Rural schools row escalates

Richard Evans - Local democracy reporter

A councillor has been slammed for proposing to shut rural schools with small numbers of pupils.

This week, Cllr Paul Luckock doubled down on his view that rural schools with less than 120 pupils should close, arguing children should attend centralised schools instead.

The Abergele member pointed to the fact that some rural schools were receiving nearly £14,000 per pupil compared to those on the coast receiving less than £4,000 a head.

And Cllr Luckock even named Ysgol Ysbyty Ifan as a school where it was “not rational” to keep it open, due to the fact it only has 14 pupils.

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Criticism 

But his comments have already prompted criticism from a fellow Conwy councillor who has suggested he lacks understanding for the area he is representing.

Cllr Gwennol Ellis, councillor for Uwchaled and leader of the Plaid Cymru group in Conwy, said: “I condemn and strongly criticise the comments made by Cllr Luckock in the press demanding the closure of rural schools to save money.

“He has not considered the impact his comments have in the community, with parents and teachers.

“Almost all rural schools in the county of Conwy are Welsh-medium and are located in the strongholds of the Welsh language.

“A school provides more than just education – it is the heart of the community, promotes local culture and heritage, and is essential to the prosperity of the language.

“Cllr Luckock clearly does not understand that he is now a councillor in Conwy, which is a rural county and presents unique challenges.

“Providing council services in the rural area is always more costly, but taxpayers still deserve a service.

“Recycling, for example, is still collected in the rural areas despite there being fewer bins to collect. This is the reality of providing services in Conwy.

“Some rural residents may argue that the only services they receive is a local school and bin collections.

“Many local services have long been centralised in the larger coastal towns.”

She added: “I urge Cllr Luckock to debate this matter in the council chamber, and not in the press, to allow for a proper debate with the full range of views and opinions.

“Professional officers with up-to-date evidence should be with us to support our decision-making. This is not how we conduct ourselves in Conwy.”

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Facts

Speaking today, Cllr Luckock said it was important the public had the facts.

“I’ve raised these issues in the council chamber and have debated them for three years,” he said.

“It is important that the facts are in the public domain and that they are further discussed and debated in the public domain.”

He added: “The implications for children and parents of the lack of decision is profound.”