Roman ruins discovery could add £1m to school revamp project

Nicholas Thomas, Local Democracy Reporter

The discovery of Roman ruins at a school could add £1 million to the bill for a major revamp, because of delays to building works.

Newport City Council has approved plans for a new sports and teaching block at Caerleon Comprehensive, replacing an ageing building and creating a “modern teaching environment” for staff and pupils.

However, construction work was paused in the summer following the discovery of what is believed to be a Roman-era parade ground wall and road.

Caerleon was one of three permanent legionary fortresses in Roman Britain and its archaeological riches include an amphitheatre, barracks and baths.

As part of the planning permission for the school improvements, the developer had to appoint a qualified archaeologist to oversee excavations of the site under a ‘watching brief’ – which was then escalated to a full excavation after the remains were found.

It is understood archaeologists from Heneb are due to wrap up their work this week at the school site, where they have been recording the finds.

Construction resumed in September on parts of the site where the archaeologists had already finished assessing the remains.

A council cabinet report warned the delays to construction could add around £1 million to an already growing outlay on the school improvement project.

The revamp of Caerleon Comprehensive was already expected to go over the original budget by £6-7 million, with the report stating a “funding solution will need to be identified and agreed”.

The council is footing 35% of the project’s costs and the Welsh Government will contribute the rest of the funding through a joint partnership.

According to the council report, the Welsh Government would have to agree to any extension of the project and to any further funding, and an update on the programme is expected in early 2027.

Meanwhile, the council could cover any increases to its own share of the project by drawing on rollover funding from its wider schools improvement budget.

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