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Fitzalan High School Ysgol Uwchradd Fitzalan | |
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Address | |
Leckwith Road, Canton , CF11 8AP Wales | |
Coordinates | 51°28′37″N 3°12′47″W / 51.477°N 3.213°W |
Information | |
Type | Community secondary school |
Motto | Learning together to be the best we can be. |
Established | 1953 |
Local authority | City of Cardiff Council |
Department for Education URN | 401877 Tables |
Headteacher | Cath Bradshaw |
Teaching staff | 120.2 (on an FTE basis)[1] |
Gender | Mixed |
Age range | 11–18 |
Enrolment | 1,709 (2018)[1] |
Student to teacher ratio | 14.2[1] |
Language | English[1] |
Houses |
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Colour(s) | Green, black, maroon |
Publication | Fitzalan News/Newyddion Fitzalan |
Website | www |
Fitzalan High School (Welsh: Ysgol Uwchradd Fitzalan) is an 11–18 mixed, English-medium community secondary school and sixth form in Canton, Cardiff, Wales.
Fitzalan High School has links to Cardiff's first municipal secondary school at Howard Gardens, Adamsdown in 1884. The school later became Howardian High School and a Grammar School in 1941. Much of the school was subsequently destroyed by incendiary bombs in the Cardiff Blitz[2] during the night of 3–4 March 1941 in World War II. The school's girls and boys relocated to newly built buildings, Lady Margaret High School for Girls (1948) and Howardian High School for Boys (1953), in Penylan.[3]
After the war the building at Howard Gardens was partially repaired.[4] A new technical school was opened in September 1953 with around 200 boys. It was officially named ‘Fitzalan Technical High School’ in December 1953.
The Howard Gardens site was to be re-developed (as Cardiff School of Art & Design) and Fitzalan Technical High School acquired new premises on the present site in Lawrenny Avenue, Canton, Cardiff which were opened on Tuesday 3 March 1964. In January 1968 the school was renamed Fitzalan High School (dropping 'Technical'), becoming a comprehensive school.
It was announced in 2017 that Fitzalan High School would be one of three major secondary schools in Cardiff to be completely rebuilt and replaced as part of City of Cardiff Council's £284 million improvement plans.[5]
Pupils are grouped according to their abilities with the more able pupils placed in an express set. Pupils with special educational needs receive specialist support in class to ensure that they can access the curriculum fully.[6] The school has four Houses: Dewi, Llewellyn, Glyndwr, and Hywel. The school has a website, and issues a regular newsletter on school activities. A School Council exists for pupils to raise any issues through this forum. It has many community links and local residents and interest groups, who are allowed to use the extensive facilities. The school has an established and published policy on 'anti-bullying' for all pupils. A Parent Teacher Association (PTA) was formed in 1978 called the ‘Friends of Fitzalan‛. It supports the school, raises funds, and helps organise social events.
In 2007 the school embarked on a program to reduce its carbon footprint after an audit by the Carbon Trust. Steps taken included installing "eco-quiet" computers, one of which was to be powered by a demonstration wind turbine.[7]
The school was awarded the NAACE Mark for excellence in the use of ICT in November 2005.[8]
The school campus includes two gymnasia, a multi use dance studio, two indoor multi-use halls, two fitness suites, a sports hall, a swimming pool, four grass football and rugby pitches and an artificial cricket square. In addition daily access to the Gol Centre, comprising twelve five-a-side artificial football pitches, the Welsh International Athletics Stadium and artificial sports pitches. BTEC sport lessons take place both in the school and in Cardiff City Football Club.
In January 2020 a class of fifteen to sixteen-year-olds, who had had the same maths teacher since they started the school in year 7, all passed their mathematics GCSE six months ahead of schedule and all achieved A*, the top grade. Only 13% of pupils in Wales who had sat the WJEC GCSE the previous year had achieved A or A*. The achievement was widely reported in the British, Cameroonian and international media with the teacher Francis Elive described as 'The Maths Whisperer'.[11][12][13][14][15]
Fitzalan Technical High School, Howard Gardens
Fitzalan Technical High School, Leckwith
Fitzalan High School, Leckwith (as a comprehensive school)
Fitzalan High School is inspected every six years by the independent statutory body Estyn, as part of the Welsh national programme of school inspection, funded by the Welsh Government. In 2017 they gained a rare "double excellent".[18]