£1.7m spent on abandoned special school plans

Richard Evans Local Democracy Reporter

Denbighshire County Council (DCC) has spent more than £1.7 million on now-abandoned plans for a special school.

A Freedom of Information (FOI) request by the Local Democracy Reporting Service has revealed the authority spent the seven figure sum on a new school building to consolidate Ysgol Plas Brondyffryn on one site.

The school – which is currently based on four separate sites in the town – specialises in educating children and teenagers with autism aged between three and 19.

According to DCC’s website, the new school would have increased capacity from 116 to 220 pupils.

The new purpose-built school was planned for the sports field next to Denbigh Leisure centre on Ystrad Road, but the field is currently used by Denbigh High School.

These plans, though, were paused after opposition following a consultation, and the authority said it would conduct a feasibility study to look at other options.

But the Freedom of Information request has revealed the cost of drawing up the now-abandoned plans.

A council FOI spokesperson said: “The total actual spend so far on the Ysgol Plas Brondyffryn project relates to Ystrad Road and is £1,733,051. This is for the period 2020 – 2025. The current estimate value of the project is £30.7m.”

The council revealed it had spent £930,509 on consultancy; £652,582 on design fees (Internal); and £149,960 on project management and administrative expenses, totalling at £1,733,051.

Cllr Chris Evans said the council was wasting too much money: “We’ve spent £22m on a bin system that is still not working right. I know the money was Welsh Government, but the money has got to come from somewhere. It’s not from the money tree,” he said.

“We’ve spent £1.5m on Llanerch Bridge, and we’ve still got no bridge. We’ve got the Queen’s Market (in Rhyl) where the proprietors are getting rent free for two years, which is ludicrous.

“It is astronomical when we’ve got children and old people in Denbighshire that are struggling. Families are struggling to pay council tax with the cost of living. I just think it is astronomical the money that has been spent.”

He added: “I don’t know what is happening with the school, but it is not going there (Ystrad Road). We have to look at what the school was meant for – children with special needs. That is important, massively important, but that school field there has got a massive meaning to pupils that have been through Denbigh High for the past 50 or 60 years.”

A spokesman for the council said: “The consideration of the Ystrad Road site in Denbigh was paused following pre-planning consultation. The council are now progressing feasibility works on alternative site options for Ysgol Plas Brondyffryn and remain committed to meeting the current and future needs of its pupils.

“The team have engaged in dialogues with local members regarding this particular project, keeping them up to date with the latest developments. Whilst there have been some delays in the project timeline, the building of a new school of this nature, which will feature modern and tailored facilities for its pupils, takes considered, particular planning, along with significant financial investment, which the council is committed to investing in this project.”

He added: “We as a council are committed to delivering this £31m project, which will provide an improved and expanded school for pupils with additional learning needs in our county and is seen as an important priority.”