Porth County Community School

Coordinates: 51°36′18″N 3°24′54″W / 51.605°N 3.415°W / 51.605; -3.415

Porth County Community School is a secondary school located in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales.^[9][10] The school was formed in 1973 by the amalgamation of two leading grammar schools, Porth County Girls and Porth County Boys, along with the amalgamation of the Secondary Modern Schools of Llwyncelyn, Trealaw and Ynyshir. After attending primary school, children from Porth are most likely to attend this school for their secondary school education. Children of various ages attend the school, ranging from 11–18 years old.^[11]

History

Historical painting of 'Porth Higher Elementary School' by an unknown artist. Circa. 1905.

The origins of the school dates back to the creation of ‘Porth Higher Elementary School’ in 1904. The school catered for 240 pupils under the headmaster ship of John Stradling Grant. The school wasn’t opened to the public until January 19, 1905. After a tour of the school, the ceremony was performed by Mr W. E. Thomas (the chairman of the ‘Rhondda Education Committee’) in the absence of Mr W. G. Howell (the ‘Director of Education’) due to ill-health. At the time the vast majority of children in the Rhondda were born into poverty. There was a great deal of controversy over providing further education in the Rhondda. Tom John (editor of the ‘Rhondda Leader’ and the first Welshman to become president of the ‘National Union of Teachers’) said that “there was a laborious effort made by several speakers at the meeting [the opening ceremony] to dissipate the fear that this splendid institution would work serious opposition and injury to the county school nearby”. The school was built to cater for pupils between the ages of ten and fifteen years-old, but there were many problems from the start. From as late as 1915, school inspectors found students aged nineteen to still be attending the institution.^[12]

After the death of headmaster John Stradling Grant in 1914, Richard Chalke took over as head of the school. At the same time the school was merged with the ‘Pupil Teachers College’, where once a week students would take turns in teaching their peers. This was done by pupils to gain entrance into teacher training colleges and become teachers themselves.^[13]

In 1922 the school became officially recognised as a secondary school. Then between 1946 and 1947, the name of the school was changed to ‘Porth Secondary Grammar School’. Sometime between 1951 and 1954 the name of the school was changed again to ‘Porth County Grammar Mixed School’. At some point in time the grammar school was split in two sections, one half being known as ‘Porth County Girls’ and the other half being known as ‘Porth County Boys’.^[14]

In 1961, Vernon Owen Jones became headmaster of 'Porth County Grammar School for Boys'. Jones was born in Llwynypia. the son of Daniel and Violet Thomas, and attended Tonypandy Grammar School. He obtained his first BA honours degree in History at Cardiff University (to be followed by two other degrees, a BSc Econ and an M.Ed.), and did his teachers training at 'Porth County Grammar School for Boys'. He was initially an English and History teacher at the school, then head of the History department, and eventually headmaster of the school. During his time at the school, Jones was affectionately known as 'Santos' by the pupils, due to his Mexican "demeanor" and "moustache".^[15] His eccentric behaviour was well-known at the school, and although he was strict at times, his pupils described him as "fair".^[16] Jones was headmaster from 1961 to 1984, and saw the amalgamation of the 'Porth County Girls' and 'Porth County Boys' grammar schools (along with the Secondary Modern Schools of Llwyncelyn, Trealaw and Ynyshir) into what is now known as 'Porth County Community School'.^[17][18] He retired from the school in 1984, and after retiring, he wrote a number of books about Porth, including one about his experiences as headmaster at 'Porth County'.^[19]

Present day

2003 demolition

After six to seven weeks of preparation, a demolition team reduced parts of the 'upper school' to a pile of rubble during the weekend of May 31, 2003 to June 1, 2003, with site clearance taking place within the subsequent weeks following the demolition.^[20]

Substance misuse in the school

In November 2003, an investigation found that steroid use in South Wales was on the rise in teenagers. More disturbingly, The Guardian discovered that the use of steroids was "spreading" from the gym to the playground. The Guardian went on to say that staff at 'Porth County Community School' had "caught young teenagers" using steroids at the school, and on one occasion, found steroids on the school premises.^[21] Steve Bowden (the school headteacher at the time) commented:

"It is becoming more apparent now. It seems to come from a macho gym culture. The boys who are taking the drugs are not top sportsmen, they are just looking for respect in their communities and for whatever reason are turning to the gym and sometimes steroids."^[22]

Michael Sheen visit

On May 18, 2009, acclaimed Welsh actor Michael Sheen spoke with members of the schools film club.^[23] All of the students that met the actor were members of 'Filmclub' (a Film Agency of Wales and Skillset Screen Academy Wales initiative to give children access to thousands of "classic film titles").^[24] Porth County Community School is part of 'Filmclub' along with schools in the Tonypandy and Treorchy areas, and it is implemented through the schools "E3 after-school projects". Rachel Evans (the schools former English teacher and 'Filmclub' co-ordinator) said that “it ('Filmclub') gives the pupils a chance to discuss the films they watch”.^[25] During his visit, Michael Sheen spoke with the pupils and told them that he was "saddened" by the lack of funding for drama schools and clubs throughout Wales.^[26]

Knife incident

In September, 2013, a man was arrested after allegedly brandishing a knife outside the school during lunch time. The incident involved two adult males who initially had a verbal altercation, after which one of them proceeded to brandish a knife against the other. Innocent bystanders filmed the incident on their phones, and within hours the video went viral on social media websites. Within 24 hours, the video was 'shared' 1200 times. A 26-year-old man was later arrested and taken into police custody in connection with the incident.^[27] No students were harmed during the incident.^[28]

Notable former pupils

• Chris Evans – A British politician and member of parliament for Islwyn. Evans grew up in Wattstown and attended Porth County Community School (then known as 'Porth County Comprehensive School'), before studying for his A-levels at 'Pontypridd College'.^[29]
• Mako Vunipola – A New Zealand born rugby union player. Vunipola spent a part of his childhood in Wales and attended Porth County Community School. Vunipola later attended West Monmouth School.
• Andrew King – Professor of English Literature

School ranking

'Porth School' currently ranks at 1 out of 212 secondary schools in Wales. The school currently scores 5 out of 5 stars for "attainment", 5 out of 5 stars for "teaching", 5 out of 5 stars for "attendance", and 4 out of 5 stars for "finances". The school has an overall rating of 5 out of 5 stars (or 94 out of 100).^[30]

Possible school closure

Along with eleven other schools (three secondary and eight primary schools) in the surrounding areas, 'Porth County Community School' could face closure. The Rhondda Cynon Taff council has said that the school closures would be part of their proposed £75 million investment, which they say would provide "improved educational facilities" and "opportunities" for nearly 7,000 children.^[31]

References