Clwyd West AM Darren Millar has hit out at yesterday’s decision by Denbighshire County Council to proceed with a second consultation with a view to closing Ysgol Llanbedr, near Ruthin.
In a meeting yesterday Denbighshire’s Cabinet agreed to proceed to formal consultation on the proposal to close the 150 year old school on August 31st 2016.
The original proposal was to close the school on August 31st last year, but at the end of January, the Minister, Huw Lewis AM, refused the proposal, much to the delight of parents, pupils and staff. Within just weeks of that decision Denbighshire County Council dropped the bombshell that it would again be considering closure.
Darren has been campaigning alongside parents, staff, pupils and the Church in Wales to keep the rural school open and has written to the Children’s Commissioner for Wales calling for her urgent intervention in the case.
Speaking following yesterday’s decision, he said:
“This is extremely disappointing news. There is a good case for retaining Ysgol Llanbedr, which provides high quality education within the framework of a Christian ethos and it is a great shame that the pleas of local residents and councillors to date have not been sufficient to persuade Denbighshire to keep the school open.
“Today’s decision makes Ysgol Llanbedr the first school in Wales to undergo a double consultation on its future. The uncertainty over whether Ysgol Llanbedr will close has prevailed for some two years now and it has undoubtedly had a significant impact on the wellbeing of pupils and staff at the school.
“In spite of this, I can see no evidence that the impact of a prolonged period of uncertainty on pupils has been either assessed or considered by the local authority in its deliberations on the future of the school to date.”
In his letter to the Children’s Commissioner calling for her urgent intervention prior to today’s decision Darren said “I believe that this demonstrates that the local authority has failed to give due regard to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and feel very strongly that the children of Ysgol Llanbedr need the support of their Commissioner to ensure that these rights are upheld.”
Under the plans, Denbighshire Council says that existing pupils will be transferred to Ysgol Borthyn, Ruthin (subject to parental preference).
Picture Caption: Clwyd West AM Darren Millar and Cllr Huw Williams at Ysgol Llanbedr.