Plans for a new £6.2-million Welsh medium primary school in Blaenau Gwent have been revealed.
Blaenau Gwent council is proposing to develop a new 210-place school on a site at Chartist Way in the Tredegar/Sirhowy valley.
The Welsh Government has awarded £6 million for the new school, along with a £200,000 grant.
Blaenau Gwent is currently the only authority in Wales with one Welsh-medium primary school.
The borough also has a low percentage of Welsh speakers, with only 7.8 per cent of the population able to speak Welsh.
This is the second lowest out of the 22 local authority areas and well below the national average of 19 per cent.
The new Welsh medium school is proposed to act as a ‘seedling’ school, with a childcare facility, nursery and reception years beginning in September, 2023.
Additional year groups would then be introduced each year, with the school in full operation from nursery to Year 6 by September 2029.
The school’s governance and leadership structure would be developed as an extension of Ysgol Gymraeg Bro Helyg, in Nantyglo, with one governing body across the two schools.
The Chartist Way site in the Sirhowy area has been chosen as the preferred location due its location, size, use, and known constraints, a council report says.
“This proposal will provide equality of opportunity for pupils to be educated via the medium of Welsh,” the report says.
“There is already an array of English-medium and faith-based primary school options available to families within Blaenau Gwent.
“The proposal would also support the council to address the barriers parents perceive in accessing Welsh-medium education, and support families to recognise the benefits of being bi-lingual.”
Blaenau Gwent council is proposing to start a public consultation on the plans from December 17 until January 29.
The authority’s education and learning scrutiny committee will also consider the proposal at a meeting next Tuesday, December 15.
