Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf
Encyclopedia
Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf is the largest Welsh-medium school
in Wales
. It is located on Bridge Road, Llandaff North
, Cardiff
, on the banks of the river Taff. The name 'Glantaf' means 'The bank of the river Taf' in Welsh. Of the two Welsh-medium secondary schools serving Cardiff, it was the first to be established (the other being Ysgol Gymraeg Plasmawr
). Although all students speak Welsh and most have received Welsh-language primary education, 68% (as of 2005) come from homes where Welsh is not the first language.
Pupil numbers at the school increased into four figures during the mid-1980s, necessitating the annexing of the buildings of the old Waterhall School in Fairwater
to form the Ysgol Isaf (Lower School), which housed the First and Second forms (later Years 7 and 8) of the school from 1986. This split-site arrangement continued until the opening of Cardiff's second Welsh-medium Comprehensive School, Ysgol Gymraeg Plasmawr
, in 1998, from which point the Llandaff North site again housed the entirety of Glantaf's pupils.
differs in certain respects from the systems used elsewhere in the United Kingdom. Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf is a Welsh-medium school, which means that all lessons and all conversations within the school should take place in the Welsh language, and the speaking of English is frowned upon (though English lessons are taught mainly though the medium of English, where it is acceptable to speak the language).
Rugby Club, Cardiff City Football Club and the now-defunct Celtic Warriors
Rugby Club.
(house colour: yellow), Dyfrig
(green), Illtud
(red) and Teilo (blue). The four houses annually compete in the "Gŵyl Glantaf" (Glantaf Festival), in which there is a day of sports and a day of singing, playing instruments, reciting and numerous other events in the theme of the Eisteddfod.
Sport
Politics
Other
Welsh medium education
Education delivered through the medium of the Welsh language is known as Welsh medium education .Welsh medium education should be distinguished from the teaching of Welsh as an academic subject. Welsh as a subject is taught as first language in Welsh medium schools...
in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. It is located on Bridge Road, Llandaff North
Llandaff North
Llandaff North , is a community in the north of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. It is located in the north of Cardiff and can be considered a two part ward, each containing about half the population; a northern section of mainly middle class housing, and a southern section of mainly public...
, Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, on the banks of the river Taff. The name 'Glantaf' means 'The bank of the river Taf' in Welsh. Of the two Welsh-medium secondary schools serving Cardiff, it was the first to be established (the other being Ysgol Gymraeg Plasmawr
Ysgol Gymraeg Plasmawr
Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Plasmawr 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...
). Although all students speak Welsh and most have received Welsh-language primary education, 68% (as of 2005) come from homes where Welsh is not the first language.
History
Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf was founded in 1978, initially sharing premises with the English-language Glantaf High School, before expanding to occupy the entire building. Its first Headmaster was Mr. J E Malcolm Thomas, who was succeeded upon his retirement in 1995 by Mr. Huw S Thomas, and then by Headmistress Mrs. Rhiannon Lloyd from Rhydywaun School. In early 2010, the Board of Governors announced that from September 2010 the former Head of Rhydywaun School would take over from Mrs Rhiannon Lloyd. From September 2010 Mr Alun Davies has taken over as Headmaster.Pupil numbers at the school increased into four figures during the mid-1980s, necessitating the annexing of the buildings of the old Waterhall School in Fairwater
Fairwater, Cardiff
Fairwater is a district in the west of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It is located a few miles from Culverhouse Cross which connects Cardiff to the M4 motorway.- History :The name Tyllgoed, meaning "dark wood" goes back to the 15th century...
to form the Ysgol Isaf (Lower School), which housed the First and Second forms (later Years 7 and 8) of the school from 1986. This split-site arrangement continued until the opening of Cardiff's second Welsh-medium Comprehensive School, Ysgol Gymraeg Plasmawr
Ysgol Gymraeg Plasmawr
Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Plasmawr 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...
, in 1998, from which point the Llandaff North site again housed the entirety of Glantaf's pupils.
Welsh-medium education
Education in WalesEducation in Wales
Education in Wales differs in certain respects from education elsewhere in the United Kingdom. For example, a significant number of students all over Wales are educated either wholly or largely through the medium of Welsh: in 2008/09, 22 per cent of classes in maintained primary schools used Welsh...
differs in certain respects from the systems used elsewhere in the United Kingdom. Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf is a Welsh-medium school, which means that all lessons and all conversations within the school should take place in the Welsh language, and the speaking of English is frowned upon (though English lessons are taught mainly though the medium of English, where it is acceptable to speak the language).
Ethos
The school's motto is , which translates to 'A Country's Crown is Her Mother Tongue'. The school colours of light and dark blue reflect Glantaf's Cardiff location, as they are also the official colours of Cardiff BluesCardiff Blues
Cardiff Blues are one of the four professional Welsh regional rugby union teams. Based in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, the team have played at Cardiff City Stadium since the start of the 2009/2010 season and are owned by Cardiff Rugby Football Club....
Rugby Club, Cardiff City Football Club and the now-defunct Celtic Warriors
Celtic Warriors
The Celtic Warriors were a regional rugby union team from Wales, who played in the Celtic League and Heineken Cup between 2003 and 2004.-History:The Warriors were one of the five original regions of the Welsh Regional Rugby Era...
Rugby Club.
Houses
The school's four houses are named after Welsh saints: DewiSaint David
Saint David was a Welsh Bishop during the 6th century; he was later regarded as a saint and as the patron saint of Wales. David was a native of Wales, and a relatively large amount of information is known about his life. However, his birth date is still uncertain, as suggestions range from 462 to...
(house colour: yellow), Dyfrig
Dubricius
Saint Dubricius was a 6th century Briton ecclesiastic venerated as a saint. He was the evangelist of Ergyng and much of South-East Wales.-Biography:Dubricius was the illegitimate son of Efrddyl, the daughter of King Peibio Clafrog of Ergyng...
(green), Illtud
Illtud
Illtyd , was a Welsh saint, founder and abbot of Llanilltud Fawr in the Welsh county of Glamorgan...
(red) and Teilo (blue). The four houses annually compete in the "Gŵyl Glantaf" (Glantaf Festival), in which there is a day of sports and a day of singing, playing instruments, reciting and numerous other events in the theme of the Eisteddfod.
Results
In 2008, 76% of pupils at GCSE (or equivalent) (ages 15 to 16) year achieved 5 or more A* - C grades at GCSE, and 76% of pupils at A/AS level (or equivalent) (ages 17 to 18) achieved two or more A - C grades.Plasmawr
As the only other Welsh high school in the area there has always been competition between Glanatf and Plasmawr, but recent statistics (2011) suggest that Glantaf is a marginally better school (by approximately 3.1 points on the matchensci scale for schools).Notable former pupils
Acting, music and literature- Ioan GruffuddIoan GruffuddIoan Gruffudd is a Welsh actor.Trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he started off in Welsh language film productions, then came to international attention as Fifth Officer Harold Lowe in the film Titanic , and as Lt. John Beales in Black Hawk Down...
Actor - Matthew RhysMatthew RhysMatthew Rhys Evans , known professionally as Matthew Rhys, is a Welsh actor, best known as Kevin Walker on the U.S. ABC family drama Brothers & Sisters, and as Dylan Thomas in The Edge of Love.-Early life:...
Actor - Iwan Rheon actor
- Matthew PritchardMatthew PritchardMathew Pryderi Pritchard , is a Welsh professional skateboarder, daredevil and one quarter of the Dirty Sanchez crew, who have their own television programme on MTV and also appears on Balls of Steel with Pancho as the Pain Men.-Dirty Sanchez:Pritchard is often seen as the founder of Dirty Sanchez,...
Television presenter - Llwyd OwenLlwyd OwenLlwyd Owen is an award-winning Welsh-language fiction author born in Cardiff in 1977. He lives in Cardiff with his wife and daughter and works as a translator when not writing fiction...
Welsh-language author - Huw BunfordHuw BunfordHuw "Bunf" Bunford is the guitarist in the rock band, Super Furry Animals.-Biography:...
Member of the Super Furry Animals - Guto PryceGuto PryceGuto Dafydd Pryce is a bass guitar player in the band Super Furry Animals.The name Guto is pronounced in Welsh....
Member of the Super Furry Animals - Ceiri TorjussenCeiri TorjussenCeiri Torjussen is a composer who has contributed music to dozens of film and television productions in the U.S.His music was described by the Los Angeles Times as a “sudden bolt of creative lightning”, and he was hailed in a UK newspaper as one of the brightest British musical talents in recent...
Hollywood film score composer and orchestrator - Gethin JonesGethin JonesGethin Clifford Jones is a Welsh television presenter who has co-presented the BBC children's programme Blue Peter....
Television presenter and former Blue Peter presenter - Huw StephensHuw StephensHuw Stephens is a radio presenter currently broadcasting shows on BBC Radio 1.-Early life and career:Stephens was born in Cardiff, Wales, the son of the author and literary journalist Meic Stephens...
BBC Radio One DJ - Gwenno SaundersGwenno SaundersGwenno Saunders is a British dancer and solo artist. She is best known as a singer and keyboardist with The Pipettes, and is also known by the name Gwenno Pipette.-Biography:...
Pop singer (The PipettesThe PipettesThe Pipettes are a British indie pop girl group formed in 2003 in Brighton by "svengali" Robert "Monster Bobby" Barry. The group has released two albums, We Are the Pipettes, and Earth vs...
) - Jeremy Huw WilliamsJeremy Huw WilliamsJeremy Huw Williams is a Welsh baritone opera singer who studied at Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf, St John's College, Cambridge, at the National Opera Studio, and with April Cantelo....
Opera singer - Dyfed Wyn-EvansDyfed Wyn-EvansDyfed Wyn-Evans is a baritone opera singer who grew up in Dinas Powis, Glamorgan. He attended Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf and went on to study at the Royal Northern College of Music and the Vienna Conservatoire...
Opera singer - Anthony Stuart LloydAnthony Stuart LloydAnthony Stuart Lloyd is a baritone opera singer from Wales. He attended school at Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf, and then studied at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama...
Opera singer - Paul Carey JonesPaul Carey JonesPaul Carey Jones is a baritone opera singer.-Education:Jones attended Ysgol Gymraeg Melin Gruffydd and Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf...
Opera singer
Sport
- Nicky Robinson Rugby Union player, Cardiff Blues & Wales
- Jamie RobinsonJamie RobinsonJamie Peter Robinson is a Wales international rugby union footballer who currently plays for Agen at outside centre. He attended Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf with younger brother Nick Robinson. He is known for his saloon door defence, blistering pace and ability to beat defenders.Robinson came to...
Rugby Union player, Cardiff Blues & Wales - Jamie RobertsJamie RobertsJamie Roberts is a Welsh international rugby union footballer currently playing for Cardiff Blues in the RaboDirect Pro12. He also plays for the Wales and the British and Irish lions.Roberts' position of choice is as a centre....
Rugby Union player, Cardiff Blues & Wales - Lee Thomas (rugby player)Lee Thomas (rugby player)Lee Thomas is a Welsh rugby union player. His first professional club was Cardiff RFC which he joined in 2002. He then played for Pontypridd RFC and Celtic Warriors from 2003 until the Warriors disbanded in 2004, he returned to the capital where he stayed for two years with the Cardiff Blues until...
Rugby Union player - Tom IsaacsTom IsaacsTom Isaacs is a Welsh rugby union player. A scrum half, he represented the Wales national rugby union team squad in 2009 and was part of the squad that won the 7s World Cup in Dubai....
Rugby Union, Ospreys, Rugby Sevens, Wales
Politics
- Eluned Morgan Member of the European Parliament
Other
- Ffion Jenkins Wife of William HagueWilliam HagueWilliam Jefferson Hague is the British Foreign Secretary and First Secretary of State. He served as Leader of the Conservative Party from June 1997 to September 2001...
MP