Ysgol Brynhyfryd, Denbighshire

Ysgol Brynhyfryd is a bilingual (Welsh and English) school in Wales. Welsh schools are inspected by Estyn rather than Ofsted, and its latest report is published on Estyn's website.

It had 1096 pupils in the 2025/26 school census.

9% of pupils are eligible for free school meals (three-year average).

Of its pupils, 3% have additional learning needs (16% in 2020/21); 2% are learning English as an additional language; and 8% are from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Year groups range from 84 pupils (Year 13) to 200 (Year 10).

Its delegated budget for 2026-27 works out at £6,672 per pupil, against £5,849 in 2021-22. It ended 2024-25 with a deficit of £86k.

Estyn's report on its October 2023 inspection summarises Ysgol Brynhyfryd like this:

"Ysgol Brynhyfryd is a caring school that places a priority on pupils’ well-being and academic progress. Senior leaders create a safe learning environment in which pupils and staff thrive. As a result, most pupils have a strong sense of pride and belonging to the school community. The headteacher has an open-door policy and has succeeded in creating a culture of honesty and collaboration among staff. Leaders at all levels have a good understanding of the main strengths and areas for improvement within their areas of responsibility. This is based on new self-evaluation and improvement planning arrangements which evaluate provision according to its effect, for example the effect of teaching on pupils’ standards. With the support of senior leaders, the headteacher has developed shared whole-school values in partnership with stakeholders."

"Through their good understanding of pupils and their needs, staff provide careful pastoral support. The comprehensive systems for tracking academic progress and well-being ensure that staff identify any difficulties that individual pupils have quickly and provide timely support. Although pupils’ attendance has been consistent over the past two years, it remains too low compared to pre-pandemic levels. The team that supports pupils with additional learning needs (ALN) does this successfully by providing suitable interventions and clear guidance for staff. The school provides a balanced and inclusive curriculum that meets the needs of most pupils. This is reinforced by wide ranging and varied offer of courses that align with the aspirations of the school’s older pupils. On the whole, many teachers plan suitable activities to ensure that pupils develop their literacy, numeracy and digital skills."

"However, there is no developed whole-school strategy to ensure pupils’ progressive development in these skills. In most cases, teachers foster positive working relationships with their pupils. They create a positive working environment and, as a result, most pupils have healthy attitudes towards their work and make sound progress over time. These teachers support pupils well, by providing valuable verbal feedback while circulating the classroom. However, teachers’ written feedback on pupils’ work does not always provide them with clear enough guidance on how to improve their work."

Estyn made 3 recommendations: (1) Improve attendance; (2) Strengthen the quality of feedback that is given to pupils on how to improve their work; (3) Strengthen the strategic co-ordination for pupils’ progressive development in their literacy, numeracy and digital skills.

There is no railway, tram or Underground station within about three miles of Ysgol Brynhyfryd.

4 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Ysgol Brynhyfryd (opposite), 160 metres away.