Education

Meet ‘The Two Steves’

Published

11 years ago

February 17, 2015

BACK in the county again last week were Steven Barlow and Steven Skidmore, otherwise known as ‘The Two Steves’, bringing their unique brand of writing skills teaching to our local primary school children. The Herald had an exclusive opportunity to watch one of their lively sessions at the Pembrokeshire Archives offices.

In the session were three small groups of local primary school pupils, including Haverfordwest school, Fenton CPS. The object of the workshop is to get Key Stage 2 boys, predominately, writing and, more importantly, to give them an enjoyment of the writing process.

Each group attends either a morning or an afternoon session for the whole week. On day 1 they are introduced to each other and use memory and co-ordination games to break the ice, during which they will be given talks, and entertainment, by the Steves. On day two they partake in a visualisation game and have to decide what they would take on a desert island, as they develop their thinking and imagination skills. They are also asked to think about elements of a story; character, theme, settings, creating tension, foreboding and conflict, as they build towards writing their own story. By day 3 they are planning a story and coming up with ideas, and an ending, which they do first as, the Steves explained, prevents them from getting stuck or lost as they have already decided where their story is going. On day 4 they are writing and editing from a finished story they have written at home or in school, and on day 5 they have produced the finished work and are sharing each others stories.

At the end of the whole process they will have something concrete, that is published and of which they can get a copy.

The sessions are lively and very interactive with lots of discussion and shared ideas. They are given clear advice on story structure and there is much humour in the process, as both Steves are certainly fun. They are also given clear objectives, for example, the 4 opening sentences in stories that are either a question, some dialogue, a piece of information or a metaphor or simile. They learn the importance of beginnings, middles and endings and those vital components of a successful story; the who, what, where, when, why and how. The delivery is very kinaesthetic and accessible to all in the session and there is much opportunity for discussion and talk, which is not always a feature of the classroom.

We spoke with Fenton teacher, Mr Williams, who said of the workshops: “We can use these strategies in the classroom, and when we do, the children’s enthusiasm shoots right up. The planning process is excellent as the story is broken into segments from the end backwards. It is a great way to enthuse the boys and build self esteem.”

Steve Barlow explained a little bit about what they were doing: “For teachers it helps to be a good performer. In a recent Estyn finding it had been proven that the use of the right people and outside agencies leads to improvement. The best people for this tend to be ex-teachers. We work with all ages, from Kindergarten to staff, but our main focus is on key stage 2, as well as key stage 3. It is particularly rewarding working with primary schools as they can make time for this which is hard for secondary schools where the timetable is God”.

Steve Skidmore added to this point, saying: “It is more compartmentalised in secondary school. We work with boys and girls, indeed, the girls insist sometimes! Although there is a focus on boys, as in some schools it is very disparate between boys and girls achievements. There are simply not enough male role models in primary schools. Literacy is female dominated; mum is the one who tends to read at home, secondary school literacy teachers tend to be women, most primary school teachers are women and even most librarians are female, so literacy can be seen as a feminine thing by boys.”

They both stated that they felt ‘blokes tended to duck out of their responsibility’ with literacy and reading, and they criticised this as they said boys need a male role model and encouragement.

Steve Skidmore made the point that he and the other Steve can come along as a couple of blokes and have fun, which is, he said, also the sort of stuff they themselves tend to write.

The Herald asked what is going wrong in schools given that, despite having just as much creativity as girls, boys are still not performing so well in writing. Steve Barlow explained: “We have it the wrong way round in schools, because of the way education has been structured over the last few years. In these developing years there is a big emphasis on the mechanics rather than motivating kids to feel empowered to tell the stories they want to tell. We think that’s a retrograde step.”

Said Steve Skidmore: “If they are hung up on the whole mechanics of writing, spelling, punctuation and grammar, and that’s what they get judged on, then they will fail. A lot of the boys don’t develop on the mechanics like the girls, yet they are being judged on the same level. A lot of time boys need to get out that excess energy. Some children are more needy than others and teachers don’t always have that time in a class of 30. We talk about self esteem on the first day a lot. A lot of boys would rather get kicked out of a lesson than admit they can’t do something.”

As Steve Barlow stated, many boys tend to react negatively to failure as opposed to many girls who see it as a spur to try harder the next time.

Steve Barlow went on to question the curriculum schools use in literacy: “Part of the problem is that the curriculum contains too many different types of writing and so it’s all fragmented; writing for a purpose, writing an argument, writing a report, as well as writing stories. The point is it’s all writing and if you are failing in one you are failing in all of them. The priority ought to be to get them empowered, believing they can do it, using themselves as a resource and knowing they can develop and structure a story so that it succeeds. Once they’ve got that they can learn the other stuff in 5 minutes.”

Steve Skidmore added to this stating: “The other thing is about celebration, we don’t celebrate the writing they do in school. We, from our sessions, publish it, read it out, have time for a clap which they don’t have time for in school. We need to give them a reason for it.”

He went on to talk about the issue of changing Governments and their approach to education: “Are we saying there is a political elite that need people not to question things? I thought that with Gove; he had no idea what teaching was about. They (politicians) have come through a particular schooling system (private) and people like Gove are trying to impose the same values on children from very different backgrounds. For instance, Gove saying they should be doing Dryden at 14; how is this a life skill for some of these children?”

Steve Barlow added to this criticism saying: “Decisions are taken by elected education secretaries and it’s all to do with vanity projects rather than to do with actual need. The basic problem is those people making decisions are not listening to those at the grass roots. Politicians like to make big bold statements like ‘we will have every child literate by 2020’ for example.”

Steve Skidmore, laughed in disdain at this suggestion, saying: “You have children who are special needs. All children literate? No they won’t be; there are physical problems here. You are dealing with human beings who have different needs. Governments/ Estyn look at data – data doesn’t tell you everything. For example, we had a child whose mum and father had recently died – that impacts on the child, does data tell you this? Take Fenton school, who might be lower graded, but they have a special needs unit that gets aggregated onto the whole school so they get judged on that. It’s a really good school, with good teachers who look after the kids, and a great head that will argue the toss with Estyn, re. data, but a lot of heads don’t have that confidence. It would be lovely if politicians had the same sort of nonsense from people higher above them. There’s just no accountancy. Academies are not improving education – it’s about money and leadership. Data is not a way to judge human beings.”

Education

Call for ‘breathing space’ over future of Stepaside School rejected by councillors

Published

3 hours ago

December 14, 2025

Bruce Sinclair - Local Democracy Reporter

Concerns raised over falling rolls and school reorganisation plans across south Pembrokeshire

A CALL for a temporary “breathing space” before any decision is taken on the future of a Pembrokeshire village school at possible risk of closure has been rejected at full council.

At Pembrokeshire County Council’s meeting on Thursday, December 12, members considered a major package of recommendations linked to education reorganisation in the south of the county. The proposals form part of a wider transformation programme responding to sharply declining pupil numbers across the Tenby, Saundersfoot and Stepaside areas.

Under the plans, councillors were asked to authorise a public consultation on establishing a new 3-19 all-through school in Tenby, initially operating across split sites. The long-term ambition is either to rebuild or significantly extend the Ysgol Greenhill site, or potentially relocate to a new site altogether. As part of this process, both Tenby Church in Wales Voluntary Controlled School and Ysgol Greenhill would be discontinued.

A second set of recommendations proposed establishing a new 3-11 primary school on the Saundersfoot Community Primary School site, with both Saundersfoot and Stepaside schools discontinued.

The supporting report highlighted major surplus capacity in the area’s schools. In the Tenby cluster alone, there are 534 empty places in the primary sector and 341 in the secondary sector. Tenby Church in Wales VC School is forecast to have a surplus of 38.1 per cent in 2025, remaining above 25 per cent for at least four years. Ysgol Greenhill, with space for 1,194 pupils, has just 877 on roll this year, creating a 28.5 per cent surplus.

Saundersfoot Community Primary School, which can accommodate 280 children, had fallen to 151 pupils by 2025—a 49.2 per cent surplus. At Stepaside, enrolment is projected at 107 pupils in 2025, leaving 101 places empty—over half the school’s capacity.

For the Tenby proposals, an amendment by local member Cllr Sam Skyrme-Blackhall was accepted, ensuring the consultation explicitly recognises the value of VC schools and the importance of Welsh-medium secondary education. Members overwhelmingly backed the amended recommendation.

However, an amendment on the Stepaside proposal sparked a lengthy debate. Local member Cllr Alistair Cameron, backed by neighbouring councillor Alec Cormack, urged councillors to defer any decision relating to Stepaside, saying the school had only been officially notified of the proposals a few days earlier.

Cllr Cormack said it was accepted that the current position was unsustainable, with pupil numbers falling “both due to second homes and retirees moving into the area”. He stressed that both Saundersfoot and Stepaside were well-run schools, but “just too small for the buildings we have them in,” and suggested that reducing the size of the sites could eliminate surplus space.

“Today’s proposal is to close the Kilgetty site to save money and then spend money bussing pupils to the Saundersfoot site,” he said. “It’s only natural justice to give the school communities the chance of a fair hearing. There’s no reason to rush this decision today.”

Cllr Aled Thomas, chair of the schools working group, dismissed the call for a delay as “a consultation to have a consultation,” saying the proposals had been “in the public domain for well over 12 months”.

“Members, of course, are going to fight for their communities but this is just a tactic pushing it further down the line,” he added.

Cllr Cormack responded that the school itself had heard about the recommendation only on Monday. “The very people who are expert at delivering education have had no warning of this. I don’t understand why there is a need to press ahead so quickly. The communities deserve to be given more than three days’ notice.”

Cabinet Member for Education Cllr Guy Woodham told members there was no intention to hold any consultation before September 2026, stressing there would be “a lot of time for alternative proposals”.

Cllr Cameron’s amendment to defer the Stepaside decision was defeated by 37 votes to 12, with one abstention later clarified as an accidental mis-vote intending to oppose the delay. The substantive recommendation was then approved by 42 votes to seven.

Education

School leaders demand answers over £339m education funding

Published

4 hours ago

December 14, 2025

Tom Sinclair

Union calls for transparency after First Minister declines to detail how additional money has been spent

SCHOOL leaders have demanded greater transparency from the Welsh Government over how hundreds of millions of pounds in additional education funding has been spent, after the First Minister declined to give detailed answers during Senedd scrutiny.

The call comes after NAHT Cymru, which represents school leaders, said £339m flowed to the Welsh Government as a result of increased education spending in England for the 2026/27 draft budget. Of that total, only £39m has so far been allocated directly to core school budgets.

This week, a further £112.8m was allocated to local government following a budget agreement between the Welsh Government and Plaid Cymru, with ministers indicating that some of that funding will reach schools. However, education leaders have warned that the scale of the pressures facing schools means the additional money is unlikely to close existing gaps.

The Welsh Local Government Association has predicted a £137m shortfall in school budgets across Wales in the next financial year. At the same time, councils are facing an estimated £200m deficit in social care funding, placing further strain on local authority finances and limiting how far additional funding can stretch.

Appearing before the Senedd’s scrutiny committee, the First Minister was questioned by Labour MS Jenny Rathbone, Plaid Cymru MS Cefin Campbell and Conservative MS Mark Isherwood about how education consequentials had been allocated. She declined to give a breakdown of where the additional funding had gone, instead arguing that, under devolution, consequentials are not automatically passed on to specific services.

The First Minister repeatedly pointed to figures showing that Wales spends around seven per cent more per pupil than England. However, education leaders argue that headline per-pupil figures do not reflect the reality faced by schools.

NAHT Cymru’s national secretary, Laura Doel, said the union remained deeply concerned following the evidence session.

She said: “Despite repeated attempts by members from all parties to get a clear answer on consequential funding, the First Minister refused to give one. Instead, she focused on per-pupil spending comparisons with England, but that is not the same as the amount of money that actually reaches schools.

“Local authorities have to retain funding to run essential support services, so to imply that schools are receiving significantly more money is misleading.

“School leaders are crying out for clarity. While we recognise that the Welsh Government and local authorities have autonomy over spending decisions, this question cannot simply be avoided. If funding has been allocated elsewhere, ministers should be open about where it has gone and why.”

Ms Doel added that, regardless of how the figures are presented, schools are struggling to meet rising costs.

“Whatever spin is put on this, schools do not have enough money to meet the needs of learners. Additional funding came to Wales as a result of UK Government decisions, and school leaders are entitled to know how that money has been used.”

The Welsh Government has previously said it must balance competing pressures across public services and that local authorities play a key role in determining how education funding is distributed at a local level.

Education

Teaching assistant struck off after asking pupil for photos of her body

Published

3 days ago

December 11, 2025

Tom Sinclair

A FORMER teaching assistant at Haverfordwest High School has been banned from working in education after sending highly inappropriate messages to two female pupils, including asking one girl to send him photos of her body.

Samuel Davies, who was employed at the school through apprentice agency Ap Prentis, was removed from the classroom in October 2022 when safeguarding concerns were raised. An Education Workforce Council (EWC) panel has now found his conduct to be sexually motivated and amounting to unacceptable professional behaviour.

Messages sent under false name

The panel heard that Davies contacted two mid-teen pupils on Snapchat using the name “Sam Bear Davies”. One pupil identified as Learner B received messages asking whether she felt comfortable sending him pictures. In one message he wrote: “I want to see that body and a few pics maybe?” followed by further requests for images.

Another girl identified as Pupil A accepted a friend request from the same account and was shocked to receive the message: “Oh hey, I am your teacher. Do not tell anyone, I would get into trouble, but I think you are really attractive.”

Davies also warned one of the girls not to tell anyone he had contacted her because he would “get into trouble”.

Both pupils later provided screenshots to senior staff which resulted in Davies being escorted off school grounds while an internal investigation began.

Previous concerns about boundary issues

Deputy headteacher and safeguarding lead Tracy Edwards told the hearing she had already spoken to Davies several times about his over familiar behaviour with pupils. Concerns had been raised including allegations that he offered teenagers a drag of a vape off school premises and that he had shown pupils photos of himself vaping in a school toilet. There were also reports that he had been overheard discussing pubs and clubs with under eighteens.

Although some of the earlier claims could not be verified, his behaviour escalated and a formal complaint was made once the social media messages were shared with staff.

Davies resigned from his role in January 2023. Police reviewed the matter but did not take further action.

Panel finds sexual motivation

The EWC committee found a number of allegations proven and concluded that Davies had deliberately targeted children under sixteen and that his actions were sexually motivated.

Panel chair Robert Newsome said Davies had abused his position and caused direct harm to pupils. He noted that Davies had shown no engagement with the disciplinary process, no insight and no remorse.

“This was a pattern that developed after he began his employment,” he said. “He knew what he was doing was wrong and took steps to hide it. His actions place him as a significant risk to learners.”