Ysgol Garth Olwg facts for kids

Ysgol Garth Olwg, also known as Garth Olwg School in English, is a Welsh-medium comprehensive school. This means most subjects are taught in Welsh. The school is located in Church Village, near Pontypridd, in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. It was the first comprehensive school in South Wales to teach mainly in Welsh.

In 2009, there was a campaign to keep the school's old name, Ysgol Gyfun Rhydfelen. People wanted to remember the school's history. However, the local council decided to rename it Ysgol Gyfun Garth Olwg.

About Ysgol Garth Olwg

Ysgol Gyfun Garth Olwg is a Welsh-medium school. This means that all subjects, except English, are taught in the Welsh language.

Around 860 students attend the school. This includes students in the sixth form, which is for older students. About 92% of students come from homes where English is the main language. Only 8% come from homes where Welsh is the main language. The school publishes a magazine called Bytholwyrdd. It has been published every three months since 2006.

The school buildings are divided into five main blocks. These blocks are named Berthlwyd, Celyn, Drysgoed, Maendy, and Pentwyn.

Primary Schools that Feed into Garth Olwg

Ysgol Garth Olwg works with six primary schools. Students from these schools often go on to attend Ysgol Garth Olwg. These primary schools are:

• Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Castellau (in Beddau)
• Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Evan James (in Pontypridd)
• Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Garth Olwg (in Church Village)
• Ysgol Gynradd Heol-y-celyn
• Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Gwaelod y Garth
• Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Pont Sion Norton (in Pontypridd)

School Badges and Their Meanings

The Old School Badge

The old school badge showed a coal tip or a mountain of coal. Coal mining was very common in the area. The green part of the badge showed grass growing below. This design was meant to show that the Welsh language would grow strong, just like grass grows over a coal mountain.

The new school badge shows a mountain range. It is shaped like the letter 'G'. This 'G' stands for Garth Olwg and also for Gymraeg, which means the Welsh language. The mountain shown is Garth Mountain. The school gets its name from this mountain.

History of the School

Ysgol Rhydfelen, which is now Ysgol Gyfun Garth Olwg, first opened in 1962. It was located in the village of Rhydyfelin near Pontypridd. It was the first Welsh-language comprehensive school in South Wales. It was also the second one to open in all of Wales. In its first year, 80 students attended the school.

Gwilym Humphreys was the first headmaster of Ysgol Rhydfelen. He grew up in a mining village in Wales.

School Houses and Buildings

As the school grew, a house system was created. Students were grouped into different houses. In Welsh, these houses were called llysoedd. Until 1973, there were three houses: Dinefwr, Ifor Hael, and Sycharth. By 1973, the school had nearly 1,000 students. So, the number of houses increased to six. These new houses were named Dafydd, Gruffydd, Hywel, Iolo, Llywelyn, and Owain.

The school also had its own magazine called Na Nog. It was published once a year.

The school buildings were grouped into three main blocks. They were named after old Welsh kingdoms: Gwent, Powys, and Dyfed. The Gwent buildings were the oldest. Powys was a three-story building with classrooms, a canteen, a swimming pool, and staff offices. Dyfed was a two-story building with classrooms, a hall, and the school library. The school's gymnasium burned down and was replaced around 1977. The old Ysgol Rhydfelen buildings were open for a final visit on July 8, 2006. The entire school site was taken down in 2007. The old site also had a large rugby field and tennis courts.

New Campus

In September 2006, the school moved to a new location. This new site is part of the Gartholwg Community Campus complex in Church Village. This campus also includes a Welsh-medium primary school, a library, a nursery, and a lifelong learning centre.

In 2011, the school received a Band Five rating from the Welsh Assembly Government. This rating helps show how schools are performing.

School Name Change

When the school moved to the Garth Olwg campus in 2006, the Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council decided to change its name to Ysgol Gyfun Garth Olwg. They thought this name made sense for the new location. However, many people did not agree with this change. Students, parents, former students, and staff wanted to keep the old name, Ysgol Gyfun Rhydfelen. They felt it was important for the school's identity and history.

The petitions committee of the Welsh Assembly heard a petition about the name change in late 2007.

On March 16, 2009, the school's governing body announced its decision. They had met with local authority representatives. The governors were told that the legal name of the school was Ysgol Gyfun Garth Olwg. They realized they had to accept this. So, the governing body voted to officially recognize Ysgol Gyfun Garth Olwg as the school's name.

Even though the name was officially Garth Olwg, some local councillors still supported changing it back to Rhydfelen. The Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council discussed the issue again on April 22, 2009. However, they decided not to change the name back to Rhydfelen.

Examination Results

At GCSE level, 57% of students achieve at least five grades of A*-C. This includes grades in English or Welsh, and Maths.

Well-Known Former Students

Many notable people attended Ysgol Gyfun Rhydfelen before 2006.

• Actors: Richard Harrington, Ieuan Rhys, Jeremi Cockram, Daniel Evans, Richard Lynch, Lisa Palfrey, Maria Pride, and Geraint Todd.
• Computer Scientist: Rob Hartill is known for his work on the Internet Movie Database website and the Apache web server.
• Broadcasters and Journalists: Ciaran Jenkins, a BBC political reporter and presenter.
• Politicians: Jon Owen Jones MP, Bethan Jenkins AM, Delyth Evans (a former AM), and Dafydd Trystan Davies (a former Chief Executive of Plaid Cymru).
• Sports Players: Footballers Owain Warlow and Matthew Maksimovic. Also, Welsh international rugby player Kevin Morgan.
• Writers and Poets: Gwyneth Lewis, who was the first National Poet for Wales, Gwyn Morgan (writer), and Catrin Dafydd.
• Musicians: Singer-songwriter Katell Keineg.

Well-Known Former Staff Members

Huw Bunford, a guitarist in the rock band Super Furry Animals, used to be the Head of Art at the school.

John Owen, who created the Welsh children's television series Pam Fi Duw? and wrote books with the same name, was a Drama teacher at the school.

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