New school for 100s of pupils gets go-ahead
A NEW school for hundreds of pupils has been given the go-ahead in Cardiff.
Planners have approved a new primary school at the St Edeyrn’s development to serve parts of Pontprennau and Old St Mellons.
Located east of the Pontprennau link road, the school will initially accommodate 210 pupils, including a 48-place part-time nursery, with the opportunity to expand to 420 pupils in the future.
Subject to procurement, the construction of the school is expected to be ready for occupation in September 2022.
In March 2019, Cardiff council’s cabinet agreed to put forward plans to change primary school provision in parts of north-east Cardiff. This was due to a surplus of primary school places in the Llanrumney area and the need for additional places in Old St Mellons and parts of Pontprennau when the St Ederyn’s housing development is completed.
As part of this, the cabinet agreed to explore plans to relocate St Mellons Church in Wales Primary School from its current site in Llanrumney.
A spokesperson for Cardiff council said: “The development at St Ederyn’s will generate significant increase in the demand for school places in the area and the new school will ensure we meet that demand.
“In addition, the scheme presents the opportunity to relocate St Mellons Church in Wales Primary School, providing existing pupils with access to an excellent modern learning environment whilst helping to address the problem of surplus places in Llanrumney, which has placed a significant strain on school budgets in the area.
“The new school will have a community focus, allowing the wider school community to benefit from the new facilities at the site.”
It was agreed that the school would be built by the developer Persimmon, as part of the planning agreement with the council, and funded through Section 106 contributions.
Martin Smith, managing director at Persimmon Homes East Wales, said: “We are excited at this opportunity to assist in the delivery of a new primary school at our St Edeyrn’s development.
“The school will complement the other community facilities being delivered by Persimmon Homes and will form the focal point of our St Edeyrns development.
“The development continues to be a huge success and hundreds of families are already enjoying living there, many of which are first-time buyers taking the first step on to the property ladder.
“We remain on schedule and will be completing a further 450 new homes over the next five years.”
Work on the new 1,020-home village on the outskirts of Cardiff started back in 2016.
The development gets its name from the sixth-century monk St Edeyrn, who also gives his name to the nearby parish church.