Rhyl School sees improvements in audit actions and assurance level

The latest audit report produced on Christ the Word school in Rhyl has seen improvements in both audit actions and assurance levels over the past three years, with the school moving up from a ‘Low’ to ‘Medium’ level.

Christ the Word Catholic School in Rhyl was placed in special measures by Estyn in 2022, with key issues highlighted and improvements suggested by the education and training inspectorate for Wales.

Since then, the Council’s Department of Education has worked collaboratively with the Audit Department to deep dive into core issues at the school, which has helped inform the improvement plans.

Three audit reports have been produced since 2022.

In comparison to the first audit report from 2022, the most recent report, which was completed in October of 2025, saw the assurance level improve from a ‘Low’ to ‘Medium’, which is one below the highest assurance level.

The first audit commenced in December 2022, roughly five months after the school was placed in special measures by Estyn. This report identified five issues, four categorised as ‘Major’ and one as ‘Moderate’.

Back in 2022, the school received a ‘Low’ assurance level, which is one above the lowest assurance level with the audit highlighting four ‘Major’ risks:

• Weak governance arrangements.
• Financial arrangements need strengthening.
• Conflicts of Interest not managed.
• No school fund account in place.

The audit also highlighted issues with staff training, which it placed as a ‘Moderate’ risk, the lowest risk category, while there were no risks at the highest ‘critical’ level.

A clear action plan was set during the 2022 audit, and steady improvement can be seen across the two subsequent audits.

The second audit, completed in January 2024, showed progress in several areas, with the auditor noting “clear improvements in governance arrangements.” They also highlighted “significant improvements since the last review,” particularly in financial management and the handling of conflicts of interest, which were no longer areas of concern.

The auditor further confirmed that safeguarding and first aid officers were properly trained and clearly identified throughout the school.

These improvements increased the school’s overall assurance rating from ‘Low’ to ‘Medium’, meaning only minor weaknesses remained in management of risks, but there was no risk to the achievement of objectives.

The number of ‘Major’ issues halved from four to two, with only one ‘Moderate’ issue recorded. Governance concerns and issues linked to legacy school accounts (from the merger of Ysgol Mair and Blessed Edward Jones into Christ the Word) remained categorised as ‘Major’. Mandatory training was identified as a ‘moderate risk’ as of January 2024.

In the most recent audit, completed in October 2025, the school maintained its ‘Medium’ assurance level. It did not identify any risks as ‘Critical’ or ‘Major’. 

It placed four risks in the ‘Moderate’ category, the lowest risk category, which included vacancies within the governing body, governor training, financial commitments (which mostly pertained to old purchase orders not being closed down) and mandatory training issues not being completed.

However, it’s important to note that issues around governing body vacancies, governing body training and staff training are common themes in other secondary schools in the county which were reviewed during the same time period, and not things which are exclusively an issue at Christ the Word.

The auditor stated the “review identified there were good governance arrangements” in place and that “examples include regular governing body meetings with supporting documents such as agendas and detailed minutes to support appropriate challenge.”

It also stated that “all statutory policies are reviewed regularly, which are accessible to staff and governors.”

There were no issues surrounding safeguarding, with the audit stating, “the safeguarding policy is available on the website and all staff have received additional in-house training” and that “safeguarding and first aid officers are suitably trained and clearly identified in posters around the school.”

It further added that “health and safety arrangements are effective, with regular fire alarm drills and security checks performed, and up-to-date fire risk assessments. There are Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras on site, with an up-to-date CCTV policy. All staff have completed the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks.”

Geraint Davies, Head of Education at Denbighshire County Council said:

“We would like to thank the audit department for their hard work on all three audit reports to date.

The reports have helped the school to address a number of shortcomings and work on key areas, leading to a much-improved learning environment for pupils, and work environment for staff.

We acknowledge there are still improvements to be made, as highlighted in the most recent audit report but the tireless work of the school, diocese, education department and key partners is clear to see through this vastly improved audit report. We will continue to work on the Estyn recommendations over the coming year.”

Councillor Diane King, Lead Member for Education, Children and Families said:

“There are clear improvements that can be seen when comparing all three audit reports. The school has now moved from a ‘Low’ assurance to a ‘Medium’ and as of the most recent audit, no longer has any issues labelled as ‘Major’ by the auditor.

It is obvious that a lot of hard work has been undertaken by the staff, and I’d like to thank them for their participation in the continuous improvement at this school.

There is still work to be done, and issues to address, but I am encouraged by the improvements made so far, which are highlighted in the most recent audit report.”

A spokesperson for the Diocese said:

“The Diocese is working with the Council to further the improvements recommended by both Estyn, and the audits.

We are encouraged by the improvements noted, but realise that there is further work to be done.”