Ysgol Uwchradd Caergybi, Ynys Mn

Ysgol Uwchradd Caergybi is a Welsh-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 813 pupils in the 2025/26 school census.

24% of pupils are eligible for free school meals (three-year average).

Of its pupils, 20% have additional learning needs (31% in 2020/21); and 6% are from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Year groups range from 55 pupils (Year 13) to 164 (Year 9).

Its delegated budget for 2026-27 works out at £7,056 per pupil, against £5,167 in 2021-22. It carried forward £953k of reserves at the end of 2024-25.

Estyn's report on its February 2025 inspection summarises Ysgol Uwchradd Caergybi like this:

"There is a palpable sense of community in Ysgol Uwchradd Caergybi, where staff are dedicated to supporting pupils’ well-being. This commitment is underpinned by the headteacher’s vision of inclusivity and high expectations for pupils. The headteacher provides compassionate leadership and is supported by a committed senior leadership team. Leaders have worked effectively to stabilise the school following operational challenges caused by RAAC (Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete). However, leadership has not had sufficient impact on improving the quality of teaching and pupils’ skills development. In most lessons, there are positive relationships between teachers and pupils, contributing to a calm and productive atmosphere. The majority of teachers establish effective classroom routines and offer pupils suitable learning activities. In these lessons, most pupils demonstrate positive attitudes towards learning, follow instructions attentively, and collaborate effectively. In a very few cases, inspirational teaching leads to exceptional progress. However, in a minority of cases, pupils make limited progress due to a lack of challenge, weak questioning, unclear learning objectives, and poor lesson planning."

"Despite recent improvements in planning, the school’s provision for developing pupils’ reading skills is too limited. More than a half of pupils have weak reading skills upon entry and do not make sufficient progress in this aspect over time. Overall, opportunities for extended writing are purposeful, though a minority of pupils struggle with grammatical accuracy and spelling. Many pupils apply basic mathematical concepts suitably, but they do not receive enough opportunities to develop these skills in subjects other than mathematics. The school has made notable progress in promoting the Welsh language. Pupils in the ‘Uned Iaith’ benefit from language immersion, while the newly introduced bilingual stream in Year 7 further strengthens the school’s commitment to fostering a bilingual environment. In general, pupils learning Welsh as a second language make appropriate progress although they often lack confidence when speaking. The curriculum is broad and balanced, providing a wide range of subject choices at Key Stage 4 and post-16. The school works successfully with partner schools to enhance its sixth-form offer, ensuring pupils can access a diverse range of courses. The school’s personal and social education (PSE) programme is well-structured and relevant."

"There is a wide variety of enrichment activities, including clubs, cultural visits, and leadership opportunities. Attendance is a significant concern. While there has been a slight improvement this academic year, attendance rates are well below pre-pandemic levels and lower than those in similar schools. A significant gap exists between the attendance of all pupils and those eligible for free school meals. Leaders have implemented tracking systems to monitor attendance, but they do not analyse trends frequently enough to identify emerging patterns of absence. The school has recently re-established its quality assurance processes. However, leaders tend to focus on compliance with school policy rather than the impact of teaching on learning. While the governers are very supportive, they do not always offer a stuiable level of challenge to leaders."

Estyn made 5 recommendations: (1) Improve attendance and punctuality; (2) Improve the quality of teaching, especially the level of challenge offered to pupils; (3) Improve the provision for developing pupils’ oracy, reading and numeracy skills; (4) Improve self-evaluation and improvement planning, ensuring that leaders evaluate provision in light of its impact on pupils’ progress and well-being; (5) Ensure that the governing body offers suitable challenge to leaders.

The nearest railway station is Holyhead Rail Station (Main Entrance), about 700 metres away (roughly a 9-minute walk).

7 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Ysgol Gynradd Caergybi (outside), 90 metres away.