Parents urge council to look into establishing new Welsh school

Ted Peskett Local Democracy Reporter

Parents who currently have to travel halfway across Cardiff to take their children to school are calling for a new Welsh medium secondary school in the south of the city.

The campaign, which launched on Thursday, July 11, comes after a number of year 6 pupils from the Ysgol Gyfun Glantaf catchment area in Cardiff were initially denied places at the school only for this decision to be overturned for most of them before the appeal stage.

Ysgol Gyfun Glantaf, one of three Welsh medium secondary schools in Cardiff, was among the most oversubscribed schools in the city this year.

Many parents whose children were lucky enough to secure a place face a 20 to 30 minute car journey to the school if they live in areas to the south of the city, like Grangetown.

Disappointment

“Many pupils were incredibly disappointed that they didn’t get a space in Ysgol Glantaf,” said Catrin Dafydd, a member of the new campaign for a Welsh school in south Cardiff and a parent.

“It really created a sense of unease and worry amongst children and their families and it made clear really that we need immediately for there to be provision for South Cardiff.

“A school that is routed in our community that represents our community.”

Parents and children gathered for the launch of the new campaign outside County Hall, where the council was presented with a letter calling for the establishment of a new school.

Ms Dafydd said: “The new curriculum for Wales states clearly that they think children should receive their education in their own communities and study the world from where their feet are grounded.

“Our children have to travel halfway across the city which is certainly not a green plan.

“South Cardiff is a disadvantaged area. Welsh medium education, if it is for everyone as all literature and policies state in Cardiff Council and you see Welsh Government push it as well, you need to make that a reality for people.”

Distance

Ms Dafydd added that the distance parents had to travel to Ysgol Glantaf was also making them think twice about whether their children could attend extracurricular activities.

Cardiff Council said there were currently sufficient places available in Cardiff’s Welsh medium secondary schools and that building a new one at this time would be detrimental to their sustainability.

It added that it was committed, through its Welsh in Education Strategic Plan (WESP), to increase the permanent capacity of Welsh medium secondary school provision over a ten year period.

This year, there were 240 places on offer at Ysgol Glantaf and 267 pupils had it as their preferred choice.

Ysgol Plasmawr and Ysgol Bro Edern, the other Welsh medium secondary schools in Cardiff, had 12 and six applications fewer than places available respectively this year.

Another parent, Alex Clatworthy, said: “I was the first cohort in the second Welsh school in Cardiff.

“It was great. It was wonderful and… being in that school was nothing but amazing for me and it was on my doorstep.”

Transition

One of Alex’s children is still in primary school and the other is just two, but she feels for the parents and children who had to face the uncertainty of which school they were going to.

Alex, 38, added: “It has become apparent how difficult it is for children in this area to get into a Welsh school guaranteed and that is going to school with their friends, which is a massive deal for lots of children.

“It is a big transition into secondary education and sure, you can start and make new friends, but they have gone through their schooling with a group of friends and then to have the rug pulled out from under your feet because of the post code you live in is just unfair.”

Carl Morris, 42, said his children were also too young for secondary school but the issue had made him think more about the future.

He said: “Cardiff is my city and I have known for a long time that there is a gap there and now that I am a dad it has pressed that point a little bit.

“My son attends Ysgol Hamadryad and ordinarily you would expect to go to Glantaf, but families were initially turned away and then they went through an appeals process which was quite stressful really and creates a lot of uncertainty.

“They eventually got places, but that was several months in.”

A Cardiff Council spokesperson said: “The Council reviews its admissions policy each year, considering the effectiveness and fairness of arrangements for all pupils whether they are looking to go to Welsh Medium or English Medium schools.

“In fact, the Independent Appeal Panel recently agreed that the council implemented its arrangements for admissions to its secondary schools correctly.

“The only appeals that were allowed for admission to Ysgol Glantaf by an independent panel were those individuals with compelling grounds for admission.

“We know that there are some parents who are keen to have a Welsh Medium Secondary School closer to where they live and we understand that, but expanding Welsh-medium provision – indeed any expansion of school provision, English or Welsh – must be carefully planned to ensure all provision is able to operate effectively and sustainably.

“Intakes to Welsh-medium secondary schools are projected to reduce in 2025/26 and 2026/27, compared to the 2024/25 intake year, and crucially, there are sufficient places available in Cardiff’s Welsh-medium secondary schools to support any pupils who want to learn through Welsh.

“The council is already planning to temporarily increase capacity to support the projected ‘bulge’ intake to Welsh-medium secondary schools in 2027/28, following which projected intakes again fall significantly and will remain at lower levels until at least 2031/32, reflecting recent low birth rates and lower intakes to primary education.

“There are sufficient places planned and available in Cardiff’s Welsh-medium secondary schools to support Cardiff’s learners until at least the 2031/32 intake year.

“Building a new Welsh-medium secondary school at this time – when there are sufficient places available in Cardiff’s three Welsh-medium secondary schools – would be detrimental to the sustainability of those schools.

“Put simply there are not enough pupils to sustain four Welsh Medium secondary schools and recent birth rates and projections do not point to this changing in the foreseeable future.

“That aside, the council’s Welsh in Education Strategic Plan (WESP) 2022-2031 covers a wide range of commitments including the progression of strategic plans to increase the permanent capacity of Welsh-medium secondary provision over the ten-year period.

“The council is also working closely with partner organisations to promote the benefits of a bilingual education to grow the Welsh language and the number of learners entering Welsh primary education, and in turn support future expansion of Welsh secondary provision.”