Ysgol Glan Clwyd, Upper Denbigh Road, St Asaph

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The opening of Ysgol Glan Clwyd in 1956 was a milestone in the history of the Welsh language. This was the first secondary school with a formal remit to teach through the medium of Welsh. Since then Welsh-medium schools have become a mainstream part of the education system in all areas of Wales.

Ysgol Glan Clwyd began with 94 pupils in a former primary school in Rhyl. The first headmaster was Haydn Thomas. As more and more parents chose Welsh-medium education for their children, Ysgol Glan Clwyd outgrew the site and moved to the former grammar school in St Asaph in 1969. The grammar school was built in the 1870s and was replaced by Prestatyn High School in 1969.

Space at Ysgol Glan Clwyd became so short that in the late 1970s the youngest pupils were taught at the Kinmel camp, in Bodelwyddan. Pupil numbers peaked at c.1,300, before the school’s catchment area was reduced by the opening in 1981 of Ysgol y Creuddyn, the Welsh-medium secondary school near Llandudno.

Singer and actress Tara Bethan was educated at Ysgol Glan Clwyd. Daughter of wrestler Orig Williams (“El Bandito”), in 2008 she was one of 12 singers in the BBC TV show I’d Do Anything who competed for a role in the West End production of Oliver. She released a solo album in 2005 (Does Neb Yn Fy Nabod I, Sain Records) and later played a barmaid in the S4C soap opera Pobol y Cwm.

Theatr Elwy opened on the school site in 2005. Its auditorium can seat 250. It’s used for school plays and events, and as a community facility for meetings, concerts, film showings and other entertainment. It also provides a concert venue for the annual North Wales International Music Festival.

Postcode: LL17 0RP    View Location Map

Website of Ysgol Glan Clwyd

To continue the Words & Music Tour, walk along Upper Denbigh Road to the cathedral, where the next QR codes are due to be displayed Navigation next button