Ysgol Uwchradd Caergybi is a

secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...

Holyhead Holyhead (,; cy, Caergybi , "Cybi's fort") is the largest town and a community in the county of Isle of Anglesey, Wales, with a population of 13,659 at the 2011 census. Holyhead is on Holy Island, bounded by the Irish Sea to the north, and is ...

Anglesey Anglesey (; cy, (Ynys) Môn ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms a principal area known as the Isle of Anglesey, that includes Holy Island across the narrow Cymyran Strait and some islets and skerries. Anglesey island ...

. It claims to be the first

comprehensive school A comprehensive school typically describes a secondary school for pupils aged approximately 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is res ...

in England and Wales, opening in 1949 as Holyhead County School.

History

The school was formed in 1949 with the amalgamation of Holyhead Grammar and St Cybi Secondary school and became the first comprehensive in the UK. There was a number of reasons for the school to be the first "comp". The headmaster Mr Hughes was retiring and he was to be replaced by an enthusiast for Comprehensive education, Trefor Lovett. The new head became known as "the first apostle of the comprehensive movement."Holyhead County School
, Holyhead.com, accessed 12 August 2008 The transition was also assisted by the close proximity of St Cybi Secondary school and Holyhead Grammar; the schools that would be replaced. Obviously the backing of Anglesey Education Committee was essential. The changes that Lovett brought about were not unexpected as he had previously taught locally at

Vaynor Vaynor ( Welsh: ''Y Faenor'', meaning "The Manor") is a village and community (formerly a parish) in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough in Wales, United Kingdom. The population of the community at the 2011 census was 3,551. Location It is about f ...

and Penderyn schools. The new school was certain that a child's future should not be determined at age eleven with the

eleven plus exam The eleven-plus (11+) is a standardized examination administered to some students in England and Northern Ireland in their last year of primary education, which governs admission to grammar schools and other secondary schools which use academic ...

. Previously children in Wales had all sat an exam at the end of their

junior school A Junior school is a type of school which provides primary education to children, often in the age range from 8 and 13, following attendance at Infant school which covers the age range 5–7. (As both Infant and Junior schools are giving Primary E ...

education and this decided whether they would attend the

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...

or a

secondary modern school A secondary modern school is a type of secondary school that existed throughout England, Wales and Northern Ireland from 1944 until the 1970s under the Tripartite System. Schools of this type continue in Northern Ireland, where they are usually ...

. Lovett was convinced that this was unfair and that there should be a firm

catchment area In human geography, a catchment area is the area from which a location, such as a city, service or institution, attracts a population that uses its services and economic opportunities. Catchment areas may be defined based on from where people are ...

so that all the students irrespective of their background or abilities would attend the one school. After two years, the new head reported,

The school today

In 2006 there were approximately 850 pupils in the school which included about 100 in the sixth form.2006 Inspection of the school by Estyn
accessed 12 August 2008 The school had falling rolls in the years before and is much reduced since there were questions in the early 1960s in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

to then Education Minister

Chris Chataway Chris Chataway (born ) is an Australian Anglican priest and musician who has served as Dean of Perth since 1 February 2020. He previously served as Archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Cath ...

enquiring how the school was to cope with a roll of 1400 pupils.Hansard
22 November 1962 In 2010 the school exceeded the local authority's projected figures.Holyhead School to be Demolished
Daily Post, 24 July 2008, accessed 12 August 2008 Twelve per cent of the students are able to speak Welsh fluently and four per cent have Welsh as their first language. The catchment area of the school is mainly the town of Holyhead and the area around the school has been highlighted as an area for development with nearly 30% of households having no wage earner. Estyn visited the school in 2008 and commended the school with regards to teaching and pupil behaviour. Five years ago the school moved its sixth form out of the old red brick Cybi building and put that in the control of the local authority. Since then the building has become dilapidated and the education authority announced in 2008 it intended to demolish the building. The building was still standing as of 2012. As a result of the intervention of local county councillor, Robert Llewelyn Jones, CADW has given the façade a Grade 2 listing. This listing has prevented the local authority from continuing with its demolition plans and the site is now earmarked for a new super-primary school (subject to funding being available). At present virtually all pupils in the Ysgol Uwchradd Caergybi catchment area choose the school for their secondary education. The school's pupil numbers continues to rise and recent significant funding towards a new canteen/refrectory and technology block has succeeded in improving the school's facilities dramatically.

Notable former pupils

of the comprehensive

Glenys Kinnock Glenys Elizabeth Kinnock, Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead (''née'' Parry; born 7 July 1944), is a British politician and former teacher who served as Minister of State for Europe from June to October 2009 and Minister of State for Africa and the ...

, politician *

Tracey Morris Tracey Morris (born 9 September 1967) is a British long-distance runner. Early career Morris grew up in Anglesey, Wales and ran as a Welsh schoolgirl, but stopped running soon after. She moved to Leeds and in 1998, aged 30, she resumed runnin ...

, athlete *

Albert Owen Albert Owen (born 10 August 1959) is a Welsh people, Welsh Welsh Labour, Labour Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Ynys Môn (UK Parliament constituency), Ynys Môn from 2001 to 2 ...

, politicianAlbert Owen biography
Guardian, accessed 12 August 2008 * Tony Roberts, Former Welsh International and

QPR Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus R ...

goalkeeper *

Dawn French Dawn Roma French (born 11 October 1957) is a British actress, comedian, presenter and writer. French is known for writing and starring on the BBC comedy sketch show ''French and Saunders'' with her best friend and comedy partner, Jennifer Saunde ...

, comedian/actress

of predecessor schools

Cledwyn Hughes Cledwyn Hughes, Baron Cledwyn of Penrhos, (14 September 1916 – 22 February 2001) was a Welsh Labour Party politician, usually associated with the moderate wing of the party. He was also regarded, particularly in later years, as a non-politic ...

(1916–2002) Baron Cledwyn of Penrhos * David Williams (1877–1927) Professor in Pastoral Theology‘WILLIAMS, David’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, 1920–2007; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 200
accessed 22 Aug 2008
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References

{{authority control Educational institutions established in 1949 Secondary schools in Anglesey 1949 establishments in Wales Holyhead