From September 2026, all learners aged 3-16 will be following the Curriculum for Wales. The aspiration of the curriculum is that all learners leave education at 16 with the knowledge, skills and understanding they need to succeed as they move to the next stage of their education, training or employment.
Following on from the consultation earlier this year, statutory guidance will be published in September setting out the legal requirements and the Welsh Government’s policy expectations for a school’s curriculum for 14 to 16-year-old learners under the Curriculum for Wales.
The guidance will be accompanied by detail of a package of professional learning and resources to support schools in designing, implementing, and reviewing their curriculum for years 10 and 11.
This will include good practice case studies, professional learning on learner effectiveness and targeted support on curriculum design.
The new GCSEs
Qualifications Wales has reformed GCSE qualifications in Wales to reflect what learners are being taught as part of the new curriculum.
Reformed GCSEs are being introduced in a phased approach, with the first wave being taught in schools from September 2025.
Schools will have a full academic year to prepare for teaching of this first wave of new GCSEs following the publication of final qualification specifications in September 2024 (draft specifications are already available).
With support from Adnodd and Welsh Government, WJEC will offer a package of teaching resources and professional learning opportunities to support schools and practitioners to deliver these new qualifications.
Other National 14-16 Qualifications
It’s not just GCSEs which are being updated to reflect the new curriculum.
Qualifications Wales has also consulted on, and is now taking forward the development of, a wider set of 14-16 qualifications in Wales.
These will comprise the exciting new VCSE qualification, Foundation Qualifications and the Skills Suite (encompassing Skills for Life, Skills for Work and the Personal Project).
These qualifications will be available for teaching in school from September 2027.
Adnodd, Qualifications Wales and Welsh Government will work with awarding bodies to ensure that bilingual teaching and learning resources will be available to support the delivery of these new national qualifications.
Keep Informed
Qualifications Wales has a dedicated hub for the reformed National 14 to 16 Qualifications where you can stay up-to-speed with the latest announcements, access resources and ask questions.
The School Essentials Grant scheme for 2024-25 opened on 1 July.
Up to £200 is available for children whose families are on lower incomes for school uniform and other essentials, in all year groups from reception to year 11.
In order to make sure all eligible families apply, we have made it easy for schools to share information with parents on how to apply for the grants available.
Even if learners are receiving Universal Primary Free School Meals, it is important to still check eligibility to access the School Essentials Grant and extra funding for schools.
A leaflet in 19 languages is available here, along with resources and advice for schools on how to share information.
School uniform schemes – case studies
As well as the school essentials grant there are excellent initiatives taking place in schools across Wales to support families in keeping school uniform costs down.
Case studies from Children in Wales highlight some of these schemes.
For example at Blaenhonddan Primary in Neath Port Talbot, ‘Eco Warriors’ pupils have helped to set up a recycling scheme providing families with school uniform free of charge.
At Ysgol Emmanuela in Denbighshire, where 63% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, the PTA have set up a free logo embroidery scheme. Parents take school jumpers to a local shop, the logo is embroidered, and the school is charged, with suppliers invoicing the PTA directly.
More information
Letter to schools from Cabinet Secretary for Education Lynne Neagle
Ysgol Pen-y-Bryn is the largest special school in Swansea, for pupils aged 3 to 19. Pupils have a wide range of severe, complex and specific additional learning needs, including Autism and communication difficulties.
Through Hwb, all practitioners in maintained schools in Wales have access to a range of digital tools and resources.
No matter what your digital skill or knowledge level – Hwb has the resources and support available to help you make the most of digital technology.
Digital technologies can enhance learning experiences through the creation of innovative, interactive lesson activities and can enable teachers to adapt their teaching practice to suit individual learners needs.
Digifest
To help practitioners make the most of technology available, Hwb DigiFest takes place on 2 September, a full day of inspirational virtual sessions designed for teachers.
Throughout the day, participants will find out about the range of digital tools and resources offered through Hwb with over 40 interactive sessions led by global partners such as Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, Britannia, J2E, Common Sense Media, Flip, and Minecraft.
Join for the whole day or choose from the range of sessions available. Find out more and register.
Ongoing training and support
Not able to make Hwb Digifest?
You can still take advantage of the range of upcoming training opportunities available through Hwb.
Just some of the sessions coming up in July:
Trystan Williams has recently started in his post as National ALN Implementation Lead (Welsh Language) and has been busy assessing the landscape of Welsh Language ALN provision across Wales.
With the Implementation of ALNET well and truly under way, Trystan’s focus is on the availability of Welsh Medium provisions.
What is your background in ALN?
I trained as a Welsh first language teacher and started my career as a Welsh teacher in Pembrokeshire.
I then moved to Cardiff where I started working with pupils with a higher level of need and became ALNCo and Assistant Headteacher in Welsh medium high schools in Cardiff.
I was an ALNCo for over a decade and worked as a Cluster Lead and IDP champion during the initial phases of Implementation of ALNET.
More recently I have been working to set up a Welsh medium Specialist Provision for pupils with Emotional Health and Wellbeing difficulties in Cardiff.
What do you aim to achieve?
Quite simply, I am trying to achieve parity and equity for Welsh medium learners and the education workforce.
When considering assessment or diagnostic tools for example, it is far better to assess learners accessing Welsh medium education in Welsh, especially when it comes to literacy and Speech and Language. Formal standardised assessments and diagnostic tools in Welsh are few and far between, and one of my key priorities is to ‘plug the gaps’ in relation to Welsh medium resources. This could involve looking to scale up existing resources, where suitable translating existing resources or exploring options to develop new resources.
I will be striving to gain a national overview of the Welsh Medium workforce and looking at ways to attract educators into the profession. In addition to this, I will be looking at Welsh medium staffing in specialist roles such as Specialist Teachers and Educational Psychology and finding ways to support the Welsh medium system effectively.
One key element of this is to embrace the high-quality work that is already happening in Wales and share this good practice with others. I will also ensure that any new resource comes with in depth training through videos etc to ensure that the Welsh medium colleagues are fully confident in the tools that they have to hand.
How will you achieve this?
I am currently visiting most local authorities and having conversations with different officers to see where Local authorities feel the need lies in their specific context. Hand in hand with LA’s, I will be visiting various school settings and getting input from Welsh Medium practitioners from across Wales. I will also be talking to those individuals who have already been involved in creating various assessments and interventions from Universities to Consortia.
I will also be working Local Authorities to support their work around Outcome 6 of the WESP and to look at the good practice around specialist settings. Supporting Local Authorities to meet their duty under ALNET to provide equitably for both Welsh and English medium learners.
Part of the role will also be to support the Post-16 implementation lead with his work to ensure that there is a clear Welsh Medium pathway for learners with ALN into further education where school is no longer an option.
I also have a great interest in how assistive technologies can support all learners in schools and will be looking at the availability of these technologies through the medium of Welsh.
Any final thoughts?
It is apparent from initial conversations that institutions across Wales have clear views on where they feel the need is for improved Welsh medium provision and they welcome the support and work to improve the offer for Welsh medium learners and staff.
I am keen to hear from as many practitioners as possible to leave ‘no stone unturned’ in pursuit of excellent ALP in Welsh.
If, as a practitioner, you know of any good practice, successful assessment tools or intervention, or believe a specific area needs to be addressed, please email me on trwilliams@carmarthenshire.gov.uk
