Council announces Welsh school closure despite pleas from parents and pupils

Amelia Jones

A council has confirmed that a Welsh language school will close despite concerns raised by local residents and language campaigners.

The closure of Ysgol Llansteffan will come into effect on 31st August 2026, with pupils transferred to Ysgol Llangain from 1st September 2026.

The current catchment for Ysgol Llansteffan will also be absorbed by Ysgol Llangain. The council have said that parents and guardians may also apply to other schools in Carmarthenshire via the usual school admissions process.

Ysgol Llansteffan was identified based on criteria set out within the Modernising Education Programme, approved by Cabinet on 18 November 2024 in order to address challenges faced by the school. The challenges include extremely low pupil numbers and high surplus places, as well a high number of pupils living within catchment are attending other schools.

Pupil projections also suggest that there is little likelihood of numbers increasing dramatically over the next few years, alongside a projected deficit budget at the end of this financial year.

Carmarthenshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Education, Cllr Glynog Davies, said: “The decision to close Ysgol Llansteffan is difficult for everyone involved and it is, with sadness, that this has been agreed.

Following a robust process, the discontinuation of Ysgol Llansteffan will enable the school to combine with Ysgol Llangain to provide safer staffing, the wider sharing of Welsh language among pupils and a more sustainable rural community.”

A statutory notice for the closure was issued in November 2025. At the start of 2025, the school had just eight registered pupils, and pupil projection numbers remained low.

Last month, Ysgol Llansteffan’s parent teacher association had urged council chiefs not to recommend approval, saying pupil numbers were rising.

The closure has also raised concerns about the impact on the Welsh language.

Cymdeithas yr Iaith, which submitted a complaint to the Welsh Language Commissioner, argued that the council’s language impact assessment did not adequately consider whether there is sufficient Welsh-medium capacity in the area.

Ffred Ffransis on behalf of the Carmarthen Region Cymdeithas yr Iaith said: “Cymdeithas stands with the parents of Ysgol Llansteffan, who are devastated that there was not a single word in favour of the school and all the hard work of teachers and governors in the chamber.

“And it is incredible that there was no reference to the fact that the Welsh Language Commissioner is holding an investigation into the language impact assessment or to the parents’ exciting proposals for the school.

“Not only does closing a school disrupt children’s education and remove one of the main Welsh language institutions from the community, but we saw a democratic deficit today, which will make people question what the point of the whole process is.”