Agenda item

Councillor D.J.R. Bartlett had earlier declared a personal interest in this item and left the meeting during its consideration and determination.

Mrs. V. Kenny had earlier declared a personal interest in this item and left the meeting during its consideration and determination.

The Committee considered a proposal to discontinue Llanedi CP School and initiate formal consultation on the proposal during the Summer Term 2016. It was informed that should a decision to consult be approved by the Executive Board, this would be followed by the submission of a report to both the Education & Children Scrutiny Committee and the Executive Board at the end of the statutory consultation period.

Members were informed that the Authority had a legal responsibility to review the number and type of schools it had in an area and whether or not it was making the best use of resources and facilities to deliver the opportunities that children deserved. In recent years Llanedi Primary School has seen a steady decline in pupil numbers from 33 pupils on roll in January 2010 to 18 pupils on roll in January 2015 resulting in 51% surplus places at the school. Following the departure of the last permanent head teacher in December 2013, the school had faced challenges and uncertainty with regard to fulfilling the senior leadership position.

Members noted that it was the Education & Children Department’s view that the current arrangements did not represent a sound, stable educational model or the best use of resources. With no prospect of there being a significant increase in pupil numbers for the foreseeable future and the on-going challenges the school faced to secure permanent senior leadership, it was not possible to sustain current arrangements. In addition, the Department considered that from an educational perspective, having such a small number of pupils made it extremely difficult for the school to deliver the breadth and depth of curricular and social experiences which pupils of this age required to fully develop.

The following comments were made during consideration of the report:

It was suggested that there were issues contained within the report as well as those raised by the Friends of the School, which would make it difficult for the Committee to make any recommendations to the Executive Board, without further information being presented. Reference was made to the new housing estates in the area as well as the current language category of Hendy School. If parents moving into the new homes wanted a Welsh-Medium education, the Hendy school would not offer this and the situation would be contrary to the Council’s own language policy. It was felt that these issues in themselves as well as the use of the school’s facilities by the community, needed further consideration. 

Reference was made to the Committee’s school visit programme and it was suggested that schools under threat of closure should be visited in the future. It was also pointed out that the Committee had last visited Llanedi and Hendy schools 4-5 years previously and it was proposed that members visit these two schools prior to making any recommendations to the Executive Board. The Committee agreed to the proposal.

Concerns were expressed at the current number of pupils attending Llanedi School and of those, only a small number actually came from within its catchment area with 12 from outside catchment. 

It was suggested that there were inconsistencies between the figures outlined in the report and those presented by the Friends of the School and it was suggested that further work was needed and more information provided to the Committee, so that it could ascertain which were correct, as well as clarifying the impact of the proposed housing developments. However, reference was again made to the small number of pupils and those travelling in from out of catchment and whilst it was felt that small schools could not offer the full range of educational experiences, it was clear that this proposal required further consideration, prior to any recommendations being made to the Executive Board. 

Reference was made to the unity and concern shown by the Friends of the School and the village residents in opposing the proposed closure. It was also felt that there were benefits to small rural schools and that it would be beneficial for members to visit both schools to assess the background to the comments made by the Friends of Llanedi School.  

The Committee UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED: 

6.1       That the report be noted.

6.2       That prior to making any recommendations to the Executive Board regarding the future of the school, the Committee considers a further report clarifying the data presented by officers and the claims made by Friends of Llanedi School during their public questions. 

6.3       That prior to making any recommendations to the Executive Board regarding the future of the school, the Committee undertakes visits to both Llanedi and Hendy CP Schools.