Council receives ‘overwhelming’ response to Catholic super-school plans

Alec Doyle – Local democracy reporter

Opponents of a north Wales council’s Catholic super-school plans have said they are overwhelmed by the response to their campaign.

While official figures have yet to be confirmed by Flintshire County Council, Liberal Democrat Cllr David Coggins Cogan reported that by 10pm on the final day of the objection period the authority had received over 4,000 responses.

Added to the number of objections lodged during the initial consultation period and petition signatures the total estimated number of objections is over 9,400.

That is more than double the number received during the consultation to close John Summers High School – which received 3,733 objections.

Flintshire County Council and the Diocese of Wrexham are proposing the closure of four Catholic schools – St David’s Primary in Mold, St Anthony’s in Saltney, St Mary’s in Flint plus St Richard Gwyn Catholic High School – and replacing them with a £55 million 3-18 super-school in Flint.

The project would be 85% funded by a grant from the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Communities for Learning Fund. The remaining 15% – or £8.5m – would be funded by Flintshire County Council via borrowing.

The repayments on that borrowing would run for 50 years and cost taxpayers £30.9m.

“I am completely overwhelmed and grateful to everyone who took the time to put an objection in,” said St Anthony’s Action Group member Claire Smith. “It’s evident from the huge number of objections that the community can see these plans for our children are no good, also that small schools are an important part of our communities.”

Fellow St Anthony’s Action Group parent Kerry Hunt added: “I’m incredibly grateful for the ongoing support of our community. It shows that our small communities pull together for the sake of our children. They need the nurturing environment of small community schools to thrive in the big world.

Mum Martina Crocombe said the council needed to start listening.

“Behind every one of those objections is a family who cares deeply about their child’s future,” she said.  “Our schools aren’t just buildings, they are the heart of our communities. The sheer scale of this response is a massive success for our campaign. It’s inspiring to see the community stand up so strongly and proves we won’t let these nurturing safe spaces be lost without a fight.”

In a statement St David’s Action Group also expressed their gratitude for the support their campaign to stop the super-school plan has received.

“We are overwhelmed by the public support against the proposal for the reorganisation of Catholic education in Flintshire,” they said. “The Action Group is supported by the staff and pupils and it is clear how much St David’s means to the community.

“It is vital that this voice is heard and we are determined that this will be the case.”

Flintshire Liberal Democrat leader Cllr Andrew Parkhurst called on the authority not to ignore such a significant response.

‘This is a powerful demonstration of democratic participation and community involvement.,” he said. “This is grassroots politics and campaigning at its finest. The communities and action groups should be immensely proud of their efforts.

‘What is particularly striking is not just the number of responses, but the breadth of people involved. Thousands of residents, even children, have taken the time to engage with the process to let this council know how much they love their schools.

“That scale of engagement is rare in local government and reflects how deeply people care about these local schools; they are at the heart of their communities.’

Lib Dem colleague Cllr David Coggins Cogan added: “When taking account of petitions too, there have been over 9,000 responses to this proposal to close local, well-loved schools.

“That is incredible feedback on this council’s proposal to close four community-based schools. It is a record for Flintshire County Council – no other school-based consultation has received this level of response and it may even be a record for any Flintshire County Council consultation.

“This strength of feeling must be reflected in the Cabinet’s final determination.”

Flintshire County Council’s Education Department expressed thanks to all who had participated in the consultation but would not be drawn on the figures.

“We know these proposals have generated high levels of interest, which reflects the importance of the matter to our communities,” said Claire Homard, Chief Officer for Education and Youth.

“The objection responses are currently being counted and analysed. The outcome of the objection period will feed into the final report and recommendation, which will be considered by the Education, Youth and Culture Overview and Scrutiny Committee and then Cabinet in February for a final decision.

“We would like to reiterate our thanks to everyone who took the time to share their views during the objection period and consultation period and assure them that all comments will be carefully considered.”