There's a lot of change going on at Bryngwyn Primary but there's still a lot to celebrate as FRAN GILLETT finds out.

FOR such a small school situated in the heart of Blaenau Gwent, Bryngwyn Primary is full of life.

Head teacher Delyth Reed calls it a “vibrant hub of learning” and despite being nestled in the sleepy village of Six Bells, outside Abertillery, it is clear the school is a friendly and lively place to be.

From sport to music to a secret fairy garden, pupils at Bryngwyn enjoy more than just a straightforward curriculum.

In the last year the school’s future has been the subject of uncertainty and last week Blaenau Gwent council’s education recovery board approved plans which would see the school closed as an independent school.

As part of proposals to merge five Abertillery schools together into an all-in-one school for children aged three to 16, Bryngwyn Primary would be merged in August 2016.

From September the children will stay at the new site but the school would be run as part of the new Abertillery school cluster. The following year, in September 2017, Bryngwyn’s pupils will then move to a new school building at the former Six Bells colliery.

But despite the school’s rollercoaster of a journey, the smiling staff and pupils are more than happy to offer their favourite things about working at the school.

Bryngwyn Primary, which shares head teacher Ms Reed with Queen Street Primary, in Abertillery, is a one-form nursery and primary school.

The school, which has 243 pupils on roll, also has a “resource base” which caters for up to nine pupils with special needs from the local authority.

“Achievement is at the heart of our mission to improve the life chances of all,” said Ms Reed, who has headed up the school since 2013.

Inspire, Challenge, Achieve is the school’s motto, something which was developed by Ms Reed and is “evident throughout the school”.

What is also evident is the pupils’ input into the school. Pupil voice is key and the school council often uses the website to share information with parents and the local community.

Led by the head boy and head girl, the school council is “involved in much of the decision making,” said Ms Reed.

“They are involved in the appointment of staff, they attend full governing body meetings as well as the more usual fundraising activities.”

Just over the past year the elected pupils have helped to enforce the school uniform policy, set up the playtime and lunchtime buddy area, organised fundraising activities such as Bryngwyn’s Got Talent and created the healthy lunchbox policy.

Also meeting regularly is the school’s eco council and thanks to their work the school boasts a wonderful outdoor area.

Ms Reed said it is about “well-being and lifelong learning” to ensure pupils become independent learners with their own scientific, investigative, communication and problem-solving skills.

The children – as well as those in the resource base – have taken part in projects including planting flower and vegetable beds, creating mini-beast hotels and planting bee and butterfly-friendly flowers to increase the site’s biodiversity. And on top of the variety of plants, flowers and vegetables, there is also a secret fairy garden.

More uniquely, the school’s new summerhouse has also been used as an outdoor classroom for some pupils where science lessons are taught.

Bryngwyn’s passion for plants and outdoor learning is perhaps reflected in it being just one of only a few schools in Wales to have achieved the RHS level five. On top of this, the school has recently gained its third eco schools green flag and is now working towards its platinum. As is put into words by Ms Reed: “The children are very passionate about green issues”.

Back inside the school, ICT provision is currently a big focus for Bryngwyn.

“ICT provision has recently been updated considerably and increased opportunities for all pupils have improved,” Ms Reed said.

Digital leaders, pupils who applied to provide extra ICT help at the school, work closely with the IT co-ordinator – another example of pupil voice.

QR codes, little barcode-like images which smartphones or iPads can scan and then download information, are frequently used around the school to “signpost” children’s learning.

The school had its last inspection in June last year when it was graded as good in both current performance and prospects for improvement. When the new school colour-coded ranking system was revealed in January this year the school was classed as ‘yellow’, just one below the top ‘green’ ranking.

“Pupils are well motivated and enthusiastic learners,” the report said. “It was recognised that pupils make good progress and the levels of care support and guidance are very high.”

The report also recognised “the head teacher had established a clear vision and direction for the school and provides strong effective leadership”.

Four recommendations were made: to improve the standard of pupils’ speaking in Welsh, improve levels of attendance, increase the effectiveness of the school council and make arrangements to improve governor’s knowledge of the school.

Estyn praised the school’s extensive programme of extra-curricular activities, which they called “well attended” as well as the broad range of visits and visitors.

Ms Reed backs up Estyn’s take on the school’s extra-curricular focus. She said: “Bryngwyn has a long tradition of sporting achievements and it’s a very musical school.”

The school’s swimming squad qualified to take part in this year’s Urdd Gobaith Cymru National Championships, marking the second year in the row for the team, and the netball team have competed in the whole of South East Wales.

Ms Reed also mentions one of the school’s Year 3 pupils who has been identified as one of Wales’ talented young gymnasts and selected for the Welsh women’s artistic national development squad.

Other pupils have been chosen to play football for Newport County and Cardiff City clubs, and the school has been represented by its school in athletics at local and county levels.

In music, all Year 2 pupils have been fortunate enough to learn either the violin or cello, while Year 4 has been busy learning samba. Parents enjoy regular performances of the children’s music, including the school choir which has represented the school in many events.

Other clubs the school has organised include recorder group, rugby, hockey, healthy food, science club, gardening, football, chess and art.

The fairtrade committee also meet regularly to discuss ways in which they can promote fairtrade through the school, as well as carrying out fundraising such as coffee mornings and “fill a fairtrade footprint”.

It is clear to see the school is celebrating success in all areas – not just academic. Whatever the new proposed changes bring, it is likely the spirit of the school, to inspire, challenge and achieve, is bound to continue.