Have your say on schools’ proposals

Carmarthenshire County Council is consulting on proposals for Ysgol y Felin and Llangain, Llansteffan and Bancyfelin schools.

As part of the council’s vision for a bilingual Carmarthenshire and to increase the number of children and young people fluent in Welsh, it is proposed to change the Foundation Phase provision at Ysgol Y Felin to Welsh medium education from September 2022 onwards.

It would only affect pupils starting in the Foundation Phase at the school from September 2022. Current pupils attending the school would be unaffected.

The proposal would also support the development of bilingual and multilingual opportunities in line with the new curriculum to be launched in 2022.

The second proposal is to establish a federation between Llangain, Llansteffan and Bancyfelin schools from September 1, 2021

Llansteffan and Llangain have shared a headteacher since April 2013, with Bancyfelin sharing the same headteacher since September 2016. The three schools are located within a radius of only 9.4 miles apart and already work together in a number of areas.

If implemented, a single governing body would replace the three existing governing bodies and would allow pupils to access a broader curriculum, enriching their experiences and providing a high-quality education.

Local communities are being urged to give their views on the proposals via the consultation pages on the council website, or by emailing or writing to the council if preferred.

Links to the consultation documents are being sent to all interested parties, and ‘virtual’ drop-in sessions will be held so that communities can discuss the proposals and ask any questions they may have.

The drop-in session for Ysgol Y Felin will be held via Microsoft Teams on Wednesday, March 10 from 4.30pm to 6.30pm; and the drop-in session for Llangain, Llansteffan and Bancyfelin will be held on Tuesday, March 16 from 4.30pm to 6.30pm. To register your interest, please email DECMEP@carmarthenshire.gov.uk. If you are unable to attend, our officers are happy to discuss the proposals or answer any questions via email or telephone instead, please call 01267 246426.

The information gathered from the consultations will form part of the consultation report which will be submitted to the Executive Board for consideration.

Executive Board Member for Education and Children’s Services Cllr Glynog Davies said: “The council has a legal responsibility to review the number and type of schools it maintains in the area and whether or not it is making the best use of the resources and facilities to deliver the opportunities that children deserve.
“As part of this process the council has published its vision on how it sees the future for all of the primary and secondary schools in the county and this includes consulting on the future shape of education in Ysgol Y Felin and Llangain, Llansteffan and Bancyfelin schools.
“It is important that local communities and interested parties give their views on these proposals. Further details can be found on the council website, however, if anyone has any questions, I would urge them to please attend the virtual drop-in sessions, or get in touch with our officers who would be happy to help.”

For further information on the proposals and to take part in the online survey please visit the consultation pages.