We would like to take this opportunity to welcome you to Bishopston School. We continue to be one of the highest achieving schools in Wales and have asked to share excellent practice by numerous external bodies. This is a huge compliment to the whole school community of staff, pupils, parents and Governors who work together in partnership to continue to improve standards in so many aspects of life in the school. Indeed, as a school, we have been given this highest possible rating every year since the categorisation process started back in 2013.
We are also delighted to highlight the findings of the ESTYN Inspection Report, published in Jan 2018. We were the first comprehensive school in Wales to achieve “Excellent” in all 6 of the inspection areas. This is a huge achievement for the school and we were invited to an ESTYN awards ceremony where we were presented with an award to recognise this accomplishment. We will continue to strive for further improvement in all aspects of academic, personal, moral and social development for each pupil who passes through the school as part of their lifelong learning process.
The outstanding external examination results achieved by our pupils are the result of high expectations, a very strong work ethic and the existence of a suitable climate for learning where respect, humility, trust and commitment provide the basis for success. We are also delighted to report that following the inspection we have been asked to write a case study on the exceptional levels of pupil wellbeing that the inspectors witnessed.
We pride ourselves in developing: ‘an outstanding learning community founded upon mutual respect’
Within a caring and friendly environment, where the safeguarding and wellbeing of the pupils is paramount, opportunities are available to gain experience through a wide and diverse curriculum providing a breadth and balance that offers an appropriate pathway for each individual. This includes both academic and vocational courses to suit the aspirations of every pupil so that they become ambitious, capable learners ready to learn throughout their lives. Across the curriculum we place a significant emphasis on the core and wider skills including literacy, numeracy and digital competency.
Pupils are encouraged to participate in and give of their best in all aspects of school life. ESTYN also highlighted the significant impact the input of the pupils has on school improvement in the published report and commends it as an outstanding feature at Bishopston. Central to the work of the school is the vast range of extracurricular activities on offer. We encourage all pupils to take advantage of these opportunities to enhance their development as healthy, confident individuals, ready to lead fulfilling lives as valued members of society.
3 As you might know, it is a very exciting time in terms of the development of the site. Freedom Leisure have taken over the management of community sports centres in Swansea and have invested significantly into the upgrade of the facilities. The upgrade on our facility is now complete with a larger multi gym area together with brand new equipment. In addition, a new dance studio has been created with additional community changing facilities together with a total refurbishment of the school changing rooms.
With an ever-increasing use of our superb sports facilities on the site, there is a continuing drive to maintain our Community focus where the school plays a significant role in the life of people in the local area. This, combined with the well-established links between ourselves, our partner primary schools and the post 16 educational establishments ensures that we are creating a lifelong learning experience with the school playing an important part in the pupils’ development. If you would like to book our 4G and 2G facilities, please contact the sports hall on 235040. These pitches are available for community use after 4.30 p.m. We are also delighted to report that significant improvements are being made to the school site under the Band B development scheme in conjunction with the LA and Welsh Government. This multi-million-pound investment has significantly improved the school for both the staff and pupils. As part of the original investment, a new double school block housing nine new classrooms was constructed which included new Science laboratories, a Drama Studio, two Art rooms and another ICT suite and additional classroom.
We have now completed all of the phases of the overall project which has also given us a totally renovated and modern entrance to the school, additional offices and a Conference room. All classrooms throughout the whole school have been being totally refurbished during this project. This includes new carpets, chairs, tables and a state of the art C-Touch screen in every classroom. The official opening ceremony took place on 7th July 2023. It has already completely changed the learning environment with pupils flourishing in these exceptional new facilities.
We hope our website offers you an interesting insight into life at Bishopston.
J. Bird
Headteacher