendations fr om the 2015 inspection remain as priority areas for improvement."

Estyn made 5 recommendations: (1) Provide clarity on the roll of the PRU, including the management of provision for pupils excluded from other schools in the authority; (2) Ensure that all pupils receive a curriculum that is broad, balanced and well matched to their individual needs; (3) Strengthen arrangements to secure up-to-date information on pupils before they are placed at the PRU; (4) Continue to strengthen arrangements to quality assure the work of the PRU including the degree of support and challenge provided by the management committee and other bodies; (5) Improve attendance.

The nearest railway station is Shotton High Level Rail Station, about 90 metres away (roughly a 1-minute walk).

8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Chester Rd West (se-bound), 90 metres away.