Calls for nursery to be saved
WITH just days left until a public consultation closes over a proposed merger of local schools in the Kidwelly area, campaigners are calling for support in efforts to safeguard the children’s nursery at Ysgol Mynyddygarreg even if the plans go ahead.
Under the proposals the Welshmedium primary school in Meinciau Road, Mynyddygarreg, would be discontinued at the end of August.
This would not mean the school closing then, but pupils would have to relocate in 2023 to a newly-built Ysgol Gwenllian in Kidwelly.
Both schools are currently federated under one headteacher and losing Ysgol Mynyddygarreg would hit the village hard, campaigners argue.
A public consultation by Carmarthenshire Council over the proposals will end this Friday (July 16). However, no guarantee has been made that Ysgol Mynyddygarreg’s cylch meithrin (nursery) would remain part of local schooling if a merger happens.
Posting on the Ysgol Mynyddygarreg SOS - Save Our School Facebook page, campaigners said: “Cylch Meithrin Mynyddygarreg is held within Ysgol Mynyddygarreg.
“It currently has almost 40 children registered and feeds all three schools in Kidwelly and Mynyddygarreg.
“There has been no guarantee that the cylch will be given a space within Ysgol Gwenllian if it is decided that Ysgol Mynyddygarreg is closed.
“Please can we urge all parents, past parents and future parents of children that have benefited and will benefit from such a fantastic cylch meithrin to reply to the consultation by July 16.” People are also encouraged to sign a petition ahead of the consultation ending.
The consultation was extended earlier this year following pressure from the community and new guidance from the Welsh Government, which took into consideration the impact of the Covid-19 lockdown.
In December last year Kidwelly Town Council aired its concerns over the school closure plans.
In a statement, the town council said: “The closure of the school would decimate the community in Mynyddygarreg.
“A community impact assessment written as part of the school closure bid does not seem to mention the impact to the community of Mynyddygarreg.”
It said school governors and parents were unhappy, and added: “The new build for Ysgol Gwenllian two miles away is across a busy bypass, which has no safe crossing, active travel links or even pavements.”
While views from the consultation will be taken into consideration by Carmarthenshire Council, the current timeline for Ysgol Mynyddygarreg is as follows: discontinue Ysgol Mynyddygarreg at the end of August 2021; from September, all pupils to be registered at Gwenllian primary, which would operate on both sites and increase its capacity; and relocate Ysgol Gwenllian primary to a new site and increase its capacity to 210 pupil and 30 nursery places, with the new school ready in 2023.
The Carmarthenshire consultation document can be found at - https:// www. carmarthenshire. gov. wales/ home/council-democracy/consultation-performance/current-consultations/ proposal- to- review-primaryeducation-provision- in- the- mynyddygarreg-and-gwenllian-areas/
The petition to save Ysgol Mynyddygarreg from closure can be found at https://www.change.org/p/edolecarmarthenshire- gov- uk-save- ourschool- stop- the- closure- of- ysgolmynyddygarreg
Carmarthenshire Council is encouraging people to take part in the consultation.