Ysgol Gymraeg Plasmawr

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Ysgol gyfun gymraeg plasmawr
Established	1998
Type	State School
Head Master	Mr. John Hayes
Location	Cardiff Glamorgan CF5 3PZ Wales
Students	830+
Gender	Both
Ages	11 to 18
Houses	4
School colours	Maroon and Yellow
Website	www.plasmawr.cardiff.sc.uk

Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Plasmawr (Plasmawr Welsh Secondary School) is a Welsh secondary school in Cardiff. It opened in September 1998 in buildings that had formerly been used as Waterhall School and more recently as the Lower School site for Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf, and became Cardiff's second Welsh-medium comprehensive school. The current headteacher is John Hayes.

During its first nine years, the school has been acclaimed for its work in the fields of equality of opportunity and social inclusion, developing emotional intelligence and in the performing arts. The school also offers a wide range of sporting activities including all major team sports and rowing, canoeing and climbing.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Pupils

The school serves the very mixed^{[citation needed]} West Cardiff and the Rhondda area, which includes Culverhouse Cross, Ely, Caerau, Grangetown, Butetown, Riverside, Canton, Pontcanna, Fairwater, Pentrebane, Llandaf, Radyr, Creigiau, Pentyrch, Church Village and Gwaelod y Garth.

Students have become regular winners at the National Urdd 'Eisteddfod' in a range of dramatic and musical competitions. The school is also an EU Comenius school and has active overseas partners in France, Brittany, the Netherlands, Lesotho & Japan. The school also offers the Welsh Bacculaureate qualification in addition to GCSE, BTEC and A Level courses.

87% of the pupils come from homes where Welsh is not spoken. 9% of the pupils belong to the wide range of ethnic minorities which make up the population of Cardiff.

Over the five year period from 2001-2006, an average of 72% of the population gained 5 or more higher level GCSEs. According to the latest inspection report by Estyn the school has a GCSE pass rate of 79% (based on 5 GCSEs, grades A-C). This puts the school in joint 7th place in Wales with Bishopston Comprehensive School in Swansea. It is also the third best performing secondary school in Cardiff behind Bishop of Llandaff Church in Wales High School and Cardiff High School. The A Level points score reached a high point of 24 points in 2006.^{[citation needed]}

Upon the opening of Cardiff's third Welsh medium high-school, Ysgol Y Fro in Barry, Ysgol Plasmawr'r catchment area of primary schools changed, pupils from Penarth, Cowbrdige and Creigiau are now diverted to Ysgol Y Fro. In additon, a reworking of the catchment areas between Plasmawr and Glantaf resulted in a higher intake of pupils from socially turbulent backgrounds, resulting in an increased additional-teaching facilities but a larger amount of pupils leaving the school at 16.

[edit] Teaching awards

Two of the school's teachers have been awarded Teaching Awards. Mrs Meinir Rees became the Wales SEN Teacher of the Year in 2005, and later that year became the UK SEN Teacher of the Year. The following year, Mr Geraint Rees became the Wales Secondary Headteacher of the Year and was runner up for the UK version of the Award.^{[citation needed]}