Eisteddfod 2026!

The beginning of March can only mean one this in Pencoed Comprehensive…it’s Eisteddfod time!

On Friday 6th March, learners from Years 7, 8 and 9 gathered in the Sports Hall, eagerly awaiting a series of superb performances. Displaying their house colours with pride, the day was the final chance to earn points, with learners having entered a range of off-stage competitions; from celebrating Welsh pioneers, to designing the perfect ‘crempog’.

In Mr Jones’ absence, and Mr Phillips “jokes” falling flat, two of our 6th Form stepped up to kick the day off, followed by a performance from the recent school show, and Miss Hopkins’ Welsh raps, which are fast becoming a firm favourite with the crowd! Mrs Cowell did very well to remain neutral throughout her presenting duties, despite being a proud member of Ty Gwenllian!

The rest of the day showcased a whole host of talent, from vocal solos, poetry recitals, dancing and martial arts. Last lesson was reserved for our ‘live’ performers, displaying instrumental skill that had the whole Sports Hall on their feet, and proceedings drew to a close with the traditional ‘Charing of the Bard’.

The effort from from all participants was fantastic, and as always, our Eisteddfod showcases the true community spirit of Pencoed Comprehensive; despite the light-hearted competition between the houses, all learners and staff showed the utmost respect for those brave enough to take to the stage, cheering them on and showing support, regardless of their house.

However, there can only be one winning house…the balance swung throughout the day, and the final results were as follows:

  • Fourth: Branwen (yellow)
  • Third: Llewelyn (red)
  • Second: Gwenllian (blue)
  • First: Owain (green)

Check out the highlights from the day below!

The SHRN Student Health and Well-being Survey 2025

The School Health Research Network is led by Cardiff University in partnership with the Welsh Government and Public Health Wales. Every two years, learners attending secondary schools in the Network are invited to take part in The SHRN Student Health and Well-being Survey. The information collected in the survey is used to compile a bespoke report for each school, which supports their work to improve their learners’ health and well-being. Importantly, no individual learner can ever be identified within this report as only aggregate data is shared.

Pencoed Comprehensive is taking part in The SHRN Student Health and Well-being Survey this term. The survey is being managed by Ipsos on behalf of Cardiff University and is completed on-line under the supervision of a member of school staff. It contains questions on health behaviours, including diet, physical activity, smoking, alcohol, drugs, school life and relationships. Learners in Year 9 and above only will be asked a small number of questions relating to sexual behaviour. Each learner chooses whether or not they want to complete the survey and they can omit any question they do not want to answer.

At the end of the survey, learners are invited to give their name, date of birth and postcode for the purpose of data linkage research. This enables researchers to connect survey responses across different rounds of the two-yearly survey, in order to investigate how and why health and well-being change through adolescence. It also allows answers to be anonymously linked to other data that is routinely collected about them by trusted organizations like the NHS and Welsh Government such as GP appointments and GCSE results. Read more
about data linkage in this leaflet.

It is made clear to learners that this is voluntary, and they do not have to provide this information if they do not want to. The school will show learners a video recording about this, which you can view here, along with further information about data linkage. If you cannot access the video or website, please email shrn@cardiff.ac.uk.

All data will be treated in accordance with the Data Protection Act (2018) and the General Data Protection Regulations, and you can read our data privacy notice here: www.shrn.org.uk/gdpr. The survey is strictly confidential unless a learner response raises concerns about their welfare, in which case we will notify the school’s safeguarding officer if we have the learner’s name. Cardiff University use the survey data to compile The SHRN Student Health and Well-being Reports and for research into adolescent health. These Student Health and Well-being Reports contain only aggregated data, e.g. the percentage of Year 7 boys who eat breakfast daily.

If you have any queries, please do notify your school as soon as possible.