Porthcawl Comprehensive School, Bridgend
Porthcawl Comprehensive School is a secondary school for pupils in Bridgend.
- Estyn
- Not in follow-up
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Porthcawl Comprehensive School in detail
School in Wales
Porthcawl Comprehensive 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 1169 pupils in the 2025/26 school census.
13% of pupils are eligible for free school meals (three-year average).
Of its pupils, 3% have additional learning needs; 1% are learning English as an additional language; and 6% are from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.
Year groups range from 114 pupils (Year 12) to 204 (Year 10).
Its delegated budget for 2026-27 works out at £6,323 per pupil, against £4,779 in 2021-22. It carried forward £86k of reserves at the end of 2024-25.
What Estyn said
Estyn's most recent full inspection report on Porthcawl Comprehensive School dates from 2020.
Read the full Estyn report (school website)
Source: © Crown copyright, Estyn: "Inspection report Porthcawl Comprehensive School 2020 (English only)". Quoted under Estyn's re-use terms.
Porthcawl Comprehensive School in its own words
From the headteacher's welcome: "I warmly welcome you to Porthcawl Comprehensive School. We provide a caring and disciplined learning environment based on mutual respect in which all pupils develop their talents to the full. High quality learning alongside excellent care support and guidance is at the heart of our school."
Headteacher's welcome (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to Porthcawl Comprehensive School are Cynffig Comprehensive School (3.6 miles) and Coleg Cymunedol Y Dderwen (6.3 miles).
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Pyle Rail Station, about 3.2 miles away in a straight line.
4 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Porthcawl Comprehensive School (outside), 30 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 Porthcawl Comprehensive School's Estyn reports.
About
Porthcawl Comprehensive School, on the western side of Porthcawl town in Bridgend County Borough, has approximately 1,500 pupils, ages 11–18 and 80 teaching staff. The headteacher is Mr M Stephens.
From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
At a Glance
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Special Measures
Latest from Porthcawl Comprehensive School
From Porthcawl Comprehensive School's website. School Signal is not affiliated with the school.
Social & online
Keep up with Porthcawl Comprehensive School
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Porthcawl Comprehensive School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Porthcawl Comprehensive 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
- 3
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 0
- Children hurt
- 2
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 3 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 3 slight.
2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on foot.
1 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 Porthcawl Comprehensive School
What is the catchment area for Porthcawl Comprehensive School?
In Wales catchment areas are set by the local authority, so Porthcawl Comprehensive 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 Porthcawl Comprehensive School?
Apply through Bridgend, naming Porthcawl Comprehensive 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 Porthcawl Comprehensive School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 3 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 3 slight. 2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on foot. 1 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 Porthcawl Comprehensive School?
Porthcawl Comprehensive School is at 52 Park Avenue, Porthcawl, Bridgend, CF36 3ES.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)