Olchfa School ( cy, Ysgol Gyfun yr Olchfa) is the largest secondary school in

Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...

, South

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, with approximately 1,700 pupils, including 357 in the Sixth Form. Situated in Sketty Park to the west of

Sketty The suburban district of Sketty ( cy, Sgeti) is about 2 miles (3.2 km) west of the Swansea city centre on Gower Road. It falls within the Sketty council ward of Swansea. It is also a community. Description The area approximates to the Vivi ...

, it provides secondary education for

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...

and

A-Level The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational aut ...

qualifications. Olchfa (part of the Sketty Swansea suburb) means 'washing place' in the English language. Around 12% of pupils have a special educational need and 1.7% have a statement of special educational needs. Both of these figures are below the Welsh averages of 21.5% and 2% respectively. Nearly a quarter of pupils come from an ethnic minority background and just over 20% speak English as an additional language.

Academic performance

In its most recent

Estyn Estyn is the education and training inspectorate for Wales. Its name comes from the Welsh language verb ''estyn'' meaning "to reach (out), stretch or extend". Its function is to provide an independent inspection and advice service on quality ...

inspection in 2018, Olchfa School received the highest possible judgement, 'Excellent' in all five inspection areas. In the same year, the school reported a

pass rate of 83% (based on 5 GCSEs, grades A*-C), placing it in the top six schools in Wales.

Facilities

The school consists of different sections - the main building, a south block, P.E. department as well as a maths and science block. The school also consists of smaller demountable classrooms throughout the plot that teach a variety of subjects. There is also an on-site specialist facility supporting the needs of hearing impaired pupils.

Notable former pupils

Sports * Daniel Alfei, Welsh U21 International and former Swansea City footballer. *

Simon Davey Simon Davey (born 1 October 1970 in Swansea) is a Welsh former professional footballer and football manager. He is now Head Director of a youth club in America called Southern Soccer Academy. He played for Swansea City, Carlisle United and Pr ...

, former Swansea City footballer and football manager *

Aaron Lewis Aaron Lewis (born April 13, 1972) is an American musician who is best known as the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist and founding member of the nu metal band Staind, with whom he released seven studio albums. Since 2010, he has pursued a solo ca ...

, Welsh U21 International and Newport County footballer * Mark Harris, Welsh International and Cardiff City footballer *

David Hemp David Lloyd Hemp (born 8 November 1970) is a former Bermudian cricketer. He is a left-handed batsman and a right-arm medium-pace bowler, who has played domestic cricket for Glamorgan, Free State, and Warwickshire. David has a younger brother, ...

, Bermudan International Cricketer * Charles Lowen, English International Cricketer *

Richie Rees Richie Rees (born 21 May 1983) is a former Wales international professional rugby union player. He played as a scrum-half. He is now the attack coach for Cardiff Rugby. Club Rees started his rugby career at Dunvant RFC. He then played for the ...

, Rugby Player *

Ellie Simmonds Eleanor May Simmonds, OBE (born 11 November 1994) is a British former Paralympian swimmer who competed in S6 events. She came to national attention when she competed in the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing, winning two gold medals for Gre ...

OBE,

Paralympian The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...

Gold Medalist Swimmer
Harrison Walsh
F64 Discus Commonwealth and European bronze medalist * Other * Richard Barrett, Composer * *

Russell T Davies Stephen Russell Davies (born 27 April 1963), better known as Russell T Davies, is a Welsh screenwriter and television producer whose works include '' Queer as Folk'', '' The Second Coming'', ''Casanova'', the 2005 revival of the BBC One scie ...

, Television Writer * Sir Andrew Dilnot, Economist *

Joe Dunthorne Joe Dunthorne (born 1982) is a Welsh novelist, poet and journalist. He made his name with his novel ''Submarine'' (2008), made into a film in 2010. His second novel, ''Wild Abandon'' (2011), won the RSL Encore Award. A selection of his poems w ...

, poet and author"Shooting of movie adaptation surreal experience for writer"
"This is South Wales", 20 November 2009, accessed 24 August 2011. *

Liz Fuller Elizabeth Angela Fuller (born 30 December 1975) is a Welsh television presenter, actress, model and media personality, who is also known for being Miss Great Britain 1996 – 97. Fuller is the former owner of the Miss Great Britain pageant from ...

, Presenter, Actress and Model * Stephen Harris, rock musician with stage name "Kid Chaos" *

Georgia Henshaw Georgia Henshaw (born 11 July 1993) is a Welsh actress best known for her roles on British television. Among her leading roles have been those of Rosie, a member of "The Ace Gang" in '' Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging'', and as JJ's love in ...

, Actress *

Nerys Jefford Dame Nerys Angharad Jefford, styled The Honourable Mrs Justice Jefford, DBE (born 25 December 1962) is a High Court Judge of England and Wales. Early life She was born in Swansea, Wales and educated at Olchfa School, and graduated from La ...

, High Court judge * Andrew Jones, Film producer * Heather Nicholson, animal rights activist

References

External links

School website
{{Authority control Secondary schools in Swansea 1969 establishments in Wales