Machinery powered by vegetable oil being used in construction of new special school

Ted Peskett, local democracy reporter

A new campus for a special school that featured in a BBC documentary will be the most advanced the local council has developed, according to a councillor.

Vale of Glamorgan Council cabinet member for education, arts and the Welsh language, Cllr Rhiannon Birch, made her comments as work continues on the construction of the second site for Ysgol Y Deri, named Ysgol Llyn Derw by pupils.

There is a big focus on making the £20m facility environmentally friendly, with developers constructing the school building even using machinery powered by vegetable oil on site.

Work on Ysgol Llyn Derw began in April, 2024, and it is expected to be complete by the summer term in June, 2025.

Net zero carbon

Cllr Rhiannon Birch said: “The new school campus is by far the most advanced that the Vale of Glamorgan Council have developed to date, with the building designed to be net zero carbon in operation.

“The use of carbon has also been further reduced through the physical design of the building, meeting Welsh Government set targets.

“At this stage of the building process we are unable to confirm how much green energy the school will rely on for power as there are multiple factors which will determine its use, such as how much energy the building will need to be powered and school equipment energy consumption.”

Ysgol Y Deri is best known for BBC documentary, A Special School, which it featured in.

Cllr Birch went on to add that the school’s new campus would be set apart from other modern school projects developed by the council through a number of green features.

It will have a green roof as well as air source heat pumps, solar panels, and on-site battery storage.

The new campus is being built over two storeys on land at Lower Cosmeston Farm.

Solar panels

The solar panels and a hybrid generator will be used to power the school building and it is hoped the green roof and bird boxes will help promote biodiversity.

When plans for the new school building surfaced, concerns were raised about it being built on the green wedge and the impact of this loss of land.

However, Ysgol Y Deri headteacher, Chris Britten, said the new building was desperately needed.

At a council planning committee meeting on March 29, 2023, Mr Britten said there wasn’t enough dining space at lunchtime and that some pupils were refusing food and drink out of fear of soiling themselves due to a lack of hygiene rooms.

Operations director at ISG said Ysgol Llyn Derw will stand as a “model for carbon-neutral education facilities” and that the project aligns with the council’s goal to be carbon neutral by 2030.