Denbighshire County Council is currently carrying out a review of primary school provision in the Prestatyn area.
The discussions are at an informal stage and no formal decisions have been taken.
The review includes seven schools in the area (Bodnant Infants, Bodnant Juniors, Ysgol Penmorfa, Ysgol Y Llys, Ysgol Clawdd Offa, Ysgol Melyd and Ysgol Hiraddug).
Over the past six months the council has met headteachers, chairs of governors, county councillors, town councillors and cabinet members about a number of potential options for the area.
Officers will now commence feasibility work to determine whether the following option can be progressed further and what the potential benefits, issues and estimated costs would be. Once this exercise has been undertaken councillors will have to decide whether to progress this option to a consultation stage.
If this option is deemed feasible, before any final decisions are taken, there would be a full and detailed consultation with parents and the local community in line with statutory requirements which include a formal consultation phase.
The option to progress to a feasibility stage is:
a) Cap the admissions of Bodnant Infants to 30 allowing for the amalgamation of Bodnant Infants & Junior on the Junior school site as an eventual 1 form entry school providing 210 full-time places. This would not affect any pupils currently at the schools and would only impact on entry to the school in future years.
b) Expand Ysgol Y Llys to provide 315 full-time pupil places.
The rationale behind this scenario being progressed is that this option has the potential to meet the increased demand for Welsh Medium education, reduce the high levels of surplus places in English Medium schools, reduce the reliance on mobile accommodation within the area and amalgamate the Infant and Junior schools in line with Denbighshire’s Modernising Education Policy Framework.
If this option if progressed to a consultation phase it will not impact on any pupils currently at the schools and would only affect entry to the schools in the future years.
The council would like to stress that no final decisions have been taken and if this option is progressed there will be plenty of opportunities for governors, staff and parents to air their views throughout various stages of consultation.
