Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni
Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni is a Welsh-medium school situated in the village of Fleur-de-Lys in the Rhymney Valley. Cwm Rhymni was founded in 1981 with just over 150 pupils and has since grown to 1,684 pupils, with 1,164 at the Gellihaf campus and 520 at Y Gwyndy.
The school's motto is “Tua'r Goleuni” and its badge is a dragon rampant. The school is traditionally represented by the colours red and black.
A new campus for Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni opened in the Caerphilly area in 2013 for years 7–11; Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni – Safle'r Gwyndy. The previous school is now called Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni – Safle Gellihaf to avoid confusion. The original Cwm Rhymni school was based in Aberbargoed and Bargoed.
History
Cwm Rhymni was originally situated on two sites: a Lower school for years 7–8 in Aberbargoed and an Upper school for years 9–13 in Bargoed. By the late 1990s these buildings were in very poor condition, and after a long struggle the school was finally granted permission to build a new state-of-the-art single-site building in Fleur-de-Lys, which opened in 2002. The new building was funded through PFI. The original headmaster of Cwm Rhymni was Mr Huw Thomas, succeeded by Mr Hefin Mathias in 1995, Mr Owain ap Dafydd in 2008, and Mr Matthew Webb in April 2020.1989 fire
The former St Ilan school was destroyed by arson in 1989. On Wednesday 8 November 1989, Gareth Curtis and Paul James were sentenced at Cardiff to three years; the fire cost £2.2 million.Headteachers
- 1981–1995 – Mr Huw Thomas
- 1995–2008 – Mr Hefin Mathias
- 2008–2020 – Mr Owain ap Dafydd
- 2020–present – Mr Matthew Webb
Cwm Rhymni has a wide catchment area stretching from Rhymney to Caerphilly, reflected in the names of the three main corridors at the Gellihaf campus: Ebwy, Sirhywi and Rhymni. Before the foundation of Ysgol Gyfun Gwynllyw in 1988, the catchment area included the county of Gwent, with pupils coming from as far as Newport and Chepstow.
The school’s four houses are named after Welsh saints: Mabon, Cadog, Tudful and Sannan. Tudful was added in the early 1990s. In 2009 a new house, Ilan, was introduced due to growing student numbers.
Primary feeder schools
Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni is the only Welsh-medium comprehensive school in the Caerphilly borough and is fed by 11 primary schools:- Ysgol Gymraeg Bro Allta
- Ysgol Gymraeg Bro Sannan
- Ysgol Gymraeg Cwm Derwen
- Ysgol Gymraeg Cwm Gwyddon
- Ysgol Gymraeg Caerffili
- Ysgol Gymraeg Gilfach Fargoed
- Ysgol Gymraeg Ifor Bach
- Ysgol Gymraeg Penalltau
- Ysgol Gymraeg Trelyn
- Ysgol Gymraeg Y Castell
- Ysgol Gymraeg Y Lawnt