Penyrenglyn Primary School, Treorchy

Penyrenglyn 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 197 pupils in the 2025/26 school census.

33% of pupils are eligible for free school meals (three-year average).

Of its pupils, 9% have additional learning needs (16% in 2020/21); 4% are learning English as an additional language; and 9% are from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Year groups range from 14 pupils (Reception) to 38 (Year 5).

Estyn's report on its November 2023 inspection summarises Penyrenglyn Primary School like this:

"Penyrenglyn Community Primary School is an inclusive, caring school that places a high priority on the importance of developing positive relationships with staff, pupils, parents and the wider community. Nearly all pupils feel safe in school and display a sense of pride in their achievements. Staff care about the pupils and provide suitable interventions to support their well-being. The recently appointed headteacher has begun to make positive changes to strengthen the leadership team and the role of the governing body. There are increased opportunities for governors to link with other staff members to gather first- hand information on the school’s strengths and areas to develop. In a short time, leaders have strengthened partnership working between school and families and this is helping to improve pupil and family engagement in school life."

"Overall, the majority of teaching is appropriate. Teachers plan a range of experiences for pupils and make suitable use of the local area to engage pupils in their learning as well as develop a sense of pride in the local heritage and culture. However, teachers do not always use ongoing assessments to plan learning that meets the needs of all pupils. They do not build on pupils’ learning well enough, especially when developing pupils’ writing skills. Whole school self-evaluation and monitoring processes are at an early stage of development. When leaders use assessments accurately, plan relevant training and implement actions to improve the quality of teaching and provision, positive outcomes in learning are achieved."

"This is evident in the progress pupils make in reading. However, overall, there is limited use of first-hand evidence to inform self- evaluation, and monitoring does not focus well enough on the impact of teaching on pupils’ learning and progress. There is a strong sense of teamwork among staff and governors and a clear vision and desire to develop the school’s curriculum and improve outcomes for all pupils. Whilst at an early stage of development, leaders are working closely with other schools and partners to strengthen staff knowledge and widen pupils’ knowledge, skills and experience."

Estyn made 3 recommendations: (1) Improve self-evaluation, monitoring and improvement planning to ensure that it focuses on the aspects most in need of improvement; (2) Improve the quality of teaching and assessment to ensure that lessons meet the needs of all learners; (3) Ensure that teachers plan opportunities for pupils to improve and refine their writing skills to make the progress they are capable of.

The nearest other state primary schools to Penyrenglyn Primary School are Ysgol G.G. Ynyswen (0.4 miles), Treorchy Primary School (1.1 miles), Parc Primary School (1.2 miles) and Penpych Community Primary School (1.4 miles).

The nearest railway station is Ynyswen Rail Station, about 670 metres away (roughly a 8-minute walk).

9 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Baglan Hotel (after), 110 metres away.