SOME girls are having problems at a pioneering school which moved into its new £36m state-of-the art building just 16 months ago, says an education watchdog.

Caldicot School, which has more than 1,300 pupils aged 11 to 18, has been selected by the Welsh Government to help test out the nation’s new curriculum.

But after visting the school in October, Welsh education inspectorate Estyn says some girls are “too passive” in class and don’t feel that staff deal well enough with issues like “harassment and bullying”.

It also notes that Caldicot School’s GCSE results dipped last year, and while its general standards and teaching and learning experiences were rated good, three other categories – wellbeing and attitudes to learning; care support and guidance; and leadership and management – were only judged adequate and “need improvement”.

Caldicot is one of 120 schools helping to trial Wales’ radical new curriculum, which replaces traditional subjects with six areas of ‘learning and experience’.

The Monmouthshire County Council-maintained secondary has a special responsibility in the trial for professional learning for staff.

In a report issued on Christmas Eve, the Estyn inspector says that while “many pupils enjoy coming to school”, and had “positive attitudes to learning”, “a minority of older pupils, especially girls, are less positive about a few aspects of school life.”

“A few pupils, especially girls in key stage 4 (14 to 16), are too passive in lessons. They show a lack of interest in learning and do not engage readily in activities such as class discussions,” they say.

Many pupils behave well, but a few were “distracted too easily (and) exhibit poor behaviour which disrupts their own learning and that of others.”

Although a majority of pupils felt the school dealt well with any instances of harassment or bullying, “a minority of older pupils, particularly girls and those in the sixth form, feel that the school does not always deal with these aspects well enough.”

The report notes that from 2014 to 2017, the percentage of pupils getting five GCSEs grades A* to C, including English and maths and Level 1 or 2 qualifications, compared well with similar schools.

But in 2018, its performance fell to “notably below that of similar schools,” the inspector adds.

The school has been run by acting headteacher Simon Rees since previous head Susan Gwyer-Roberts left in April 2018.

The inspector said that changes in leadership menat that senior responsibilities had altered and “a few senior leaders do not have sufficient time to be fully effective in their roles”.

But the report adds: “Nearly all staff promote a positive ethos based on values such as honesty, tolerance, and respect.

“In general, teachers foster positive working relationships with pupils. In many cases, they plan and deliver their lessons well.”

Estyn’s report adds that most teachers developed a strong rapport with pupils to ensure a positive working environment.