Ysgol Sant Baruc

Ysgol Sant Baruc (YSB) is a new, state-of-the-art, 420 pupils Welsh medium school, set near Barry waterfront. The new building replaces their old Victorian premises, which offered only half the capacity.

With classrooms and spaces bathed in natural light, the school’s low carbon features include solar panels and on-site battery storage, air source heat pumps – which use outdoor air to heat the building – underfloor heating, and EV charging points in the car park. Along with extensive outdoor spaces, YSB represents the future of primary learning in the Vale of Glamorgan and a wider Wales.

The new school provides a great option for parents in Barry to secure a bilingual education for their children. All evidence shows that children from monolingual families thrive in such an environment. Estyn recognises Welsh medium schools have a strong cultural ethos which provides a platform for an enriching learning environment. To reflect this, the YSB School Leadership team engaged Limegreentangerine to create a fitting brand.

The school crest is replete with a reimagined Draig Goch standing atop an open book – each half of the tome built of the sun and sea. The entire work has a look reminiscent of stained glass – a nod to the town’s Victorian era heritage.

Through type, colour and illustration, the School’s extended brand world is an absorbing welcoming landscape of curious minds engagement in education and play.

The purpose of the digital experience was two-fold: to bring the joyfullness of the brand forward while providing an engaging experience for parents and pupils alike. A destination for all things Ysgol Sant Baruc.

Children are intrinsically driven towards learning through the medium of play – exuberant, enjoyable and exciting learning, both inside and outside the classroom. Our approach immerses users in the experience by bringing the fun and learning qualities of school life to the digital landscape. Using animations and easily digestible content, our solution seamlessly blends brand and school. A joyful experience to excite children and engage parents, nurturing an enduring and profound affinity for the website.

A calendar of events is an essential tool for staff to inform parents/carers. For YSB, we designed a simple and easy-to-browse events planner that showcases various events throughout the academic year, offering users the option to filter by event type and location. This simplicity is reflected behind the scenes, where school administrators can efficiently add and edit new events via the CMS.