Pembrokeshire County Council to Consider Proposal for “Pembrokeshire Curriculum” in Schools

A call for a “Pembrokeshire Curriculum” for schools is to be considered by senior councillors.
In a notice of motion before Pembrokeshire County Council’s October meeting, Councillor Rhys Jordan asked that: “Council recognises that strong foundations in reading, writing and mathematics are essential to every child’s educational success and that every child in Pembrokeshire should have the opportunity to enter secondary education with the fundamental knowledge and skills necessary to succeed.
“Council also recognises the expertise, commitment and professionalism of Pembrokeshire’s teachers and school leaders, and the importance of supporting them with the strongest possible curriculum framework, resources and assessment information.”
It added: “There is an opportunity, within the framework of Curriculum for Wales, to explore the development of a Pembrokeshire Curriculum, providing greater consistency, clarity and rigour across our schools while respecting their statutory responsibilities.
“At its core should be a clear focus on reading, writing and mathematics, including phonics, reading fluency and numeracy, supported by clear expectations, appropriate assessment and benchmarking, and early intervention where children are falling behind.
“Such an approach should be developed in partnership with our schools and should seek to reduce unnecessary duplication, share high-quality resources and best practice, and give teachers greater opportunity to focus their expertise on teaching and supporting pupils.”
It called on members to refer the proposal to the council’s Cabinet to “consider the educational, legal, financial and practical implications of developing a Pembrokeshire Curriculum, drawing upon evidence and best practice from across the UK and internationally, and to determine how the proposal could be developed in partnership with Pembrokeshire’s schools”.
It added: “Council’s ambition should be clear; wherever a child goes to school in Pembrokeshire, they should receive a consistently high-quality education, and no child should progress through primary education without difficulties in the fundamental skills of reading, writing and mathematics being identified and addressed.”
Members agreed Cllr Jordan’s motion be considered by Cabinet at a later date. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

By BBC LDRS ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​