Bryncelynnog Comprehensive School

Secondary · ages 11-19Council1,348 pupilsSixth formPontypridd Rhondda Cynon Taf

School Chooser Score

In line with
similar schools

Likely range 37 to 59

Out of 100. Better than 52% of the 50 schools most like it. Much the same over the last five years.

Best nine GCSE grades score372Wales 366

Attendance89.5%Wales 89.6%

Pupils from low-income families15%Wales 20%

Pupils with additional learning needs4%Wales 11%

Pupils on roll1,348

NeighbourhoodBelow-average income areaWelsh Index of Multiple Deprivation 2025

Bryncelynnog Comprehensive School is a council school in Pontypridd for pupils aged 11 to 19. It has 1,348 pupils. We give it 50 out of 100. That puts it in line with schools like it, ahead of 52% of the 50 schools most like it. Teaching is in English.

Penycoedcae Road, Beddau, Pontypridd, CF38 2AE01443 203411All details

Inspection

Schools in Wales are inspected by Estyn, not Ofsted. Since September 2022 Estyn's reports describe what a school does well and what it needs to work on, without giving a grade.

Estyn's latest report, and any follow-up visits, are on Estyn's website. The only schools given a formal label are those in special measures or needing significant improvement.

Find this school's Estyn reports My Local School (Welsh Government)

Results

GCSE results, summer 2025

Wales scores GCSEs in points rather than counting passes. Here is how the school compares with all secondaries in Wales.

Best nine GCSE grades score372

Wales 366

Official name: Capped 9 points score (interim)

English or Welsh score38.8

Wales 39.9

Official name: Literacy points score

Maths score38.8

Wales 36.9

Official name: Numeracy points score

Science score37.8

Wales 37.0

Official name: Science points score

Trend

Best nine GCSE grades score

2023 to 2025

Since 2023: -4Steady overall

All GCSE measures, year by year

Measure	2025	2024	2023	Rhondda Cynon Taf	Wales
Best nine GCSE grades scoreCapped 9 points score (interim)	372	367	376	381	366
English or Welsh scoreLiteracy points score	38.8	40.6	40.6	39.5	39.9
Maths scoreNumeracy points score	38.8	39.6	40.2	36.7	36.9
Science scoreScience points score	37.8	39.3	41.4	36.5	37.0
Welsh Baccalaureate scoreSkills Challenge Certificate points score	40.2	40.9	42.0	26.4	31.6
Best nine GCSE score: low-income pupilsCapped 9, eligible for free school meals	331	296	297	349	308

Interim measures published by the Welsh Government; no measures were published for 2020 to 2022.

Does every child do well here?

A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. 1 of the 4 gaps is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.

At GCSE, 2025

Best nine GCSE grades scoreLow-income pupils vs all pupils

331.4371.5

Gap 40.1England 57.9

Literacy pointsLow-income pupils vs all pupils

30.938.8

Gap 7.9

Numeracy pointsLow-income pupils vs all pupils

28.638.8

Gap 10.2

Science pointsLow-income pupils vs all pupils

26.537.8

Gap 11.3

First groupSecond groupEngland, each group

Low-income means the child gets free school meals. The Welsh figures are averaged over three years, and the grey marks show Wales rather than England.

Getting a place

There is no entrance test. The council hands out the places. Brothers and sisters of current pupils and other priority groups go first; after that, the closer you live, the better your chances.

Teaching is in English.

You apply through Rhondda Cynon Taf council, not the school.

Who goes here

Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.

Pupils on roll1,348

Pupils from low-income families15%Three-year average; Wales 20%

Pupils getting extra support4%Additional learning needs; Wales 11%

Pupils learning English1%First language is not English or Welsh

Black, Asian and minority ethnic pupils8%

LanguageEnglish mediumEnglish medium school / provision

NeighbourhoodBelow-average income areaIf Wales's neighbourhoods were split into ten groups from poorest to wealthiest, this one is in group 3 (Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation 2025)

How the mix of pupils has changed

Year	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals	14.8%	14.5%	15.5%	15.1%	15.0%	13.5%
Pupils getting extra supportAdditional learning needs (ALN)	4.4%	4.7%	6.6%	8.0%	16.8%	15.1%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language	1.0%	0.9%	1.0%	0.5%	0.5%	–
Black, Asian and minority ethnic pupilsBAME pupils	7.8%	7.8%	8.1%	6.5%	6.0%	5.1%

Attendance

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 89.5% of the time. Across secondary schools in Wales it was 89.6%. Wales doesn't publish figures on pupils who miss a lot of school, or on exclusions, for individual schools.

Attendance89.5%

Wales 89.6%

Official name: 100 minus overall absence

Trend

Attendance

2019 to 2025

Since 2019: -3.5%Steady overall

Staff and budget

From the Welsh Government's My Local School, 2025/26.

Budget per pupil£5,7052025/26, Wales £5,956

Trend

Budget per pupil (£)

2020 to 2026

Since 2020: +1,452Steady overall

The budget is the money the council gave the school to spend per pupil in 2025/26, £251 less than the Welsh average for secondary schools. Small and rural schools tend to get more per pupil.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m15912 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences

Local crime rate71 per 1,000 people22% lower than the England average

Nearest bus stop220 mSquare, 6 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest secondary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored

School	Type	Distance	Pupils	Ofsted	Score
Ysgol Garth Olwg	Council	1.5 miles	1,210	Estyn, no grade	78	Compare
Y Pant Comprehensive School	Council	2.3 miles	1,461	Estyn, no grade	94	Compare
Ysgol Afon Wen	Council	2.6 miles	1,165	Estyn, no grade	53	Compare
Cardinal Newman R.C. Comprehensive School	Roman Catholic	2.9 miles	980	Estyn, no grade	91	Compare
Tonyrefail Community School	Council	3.9 miles	1,707	Estyn, no grade	62	Compare
Ysgol Gyfun Cymer Rhondda	Council	4.0 miles	625	Estyn, no grade	36	Compare
Porth Community School	Council	4.7 miles	927	Estyn, no grade	76	Compare
Ysgol Bro Taf	Council	4.7 miles	902	Estyn, no grade	68	Compare

Secondary schools in Rhondda Cynon Taf Secondary schools in Pontypridd Best secondary schools in Wales

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Bryncelynnog Comprehensive School with the 50 schools in Wales whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 50 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats52%of schools with a similar mix of pupils

In the upper half of its group. Its score of 50 is about the same as the typical school in the group.

0Lowest of the group 4 · middle 49 · highest 97100

Nearby schools with a similar mix of pupils that score higher

Of those 50 schools, these are within 25 km and score at least five points more than Bryncelynnog Comprehensive School, nearest first. A school with the same kind of pupils and a higher score is the fairest sign that it gets more out of them.

School	Type	Distance	Pupils	Ofsted	Score
Y Pant Comprehensive School	Council	2.3 miles	1,461	Estyn, no grade	94	Compare
Cardinal Newman R.C. Comprehensive School	Roman Catholic	2.9 miles	980	Estyn, no grade	91	Compare
Tonyrefail Community School	Council	3.9 miles	1,707	Estyn, no grade	62	Compare
Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Plasmawr	Council	6.5 miles	1,181	Estyn, no grade	58	Compare
Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf	Council	7.0 miles	1,498	Estyn, no grade	93	Compare
Bryntirion Comprehensive School	Council	10.6 miles	1,258	Estyn, no grade	65	Compare
St John Baptist C.I.W. High School	Council	11.5 miles	946	Estyn, no grade	83	Compare
Newbridge School	Council	11.8 miles	1,010	Estyn, no grade	55	Compare

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 50 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 50% of secondary schools in Wales. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 37 to 59. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.

What we looked at	How much it counts	Against schools like it	Effect on the score	Based on
Results over three years	40%	in line	+0.08	2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 269 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils	25%	below	-0.11	Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 269 pupils
Attendance and behaviour	20%	in line	-0.01	2024/25; 1,348 pupils
Direction of travel over five years	15%	in line	+0.00	results and attendance rising year on year

Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.

Questions parents ask

Is Bryncelynnog Comprehensive School a good school?

It is about average. Bryncelynnog Comprehensive School scores 50 out of 100. That is in line with schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 52% of the 50 schools most like it in Wales. The score could fairly be anywhere from 37 to 59, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.

How many pupils does Bryncelynnog Comprehensive School have?

1,348 pupils aged 11 to 19.

Does Bryncelynnog Comprehensive School have a sixth form?

Yes.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address: Penycoedcae Road, Beddau, Pontypridd, CF38 2AE
Telephone: 01443 203411
Type of school: Council school (Community school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase: Secondary school, ages 11-19, with sixth form
Religious character: None
Local authority: Rhondda Cynon Taf
Ward: Beddau and Tyn-y-nant
Constituency: Pontypridd
Setting: Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
URN: 401806 · School number 6744019 · UKPRN 10008746
Language: English medium school / provision

Official record My Local School Download this school's data (CSV)

Recent changes

13 September 2026PhaseCode changed from “Secondary” to “Other”
13 September 2026TypeCode changed from “Community school” to “Welsh establishment”
13 September 2026Pupil numbers changed from “1348” to “–”
13 September 2026Free school meals % changed from “14.8” to “–”
13 September 2026ReligiousCharacter changed from “None” to “–”

Where these figures come from

School details: Department for Education Get Information About Schools and the Welsh Government address list of schools (this page rebuilt 13 September 2026).
Results, attendance, pupils, staff and budget: Welsh Government, My Local School, latest data to 2026.
Neighbourhood deprivation: Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation 2025 postcode lookup.
All under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Full list and update calendar.