Early Insights highlight strengths in learner support, but teaching and attendance remain challenges

Estyn has today published its early insights from the Chief Inspector’s Annual Report 2025-26, outlining what’s working well across Welsh education and training and where improvement is needed. The findings provide an early look at challenges and successes at a national level across seventeen education and training sectors ahead of the full report publication in February 2027.

The findings, drawn from inspection visits carried out over the year highlight strong relationships, inclusive environments and effective support for learners as areas of strength across education and training in Wales. However, variation in teaching quality, low attendance and weaknesses in evaluating impact continue to limit progress for too many learners.

The report aims to support providers with improvement in their own settings and signposts to inspection reports and case studies from providers that were inspected and were found to be doing particularly well. These examples illustrate how providers are improving teaching and learning, developing learners’ skills and independence, strengthening inclusion, improving attendance and engagement, and using partnerships to support children, young people and adult learners.

Owen Evans, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education and Training in Wales, said:

“Across the country, we continue to see dedicated staff building strong relationships with children, young people and adult learners. In many settings and providers, these relationships underpin inclusive and supportive environments where learners feel safe, valued and ready to learn.

“However, some of the challenges we highlighted last year remain stubbornly familiar. The quality of teaching is still too variable, and too many learners do not receive sufficiently challenging opportunities to develop and apply their skills. Attendance also remains a significant concern across education and training, including beyond compulsory schooling and this continues to impact some of our most vulnerable learners.

“We need to see a sustained focus on these areas if all learners are to benefit consistently from high-quality education and training.”

“At a time of considerable pressure on education and training, it is particularly important that we learn from what works well. By sharing these sector specific findings now, we want to help providers reflect, learn from strong practice and continue building on what’s working well.”

HMCI’s full annual report will be published in February and will offer further insight into current education and training priorities in Wales, providing further detail about the findings of inspections together with an analysis of a number of wider themes including the impact of Professional learning on teaching and learning, developing Welsh language skills in Welsh medium settings and Supporting learners at risk of becoming NEET.