Agenda item

To consider a report by Councillor Eryl Williams, Lead Member for Education (copy enclosed) presenting the objection report for consideration and seeking Cabinet approval to implement the proposal.

RESOLVED that Cabinet –

 

(a)       note the findings of the objection report;

 

(b)       following consideration of the above, Cabinet approve implementation of the proposal and the proposed modification to close Ysgol Llanfair DC and Ysgol Pentrecelyn on 31 August 2017 and the Diocese of St. Asaph to open a new dual-stream Category 2, Church in Wales Voluntary Controlled primary school from 1 September 2017;

 

(c)        that applications for discretionary transport to the nearest category 1 school, be considered on a case by case by case basis, from existing pupils and siblings of Ysgol Pentrecelyn for the remainder of their primary education following the closure of the school (as of the 1 September 2017), and

 

(d)       the Local Authority are committed to monitoring the standards and outcomes of the new Area School which will be reviewed regularly at School Standards Monitoring Group, Scrutiny and by the Welsh in Education Strategic Group.

 

Councillor Eryl Williams presented the report detailing the objections received following publication of the statutory notice of the proposal together with the proposed modification to delay the implementation date by twelve months from 2016 to 2017.  He referred to the report recommendations and added a recommendation to reflect the Council’s commitment, as set out in paragraph 5.2 of the report, to continually monitor standards and outcomes.

 

The proposal had been made in the context of the wider Ruthin area review.  Both school communities had been supportive of the investment in a new area school and the designation of a Church in Wales school had not proved divisive.  The main contention had been on the grounds of language categorisation with 30 objections received from the local community relating to the proposed Category 2 designation.

 

Cabinet considered the objections detailed within the report together with the arguments for the proposal and factors detailed in the School Organisation Code.  Cabinet debate focused on the following issues –

 

·        it was accepted that the overall majority of pupils attending both schools were taught through the Welsh medium.  A dual stream school would allow Welsh medium provision to be maintained for pupils from both schools but would also allow non-Welsh speakers access to Welsh medium provision by starting in the English stream and subsequently transferring to the Welsh stream.  In 2015 Ysgol Llanfair educated 80 pupils through Welsh medium and 23 through English medium.  Of those 80 pupils, 14 (13%) had transferred from English to Welsh medium and designating the school Category 2 would help to increase the number of Welsh learners and pupils leaving school fluent in both languages

·        reference was made to the additional investment required in order to develop and progress Welsh language in a Category 2 school and whether it would be sustainable long term given the financial situation – officers advised that there were currently 23% surplus places in the Ruthin area and if all the proposals arising from the review were implemented surplus places would reduce to 9%, thereby enabling a redistribution of resources to meet the needs of schools

·        the importance of retaining the current Welsh ethos and culture was emphasised and assurances sought in that regard should the proposal be implemented.  Cabinet was advised of a collective responsibility involving the Governing Body, GwE (School Improvement Service) and the Council.  The Governing Body would be fundamental in ensuring the strong Welsh ethos was maintained in the new school which could also be reflected in their management and recruitment policies.  The role of the Council and its commitment to monitoring standards and outcomes via the School Standards Monitoring Group, Scrutiny Committees and Welsh in Education Strategic Group was explained which would further safeguard the Welsh ethos and maintain continuity

·        Councillor Huw Jones, Lead Member for Welsh Language reported on progress made to increase the number of Welsh learners in the county, highlighting the increase in the number of Welsh speaking children in the county’s schools since 2011.  He was pleased to note the language categorisations had been clearly explained within the report together with comparable data regarding the fluency of pupils at the two schools

·        it was clarified  that applications for discretionary transport to the nearest Category 1 school would be considered from both existing pupils and siblings of Ysgol Pentrecelyn if the school closed.

 

The Leader reported that he had met with campaigners from Ysgol Pentrecelyn to hear their concerns first-hand.  Campaigners were supportive of a new Church in Wales school but strongly opposed a Category 2 designation.  He sought responses to a number of issues raised by objectors including whether enough consideration had been given to Ysgol Pentrecelyn pupils, the fact no meeting had taken place between parents of both schools, concerns regarding language spoken in the school yard and impact on culture.  Officers responded as follows –

 

·        proposals had to be considered in the wider context of the Ruthin area review in order to provide an appropriate mix of provision to best cater for the needs of pupils in the area going forward – based on existing attendance figures there was insufficient demand for a Category 1 school but both Category 1 and 2 schools delivered Welsh medium education with the same outcomes in the Welsh stream

·        it was within the remit and responsibility of the Governing Bodies to arrange a meeting between parents of both schools

·        during school visits English could be heard spoken in the school yard of Category 1 schools and Welsh in Category 2 schools – whilst the language spoken in school yards could not be stipulated, Welsh could be encouraged and promoted by the Governing Body

·        Estyn had been consulted regarding the Ruthin area review proposals and their response had been included within the report.

 

Councillor Arwel Roberts implored Cabinet to opt for a Category 1 new area school in order to protect and strengthen Welsh language in the area.  He referred to positive strategies to move schools along the language continuum and argued it would be contrary to those policies and a retrograde step to opt for Category 2 in this case, particularly in a rural area where Welsh language was at its strongest.  He referred to the wealth of objections received and argued that a Category 2 school would not guarantee Welsh medium education for the future and Ysgol Pen Barras would not be able to accommodate all pupils wishing to transfer.

 

The following responses were provided to the issues raised –

 

·        the model at Ysgol Llanfair was highlighted as best practice and the school attracted pupils from both Welsh and non-Welsh speaking families thereby increasing the number of Welsh learners/speakers – it was believed a new Category 2 area school would enhance and grow the Welsh language provision, with more pupils from the area accessing Welsh medium education

·        credit was also given to the consistently high attainment levels achieved at Ysgol Llanfair with over 90% achieving Level 4+ at Key Stage 2 in 2014

·        it was acknowledged that a change in leadership would always provide a risk and the Governing Body would play a vital role in ensuring the current strong Welsh ethos was retained

·        the arguments for and against the language categorisation had been carefully considered prior to making the recommendation and the desire to grow the number of Welsh learners/speakers had been an important factor

·        reported upon the role of the Welsh in Education Strategic Group in providing support to schools to move along the language continuum and it was hoped that the model used by Ysgol Llanfair could be replicated in other schools.

 

Councillor Huw Hilditch-Roberts sought assurances regarding standards and outcomes together with safeguards to secure future Welsh medium provision, and he pointed out that Welsh was spoken in the school yard at Ysgol Pen Barras (Category 1) who also taught pupils from non-Welsh speaking families.  He also highlighted potential pressures for Ysgol Llanfair arising from Ysgol Rhewl’s closure.

 

The following responses were provided to those comments and further questions –

 

·        it was recognised that in recent years very few pupils had been assessed through the Welsh medium stream in terms of outcomes at Ysgol Rhewl and assurances were provided that the review and monitoring of standards and language categorisations in schools had recently been made much more robust

·        it was confirmed that pupils from Ysgol Rhewl could apply for places at the proposed new school should they wish to remain in a Category 2 school and their applications would be considered as per admissions policy

·        the model used by Ysgol Llanfair was considered best practice in terms of inclusivity and outcomes with a high percentage of pupils in both Welsh and English streams reaching the expected standard and beyond

·        the costs of providing school transport for pupils and siblings wishing to transfer from Ysgol Pentrecelyn to a Category 1 school were minimal and would be for the transitionary period only

·        the proposal aimed to secure the long term sustainability of Welsh medium provision in the area

·        the threat of judicial review was not a material consideration when making a determination on the proposal.

 

The Leader acknowledged the difficult situation with two strong opposing views and stressed the overriding consideration to ensure the best education, cultural and language provision going forward.  He referred to the significant investment in education and was confident that the necessary safeguards were in place to protect and enhance educational, cultural and language provision in the area.  If the proposal was approved he hoped both communities would work together for the benefit of the new area school.

 

Councillor Eryl Williams moved the report recommendations together with the additional recommendation detailed in paragraph 5.2 of the report.  Having considered all the evidence presented Cabinet was satisfied that the proposal represented the best option for the delivery of education in the area for the future.

 

RESOLVED that Cabinet –

 

(a)       note the findings of the objection report;

 

(b)       following consideration of the above, Cabinet approve implementation of the proposal and the proposed modification to close Ysgol Llanfair DC and Ysgol Pentrecelyn on 31 August 2017 and the Diocese of St. Asaph to open a new dual-stream Category 2, Church in Wales Voluntary Controlled primary school from 1 September 2017;

 

(c)        that applications for discretionary transport to the nearest category 1 school, be considered on a case by case basis, from existing pupils and siblings of Ysgol Pentrecelyn for the remainder of their primary education following the closure of the school (as of the 1 September 2017), and

 

(d)       the Local Authority are committed to monitoring the standards and outcomes of the new Area School which will be reviewed regularly at School Standards Monitoring Group, Scrutiny and by the Welsh in Education Strategic Group.

 

At this juncture (11.10 a.m.) the meeting adjourned for a refreshment break.