Bishop Hedley High School


Bishop Hedley High School is a Roman Catholic secondary school, established in 1967, and located in Penydarren, Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales. The vast majority of the pupils of the school stem from the Heads of the Valleys, serving parishes from Aberdare, Hirwaun, Merthyr Tydfil, Merthyr Vale, Gurnos, Dowlais, Ebbw Vale, Tredegar and Rhymney. The school serves a catchment area of economic disadvantage which is a result of the decline of heavy industry, especially mining and steelmaking in the South Wales Valleys and the surrounding areas.
Bishop Hedley is a member of the Eco-Schools. As a school, it has gained a bronze, silver and a 1st green flag.

History

Bishop Hedley was established in 1967 due to the growing need to cater for the large populace of Catholic youth aged 11–18 in the Merthyr Tydfil and Heads of the Valleys area. However, the school welcomes pupils regardless of their religious background. The school was named after John Cuthbert Hedley, Bishop of Newport, who opened the first Roman Catholic Church in the Merthyr Valley in 1863. The school expanded to a second phase in 1973.

Subjects and curriculum

In KS3, pupil partake in English, Mathematics, Science, RE, ICT, Welsh, French, Art, History, Geography, Music, Design & Technology and Drama.
In KS4, pupils study English Language, English Literature, Science, Additional Science, Mathematics, Welsh, RE, and PSE. Pupils then have three choices out of ICT, Welsh, French, Art, History, Geography, Music, Design & Technology, Drama, Business Studies. Students are offered a 'boost class' in Year 11 if they choose not to do GCSE Full Course Welsh at the end of Year 9 so that they can change from the Short Course to Full Course. This has been a success and continues to be a success. It is run by the Head of Welsh, Mrs. Elaine Walters.
In Years 9–11, Science is taught separately as Chemistry, Biology and Physics. The EdExcel Science 360 specification is used at KS4 – but it is examined as a GCSE Science and Additional Science course. Shortly, the school hopes to offer the three sciences separately. In years 7 and 8, Spotlight Science is used.

Facilities

Bishop Hedley has a main hall, dance and drama studio, pottery room, gymnasium, two sports hall, football/rugby field, hockey pitch, three yards, three design and technology rooms, learning resources centre, music rehearsal room, two new 21st century science suites and 5 I.C.T. resources rooms The MFL department has a specific room on the top floor. There is also a specific SEN and EAL area.
The MFL department has a French assistant from France every academic year to help GCSE and AS/A2/A level pupils who are taking French. This assistant also improves their own teaching and language skills.
Classrooms are well-equipped, with every classroom having an electronic projector. This also aids the science department, which uses an on-board textbook for GCSE Science and GCSE Additional Science, as part of the EdExcel specification. The school has also invested in a Pisys system, which has proved a great investment for staff and pupils alike.
The facilities at Bishop Hedley were improved. 70% of the exterior of phase 2 is now completed, with the new colour red. Progress continues on completing the refurbishment of the exterior of phase 2. Bishop Hedley has also recently improved phase 1 main hall.

Recent school report

Estyn inspected Bishop Hedley in November 2007 and said "The school has many good features, of which some are outstanding." Religious education is inspected separately but at the same time. This was another positive report which said "The Catholicity of the school pervades all that goes on and provides a rich environment where pupils excel academically and grow spiritually. The school is highly effective in promoting Catholic values." It also said that "pupils at Key Stage 4 achieve high standards".
The report from Estyn in 2018 judged that standards, wellbeing and attitudes to learning and also care support and guidance were excellent, while teaching and learning experiences and also leadership and management were good.

40th anniversary

Bishop Hedley High School celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2008. The culmination of various celebrations was a mass held on Tuesday 24 June 2008. In the afternoon, Father Mike Evans led a mass for the pupils, while in the evening Archbishop Peter Smith led the celebrations. Pupils, staff, parish priests, parishioners, councillors, representatives of officers from Merthyr County Borough Council, representatives of our partnerships with external organisations and past pupils celebrated the mass with the Archbishop.
Music for the mass was composed by Mr. Peter Lewis, Head of Music and a tapestry was displayed which had been created by Mrs. A. Richards, Mrs. G. Jones and Year 8 pupils. During the mass, pupils sang and the bidding prayers were read in the different languages of the school community – Polish, Portuguese, Filipino, Welsh and English. The orchestra accompanied all the hymns. At the end of the mass the Archbishop blessed all the crosses from the classrooms in the school. He also blessed the large cross in the Main Hall, formed from individual ceramic tiles joined together to form one large cross, which was created by the ceramicist Christine Chivers and current students.

Community and charity events

Bishop Hedley High School is a primary location for the 3G's community group. Yearly, there is also an annual OAP party for the residents in the local area. The School also has a Charity Day every term in the school year. The last charity day raised over £1,100 for three charities – the Mayor's appeal, Breast cancer care and to help with the purchase of a land-rover in Tanzania.

Drama Department

A successful modern twist on an old classic saw pupils in Year 8 and 9 praised by the manager of the Shakespeare Festival when they performed Macbeth at the Taliesin Theatre in Swansea. Their contemporary version featured dancing witches who rocked around the cauldron to songs such as "Soulja Boy", "Welcome to the Jungle" and "Rock Star". The idea was to make the play more accessible and enjoyable for teenagers. The cast was praised for their mature performances and the manager of the Shakespeare Festival recommended that some of them try for the National Youth Theatre when they are 16.

Notable pupils