YOUR GUIDE TO THE BEST SCHOOLS IN SOUTH WALES
FOR six years, we have been poring through all the available data to put together the definitive rating and ranking for all 211 state secondary schools in Wales – and picking out the top ranking schools in South Wales.
Our system looks at not just grades but attendance, improvement, teaching and much more.
Last year, Pontarddulais Comprehensive School in Swansea was rated the best state-funded school in Wales according to our comprehensive guide, with Corpus Christi High School scooping top honours in South Wales.
This year, it has been beaten by the Bishop of Llandaff Church in Wales High School in Cardiff, which gained top honours in both the national list and the South Wales list.
In second place – also across the whole of Wales – is Cowbridge Comprehensive School in the Vale of Glamorgan.
Our unique rating system uses 33 different measures, put together from the latest publiclyavailable data and broken into four categories – attainment, teaching, attendance, and outcomes. This system aims to move beyond tables that just use exam results and give parents a better idea of which schools will help their child prosper, no matter what their background may be.
Today’s 12-page guide factors in other things as well – like whether all pupils are making progress, what attendance is like, the ratio of teachers to pupils, and whether students go on to further education or jobs.
A mixed secondary for children aged 11 to 18, Bishop of Llandaff Church in Wales School takes students from a wide geographical area, including Barry, Llantwit Major and Bridgend to the west, and Llantrisant and Pontypridd to the north, as well as the majority from Cardiff.
Just under 9% are eligible for free school meals, which is well below the national average of 17%.
Nearly all pupils have English as their first language and around 18% of pupils come from minority ethnic backgrounds.
Just under 16% of pupils have additional learning needs, which is below the national average but just over 5% of pupils have statements of special educational needs, which is higher than the national average. An inspection this year ranked it the highest possible excellent across all areas looked at. Why it is so good:
84.8% of pupils achieved at least five GCSEs at A* to C including English/Welsh and Maths in 2017 – the highest percentage in Wales;
In the three years to 2017, 37.4% of pupils achieved at least five wGCSEs at A* to A, compared to 15.9% nationally;
The school had one of the highest value added scores in Wales in terms of the progress children made between primary and GCSE;
Both boys and girls excel at the school, with a much smaller gap than the national average. Children who receive free school meals at the school were much more likely to achieve at least five GCSEs at A* to C including English/Welsh and Maths, 69.2% compared to 28.6% nationally;
The school has above average attendance levels – 96.2% against 94.1% nationally.
Claire Miller, a Cardiffbased senior data journalist in Reach Plc’s data unit, compiled the guide from Welsh Government data, creating star ratings in key categories, as well as the overall rankings.