New school in Cricieth
Signing of the beam
Work is progressing well on the £8 million project to build a school on a new site in Cricieth. Pupils from the existing school recently took part in a beam signing ceremony to mark the completion of work on the roof beams of the new school building.
Funded through the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme and Cyngor Gwynedd, the new Ysgol Treferthyr will have space for 150 pupils in six classrooms, a hall, kitchen and a multipurpose room. When it opens in September 2024, the new facility will also boast an Early Years Unit and an Additional Learning Assessment Unit.
Turf cutting
A ceremonial event was held in Cricieth recently to celebrate the start of construction work on the new Ysgol Treferthyr site, with Councillor Beca Brown, Gwynedd Council's Cabinet Member for Education and a group of learners from Ysgol Treferthyr cutting the turf.
Councillor Beca Brown, said:
“I’m delighted to see work start on the new school which, when finished, will provide modern facilities for the children of Cricieth and allow them to reach their full potential.
“The new school will feature six classrooms with external access, a hall, kitchen and a multipurpose room. The outside area will have a hard surface space for play, a multi-use games area and a grass playing field.
“Although the old school has been a much-loved feature of the town, I’m confident that the learners, their families and the teaching staff will be excited by the prospect of the new school.”
Further reading
In 2021 a planning application was submitted to the Council’s Planning Service following Welsh Government approval of the funding and permission by the Council’s Cabinet to build the new Ysgol Treferthyr.
However, due to a combination of reasons the timetable for construction has slipped somewhat from that originally planned. An archaeological inspection of the site was required as well as further work on plans for safe routes to the new school in collaboration with the Council’s Highways and Municipal Department.
Planning permission was granted in September 2022 following the completion of this extra work.
Another factor which contributed to the slippage in the timetable was the fact that there was a steady and substantial increase in the cost of material, energy etc in the building sector during this period, which meant that the original budget of around £5m for the project was no longer sufficient.
Therefore, following the planning approval an application was made to increase the funding to just over £8m which was approved by both the Council’s Cabinet and the Welsh Government. In addition to this the Council has also secured extra funding through various other Welsh Government grants to include an Early Years Unit and an Additional Learning Assessment Unit in the new Ysgol Treferthyr.
Opening date
Unfortunately, the issues noted above have meant that the work on the site has been delayed, and as a result it will be necessary to change the opening date for the new school. Following discussions with the Governing Body of Ysgol Treferthyr, it was agreed to change the opening date to 1 September 2024.
A statutory objection period was held between 24 February and 24 March 2021 on the proposal to increase the capacity of Ysgol Treferthyr to 150 and relocate the school to an alternative site, referred to as the A497 site, on 1 September 2023. No objections were received to the proposal.
On Tuesday 18 May 2021, Gwynedd Council’s Cabinet approved the proposal given through the statutory notice, to increase the capacity of Ysgol Treferthyr to 150 and relocate the school to an alternative site referred to as the A497 site on 1 September 2023, in accordance with Section 53 of the Standards Act and School Organisation (Wales) 2013 and the requirements of the School Organisation Code 11/2018.
The report presented to the Cabinet on 18 May 2021 expands on the background, the consultation and the statutory process. The report can be seen below.
Following consideration of the proposal the Gwynedd Council's Cabinet agreed to “confirm finally the proposal made through a statutory notice, to increase the capacity of Ysgol Treferthyr to 150 and relocate the school to an alternative site referred to as the A497 site on 1 September 2023, in accordance with Section 53 of the School Standards and Organisation (Wales) Act 2013 and the requirements of the Schools Organisation Code 11/2018.”
The Cabinet’s decision came into effect on 2 June 2021 and a decision letter was issued and circulated to all stakeholders.
Further information
In accordance with the above decisions, we published a Statutory Notice on 24 February 2021.
Anyone can object to the proposal within a period of 28 days from the date of publication of this notice, that is by 24 March 2021.
Written objections should be addressed to the Head of Education at:
Gwynedd Council
Swyddfa’r Cyngor
Caernarfon
Gwynedd
LL55 1SH
or by sending an e-mail to the attention of the Head of Education to:
modernisingeducation@gwynedd.llyw.cymru
Reports and attachments:
If you require hard copies of any document please do not hesitate to contact us by calling (01286) 679640 or e-mail modernisingeducation@gwynedd.llyw.cymru
Following a series of local meetings with a Local Review Panel to discuss possible options for a new school in Criccieth, Gwynedd Council's Cabinet at a meeting on 13 October 2020 decided to undertake a statutory consultation process, in accordance with the requirements of section 48 of the School Standards and Organisation Act (Wales) 2013, on the proposal to increase the capacity of Ysgol Treferthyr to 150 and relocate the school to a new site, referred to as the A497 site, on 1 September 2023.
The Statutory Consultation period will run from 6 November 2020 to 18 December 2020.
The statutory consultation document and all relevant documents are available below:
If you require hard copies of any document please do not hesitate to contact us by calling (01286) 679640 or e-mail modernisingeducation@gwynedd.llyw.cymru
Following a series of local meetings with a Local Review Panel to discuss possible options for a new school in Criccieth, Gwynedd Council's Cabinet decided at a meeting on 13 October 2020 to undertake a statutory consultation process, in accordance with the requirements of section 48 of the School Standards and Organisation Act (Wales) 2013, on the proposal to increase the capacity of Ysgol Treferthyr to 150 and relocate the school to a new site, referred to as the A497 site, on 1 September 2023.
Councilor Cemlyn Rees Williams, Gwynedd Council's Cabinet Member for Education, said:
“We are delighted to secure investment from the Welsh Government through the 21st Century Schools Program in order to build a new school in Criccieth. This means that the children of Criccieth will be able to enjoy their education in a modern building that is fit for purpose for teaching and learning in this modern era.”
It is anticipated that the statutory consultation period will begin in the coming weeks. The consultation period will provide an opportunity for those involved in the school as well as any others to comment on the proposal.
Following the decision of Gwynedd Council Cabinet on 2 April 2019 a Local Review Panel has been established to discuss a new school in Cricieth. The intention is for this Panel to discuss the needs of a new school in the town mainly due to the poor condition of Ysgol Treferthyr.
The Local Review Panel will consider the opportunities and options available for the new school and then ask Gwynedd Council's Cabinet to allow a statutory consultation process on the preferred option that will be agreed following the completion of the Panel meetings.
More Information:
Cabinet Meeting April 2019 (item 8)