School Mergers and Closures

Part of 1. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Education – in the Senedd at 2:25 pm on 25 April 2018.

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Photo of Rhun ap Iorwerth Rhun ap Iorwerth Plaid Cymru 2:25, 25 April 2018

(Translated)

Thank you. I’m in close contact with campaigners who are very concerned about consultations on the closure of a number of rural schools on Anglesey. I do understand the pressure on the council and I would like you to consider one element of those pressures, namely that one set of your officials, to all intents and purposes, is promoting the closure of rural schools by suggesting that funding from the twenty-first century schools programme won’t be available unless the local authority presents new building proposals that include the closure of existing schools. And on the other hand, you have officials who are completing the work on the new school organisation code, which will set a prejudice in favour of keeping rural schools open. In the current case on Anglesey, we need a new school in Llangefni and the expansion of the school too, but the conclusion that the council has come to is that as part of that, they would have to close other schools—Bodffordd, Henblas and Talwrn are being considered for closure. Are you in a position to tell the council that those two things, namely the availability of funding for a new school and the need to close existing rural schools, do not have to be linked together and that one isn’t dependent on the other?