RCT Council has received planning permission to provide a brand new Welsh Medium primary school for Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Llyn y Forwyn, to provide the Ferndale school with state-of-the-art facilities on a more suitable site.
The Planning and Development Committee granted full planning permission on Thursday, December 15, which will enable the development to progress. The decision was in line with officer recommendations to approve the application for a new primary school at the old Chubb factory site, including pedestrian access, landscaping, sustainable drainage and car/cycle parking.
The new school and community facilities will be provided by 2024, benefitting from a 65% contribution from Welsh Government’s Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme. The proposals were approved by Cabinet in 2021.
A public consultation with key stakeholders and the wider community in March and April 2021 saw significant local support for the new school, with 70 of the 72 written responses in favour. A separate Pre Application Consultation in June and July 2022 gave residents a further opportunity to find out more and have their say on the plans, which informed the formal planning application.
The investment will greatly improve the school’s facilities, addressing several limitations of the current site. In a 2019 survey, its two Victorian buildings were graded with ‘D’ for condition and ‘C’ for suitability (where ‘A’ is the highest-performing and ‘D’ the lowest). An Estyn inspection also noted the limitations of its outdoor areas, while the site has no staff car park and is inaccessible for school transport. Little can be done about these issues at the current site.
The planning application grants permission for a single-storey school on land north of Highland, accommodating 270 pupils including a 30-place Cylch Meithrin. Internally, the main entrance will be located centrally, with the Cylch Meithrin to the east and the classrooms to the west. Both the Cylch Meithrin and the nursery will each have fenced-off external play spaces.
There will be an ‘over-sailing’ roof at the main entrance to shelter pupils while entering and leaving the school. Outdoor facilities will include play areas to the south of the building, a grass sports pitch and a Multi Use Games Area. There will also be informal hard play and soft play areas and an ecological habitat.
The building will be on the north of the site, near the existing access from A4233 Maerdy Road and Ferndale Industrial Estate. This entrance point will be retained for staff, school buses and parents during pick-up/drop-off times only. A one-way system will be used by buses to maximise highway safety.
A staff car park will be created to the north of the new school building, to accommodate 30 spaces including two accessible spaces and three visitor spaces. An extra 40-space car park on the east of the site will be used by parents at pick-up/drop-off times, reducing the need to park on Maerdy Road. Seven of these spaces will include EV charging points. In addition, 24 pupil cycle spaces will be included in four areas close to the main school building.
A new pedestrian access will be created to the south-east corner of the site, providing a secure route to walk to school which passes the play areas and car parks. This access will be directly off Highfield, and will be the only access permitted for school users (to avoid walking through the industrial estate).
Councillor Rhys Lewis, Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s Cabinet Member for Education, Youth Participation and the Welsh Language, said: “I’m delighted the Planning and Development Committee has granted full planning permission to provide Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Llyn y Forwyn with a state-of-the-art new school, with community use. The school will be much-improved in comparison to the existing buildings, utilising a new site to build 21st Century facilities, outdoor play areas, car parking and pick-up/drop-off provision.
“This represents the latest joint investment in education facilities with Welsh Government via the Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme. It follows recent confirmation of Mutual Investment Model funding for new buildings at Pontyclun Primary, Llanilltud Faerdref Primary, and Penygawsi Primary in 2024 and 2025 – and shows that, despite the significant financial challenges faced by all Local Authorities across Wales, we are still able to continue providing investment in new school facilities for our young people.
“The Ferndale community overwhelmingly supported the new school building in the Council’s consultation held last year, which was a key consideration when Cabinet approved the project. Securing planning permission is an important milestone that will allow arrangements to be put in place to start construction work on site soon. The project aims to achieve Net Zero carbon in operation, with our Climate Change goals and commitments in mind.
“The investment will increase the Welsh Medium primary offer for the local area, supporting 270 places including a Cylch Meithrin offering 30 places. This will help the Council deliver the outcomes that are outlined in its Welsh in Education Strategic Plan, and provide a further local contribution towards Welsh Government’s ‘Cymraeg 2050’ goal of one million Welsh speakers.”
