ESTYN No.: 669/6014

St David's Education Unit opened on its present site, near the village of Brawdy, on the Pembrokeshire coast in 2000. It operates as an Independent Special Day School for a maximum of 4 Primary and 12 Secondary School Pupils with Emotional and Behavioural disorders and/or Mild Learning Disabilities/Pervasive Development disorders. The school provides education primarily for children and young people living in homes run by Marlowe Child & Family Services, West Wales Operation - St David's ASC.

St David's Education Unit managed by Head Teacher Dr. Gronwy Davies. It was fully approved as a Special Education Needs school following an ESTYN Inspection in November 2006. There is distinct and separate provision for Primary School Pupils at KS2 and Secondary School Pupils at KS3 and KS4.

The school provides a structured environment with high expectations for both academic success and behavioural progress. According to the Annual Monitoring Visit by ESTYN in 2007 the school has:

...good relationships between teachers and learners...a range of appropriate strategies for managing challenging behaviours.

It also

...makes good provision overall for pupils with Social, Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties.

and

...responds well and provides an appropriate curriculum and good support for additional learning needs [Autistic Spectrum Disorder].

The National Curriculum is followed, with a focus on the core subjects of maths, science and English. With pupils who are educationally disadvantaged and often alienated from educational experiende, targets and goals that allow them to experience genuine success and a sense of achievement is essential, especially in the core subjects and in learning skills. A wide range of resources, small classes and a high teacher pupil ration are all provided to achieve this objective. Individual Educational Programmes (IEP's), careful planning and differentiation are seen as a key to positive learning outcomes.

There is regular input from a psychologist, as well as the active input of experienced teaching staff to ensure IEP's are ‘live teaching aids’. Further, a close and co-operative working relationship with care staff is also an important part of the ethos and functioning of St David's Education Unit.

Regular and detailed monitoring of outcomes and progress is also seen as essential. A self-evaluation report graded against the Common Inspection Framework and a detailed School Development Plan identify areas for improvement is part of a self-analytical approach to education. In this way the school strives to reach the highest possible standards.

There are high levels of expectations in both academic and behavioural standards. Pupils are challenged to achieve their maximum potential and they are supported to achieve this.

School uniform is provided and expected to be worn as a way of achieving ‘normalisation’, reducing distraction and potential issues of conflict.

The school is a registered examination centre for GCSEs along with other opportunities to achieve success in external qualifications at KS4. Work experience is also offered at KS4.

There are also good links with local colleges for pupils to go on vocational and other courses at post-16.

All teachers are appropriately qualified in Primary and Secondary Education with a good support and supervision structure. The school publishes a School Prospectus annually. Copies are available from: