A DECISION to close a village school has been condemned

The decision by Wrexham Council to close Ysgol Pontfadog is wrong and short sighted, Plaid Cymru.

On Tuesday (April 10) Wrexham Council's executive board unanimously voted to close Ysgol Pontfadog in the Ceiriog Valley.

The school is expected to receive its last intake in September and will finally close in the summer of 2019.

Mabon ap Gwynfor, Plaid Cymru’s spokesperson for Clwyd South, said: “Ysgol Pontfadog has served the community of Pontfadog well.

"The communities of Pontfadog, Dolywern and Glyn Ceiriog all wish to see it remain open. The governing body of the federated school have supported retaining Ysgol Pontfadog, and the elected representatives representing those communities wish to see it kept open.

"et the Tory-Independent ruling executive on Wrexham Council have decided to close the school against all local opinion. T

"This is profoundly anti-democratic and shows a complete disregard for the communities of the Ceiriog Valley. Is it any wonder that people are losing trust in the authority?

“The decision is short-sighted in the extreme as it’s unlikely to save money in the long term and will leave the authority with what will be, once empty, a rapidly deteriorating asset on their hands. The people of Pontfadog, Dolywern and Glyn Ceiriog will be bitterly disappointed.”

The council cite the chief reason for the closure of Ysgol Pontfadog is that there are currently only 18 pupils at the school.

Due to this low number, the school’s future has been deemed unsustainable, partly due to the cost, but the council also hold the view that the small class sizes do not provide the best learning experience for pupils, with one class only having two students.

Following a public consultation which took place from January 9 until February 21, the plan is now to move the English medium students of Ysgol Pontfadog into Ysgol Cynddelw’s dual stream system.