Local Assembly Member Paul Davies recently visited Solva CP School to discuss the school’s future, along with colleague, Stephen Crabb MP. Pembrokeshire County Council is currently consulting on plans to close the primary school as well as Ysgol Bro Dewi and Ysgol Dewi Sant in St Davids, and instead establish a new 3-16 Church in Wales Voluntary Aided or Voluntary Controlled School in St Davids.
Mr Davies said, “I was grateful for the opportunity to meet with teachers and pupils at Solva CP School to discuss Pembrokeshire County Council’s plans to close the school and how we can help the local community make their views known to the Council. It’s very unfair that the proposals to close Solva School have only come to light very recently, despite talk of reorganising school services in the area for some time. Therefore, given the proposal to close the school was not included in the Council's original proposals, the process I believe, is clearly flawed.”
He added, “It’s also very clear that the school is an important community asset that is treasured by local people and that’s why a full community impact assessment must be undertaken by the Counci. The future shape of education services in Pembrokeshire must carry the weight of our local communities and their needs must be met. The Council must seriously consider their views and ensure that all factors have been taken into consideration before any decisions are taken.”
Stephen Crabb MP commented, “I had a really interesting walkabout of the school and its facilities, and I particularly enjoyed chatting to years 3 and 4 about their Tudor history project.
“We also had the opportunity to talk through Pembrokeshire County Council’s recent proposal to close the school. Understandably, the situation has caused widespread concern in the immediate community who are worried about the wider impact the closure would have on village life.
“There is no question that Pembrokeshire County Council has an extremely difficult task of planning the future education needs of the county while raising the standards in our schools. There is much discussion about what needs to happen to refocus and redesign the makeup of our schools to ensure that young people get the right skills to start out in life and their future careers - but this needs to be a long term vision which has improved quality and standards of education at its very heart.
“Obviously, it is county councillors who will be making the final decision on what the future of local education looks like. But Paul and I have stressed to the council the need for a full community impact assessment to be carried out to ensure that all factors have been taken into consideration before any decision is taken which will fundamentally change the shape of the community in Solva.”
