Chances for people to hear about new school
TWO meetings are planned to provide parents and residents with information about the proposed new Brynmenyn Primary School.
Plans for the school in Brynmenyn, near Bridgend, have taken a big step forward following the appointment of BAM Construction Ltd to undertake the initial design work and a public meeting will take place today, Wednesday, June 22.
Bridgend County Borough Council (BCBC) has proposed that the school will be relocated less than a mile away from the former site of Archbishop McGrath Catholic High School next to Coleg Cymunedol Y Dderwen, and will open in January 2018.
The public meeting will take place at 6pm at Ynysawdre Village Hall, Bryn Road, Bridgend.
Members of the project team will be available to answer queries regarding the proposal and there will also be the chance to view initial designs for the new school.
A separate meeting will also be held next week for parents.
A full business case for the new school is being submitted by BCBC to the Welsh Government this summer and, if the plans are approved, construction work will commence by January 2017 ahead of the school opening in January 2018.
Council deputy leader Huw David said: “We’re delighted to have reached this milestone and are pleased to confirm the appointment of BAM Construction Ltd.
“We have had approval in principle for the costs of the new school to be met by the Welsh Government’s 21st century schools programme and are working on the neces- sary business case in line with Welsh Government procedures.
“If the proposal is accepted by Welsh Government, it will enable us to build a bigger school with more modern facilities less than a mile away from the current establishment on Bryn Road and help us to cope with a rising demand for school places in the Valleys Gateway area for years to come.”
The authority said the current school site is unsuitable for expansion because it is very small and surrounded by common land. There are also significant issues with traffic congestion outside the school.
It added that a new Brynmenyn Primary School would also have knock-on effects for the nearby Tondu Primary School, which currently operates on split sites.
By building a new, larger primary school for Brynmenyn pupils, catchment changes could take place which would in turn help Tondu Primary to become a single-site school.