Highlight of the Week

Top Co-educational School in Wales 2012

STILL AT THE TOP

The publication this weekend of the GCSE ‘league tables' in the national press has confirmed the Cathedral School as one of the top performing schools in the country.

The school's 61 GCSE candidates attained, as have its other cohorts in previous years, very high grades; one third of all grades were A*s and a further third were As. The exact percentage of A*/A combined, 65.26% (pre-appeals) placed the school once again as the top performing co-educational school in Wales at GCSE. In the wider national context of the UK as a whole, this was the top performing co-educational school with no sixth form, and was ranked alongside such famous names as Fettes College, Oakham, Repton, King's Worcester.

Headmaster Stephen Morris writes; "We are delighted at our students' achievements once again. This year's cohort was weaker in profile than the previous year's, and yet they too have performed way beyond statistical expectations, so we rejoice not only in the raw grades but in the added value they represent to young men and women who would certainly not have done as well as they did in other school contexts." The school was inspected earlier this year by Estyn (HM Schools' Inspectorate for Wales) who, in judging the Cathedral School to be ‘excellent', commented upon the "culture of continuous improvement" and observed it is one of the highest performing schools in Wales".

The high academic results at GCSE set a very positive context for the school's expansion to A level; the sixth form begins in September 2013 and enquiries are being taken by the Registrar from the parents of talented Year 11 pupils in other schools for entry.