Parclewis Primary School, Pontypridd

Parclewis Primary 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 242 pupils in the 2025/26 school census.

15% of pupils are eligible for free school meals (three-year average).

Of its pupils, 5% have additional learning needs (25% in 2020/21); 34% are learning English as an additional language; and 43% are from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Year groups range from 20 pupils (Reception) to 38 (Year 4).

Its delegated budget for 2026-27 works out at £5,052 per pupil, against £3,384 in 2021-22. It carried forward £93k of reserves at the end of 2024-25.

Estyn's report on its May 2022 inspection summarises Parclewis Primary School like this:

"Parc Lewis Primary School has a warm and caring ethos. Pupils feel safe in the school and know that if they talk to a member of staff about something that is bothering them it will be dealt with promptly. Pupils who are experiencing periods of emotional stress receive good support and value the opportunities to talk to adults in a supportive and friendly atmosphere. A significant number of pupils join the school part of the way through their time in primary education. These pupils are supported well and fit into school life quickly. This is particularly true for pupils who have English as an additional language."

"Overall, pupils make strong progress from their starting points. Teachers have identified that many pupils need support to improve their reading and writing skills and are putting in place systems to do this. However, there are not always enough opportunities for pupils to produce extended pieces of writing as they move through the school, and their presentation and handwriting are often untidy. In a few classes, work is not always matched accurately to all pupils’ ability and a few pupils struggle to complete tasks successfully. Staff have positive and supportive working relationships with pupils and provide interesting learning experiences that pupils enjoy. Pupils have good opportunities to suggest activities that they would like to take part in and talk enthusiastically about their lessons."

"Pupils like coming to school. Leaders know the pupils and their community well. They are approachable and supportive and give pupils’ well-being a high priority. Their processes to identify general areas for improvement are sound overall but, following the pandemic, their monitoring is not always sharp enough to identify specific areas that require improvement."

Estyn made 3 recommendations: (1) Ensure that teachers provide the right level of challenge for all pupils; (2) Improve pupils' writing skills across the school; (3) Sharpen self-evaluation processes to ensure that action plans focus on specific areas for improvement.

The nearest other state primary schools to Parclewis Primary School are St Michael's R.C. Primary School (0.5 miles), Coedpenmaen County Primary School (0.7 miles), Ysgol G.G. Evan James (0.9 miles) and Coedylan Primary School (0.9 miles).

The nearest railway station is Trefforest Rail Station, about 530 metres away (roughly a 7-minute walk).

14 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Parc Lewis School (outside), 80 metres away.