Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School, Bridgend
Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School is a secondary school for pupils in Bridgend.
- Estyn
- Not in follow-up
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School in detail
School in Wales
Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School is an English-medium school in Wales. Welsh schools are inspected by Estyn rather than Ofsted, and its latest report is published on Estyn's website.
It had 853 pupils in the 2025/26 school census.
16% of pupils are eligible for free school meals (three-year average).
Of its pupils, 3% have additional learning needs; 3% are learning English as an additional language; and 23% are from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.
Year groups range from 69 pupils (Year 13) to 150 (Year 7).
Its delegated budget for 2026-27 works out at £6,196 per pupil, against £4,753 in 2021-22. It carried forward £388k of reserves at the end of 2024-25.
What Estyn said
Estyn's most recent full inspection report on Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School dates from 2019.
Read the full Estyn report (school website)
Source: © Crown copyright, Estyn: "Inspection report – Archbishop McGrath Catholic School 2020". Quoted under Estyn's re-use terms.
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School are Brynteg Comprehensive School (1.1 miles), Bryntirion Comprehensive School (1.7 miles), Pencoed Comprehensive School (2.6 miles) and Coleg Cymunedol Y Dderwen (3.1 miles).
Brynteg Comprehensive SchoolBryntirion Comprehensive SchoolPencoed Comprehensive SchoolColeg Cymunedol Y Dderwen
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Bridgend Rail Station, about 1160 metres away (roughly a 14-minute walk).
8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Bryn y Cae (near), 240 metres away.
Sources: Welsh Government school data and StatsWales (OGL); Estyn; NaPTAN (Department for Transport)
Key Information
DfE GIASInspection
Schools in Wales are inspected by Estyn, not Ofsted. Read Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School's Estyn reports.
About
Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School is a secondary school located in Brackla, Bridgend.
From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
At a Glance
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Special Measures
Keep up with Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School is in Bridgend; for families living there:
Apply to Bridgend for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 4
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 0
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 4 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 4 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot.
0 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Bridgend is 4 (the median across 61 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Questions parents ask about Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School
What is the catchment area for Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School?
In Wales catchment areas are set by the local authority, so Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School has a defined catchment published by Bridgend. Living in it does not guarantee a place - when the school is oversubscribed Bridgend applies the published criteria, which usually put looked-after children first, then siblings, then distance - but it normally carries priority.
How do I apply to Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School?
Apply through Bridgend, naming Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School on your application. Welsh admission deadlines are set by each local authority rather than nationally, so check Bridgend's admissions pages for this year's closing date.
How many road collisions happen near Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 4 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 4 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot. 0 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Bridgend is 4 (the median across 61 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School?
Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School is at Oak Tree Way, Brackla, Bridgend, CF31 2DN.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)