“This dispiriting report shows a lack of understanding of the pressures that school and college leaders are under and the context in which they are operating. These summaries make only passing references to the pandemic and fail to mention the cost-of-living and school funding crises that continue to have such an impact on teachers, leaders, pupils and parents.

“Failing to contextualise serious issues such as attendance, and putting the blame on school leaders, is hugely demoralising. This ignores the efforts being made to address this in the schools, and the fact that parents, local authorities and national government all have roles to play in improving attendance.

“A series of reflective questions are not enough on their own to solve the many problems facing education in Wales. Schools need more resources and support that demonstrates an understanding of the difficult circumstances they and their pupils are facing.”