Primary school merger plans face strong opposition

Alec Doyle, Local democracy reporter

Councillors have clashed over claims their authority is ‘going to war’ with a village in the county over school reorganisation plans.

Flintshire People’s Voice Cllr Alasdair Ibbotson was speaking about plans to merge Saltney Wood Memorial School and Saltney Ferry Primary School into one building on the Saltney Wood site.

The proposal has raised fears that pupils in Saltney Ferry are being disadvantaged by having to move to the opposite side of town to go to school despite over 3,000 objections being lodged against the plans.

Coupled with a recent dispute between the local authority and St David’s High School and the ongoing Catholic school proposals relating to the possible closure of St Anthony’s Primary School, Cllr Ibbotson did not hold back – citing the late Saltney Cllr Veronica Gay as he addressed Flintshire’s Education and Youth Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

“Former Saltney councillor Veronica Gay couldn’t go a single meeting without referring to Saltney as Flintshire’s forgotten town,” he said.

“I think that residents of Saltney today wish they were forgotten by this council. There is a feeling within the town that the council can’t go more than a couple of meetings without going to war with Saltney in some shape or form, be it over St Anthony’s, St David’s High School or this.

“The construction of a new primary school should be a fantastic thing for Saltney. It should be something that receives universal support and yet it hasn’t in Saltney.

“When this committee last discussed this in October members from both the coalition and the opposition stated the proposal was not supported by the people of Saltney and other alternatives, including looking at other sites within the area, should be considered.​

“The proposed site will be far less accessible for children in Saltney Ferry. ​This proposal overwhelmingly lacks public support, including from parents, children and staff at Wood Memorial who do not face the same issues as those at Saltney Ferry and who on the face of it have only things to gain.​

“The cabinet needs to take a long hard look at why residents are so opposed, because it is clearly not just about the valid issues raised around Saltney Ferry School, but also a wider sense that the council has it in for the town.​”

But Broughton South Labour Cllr Ryan McKeown hit back at Cllr Ibbotson’s ‘forgotten town’ claim.

“We cannot seriously describe Saltney as a forgotten town when this council is looking to invest so heavily in primary and secondary education in the area,” he said. ​

“What do we want in this border town? To continue with dilapidated old schools requiring investment, driving parents to take children over the border into England, or something better?​

“We must consider the impact on other schools across the county; by reducing the cost‑per‑pupil ratio, this allows better allocation of resources to maintain pupil funding across the county amid declining pupil numbers.​

“Better resourcing in Saltney helps protect funding for pupils in Broughton, Buckley, Flint and across Flintshire.​ If not now, then when? What would be the impact if there is a change in Senedd leadership after May?

“I would also ask is the proposal bold enough, does it go far enough to deliver the best provision for future generations?”

Cllr McKeown highlighted the fact there were only 29 responses to the statutory objection period – however Cllr Carolyn Preece pointed to the fact the education department’s consultation report failed to include the 3,536 objections and petition signatures from the initial stage of consultation late last year.

“It is a large number of people objecting, likely representing almost the whole of Saltney Ferry,” she said.

“I am in favour of new buildings to support learning, but even Estyn has said it will not take things to another level; it will maintain the current standard rather than extend and improve learning.

“None of the pupils from Saltney Ferry will qualify for free transport because they are under two miles from the school.​ We are imposing a new build on Saltney Ferry, removing local schools and a community amenity and moving it to the furthest point in Saltney.​

“An initial Safe route to school appraisal has been done but not a comprehensive assessment, which concerns me given how far we are into the process.

“There have been two serious life‑changing accidents on that road since Christmas. It is a dangerous road and many parents will be walking their children to school.”

The plans to amalgamate Saltney Wood and Saltney Ferry would see both schools continue to operate under one leadership team but as two standalone schools while a new school is constructed on the Saltney Wood site.

That process could take around three years to complete and will cost £12.5 million.

Most of that will be provided through the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Communities for Learning Fund with £4.75m being provided by Flintshire County Council through prudential borrowing.

Chief Officer for Education and Youth Claire Homard also confirmed that rumours access to the new school was going to be built on the current St Anthony’s site were false.

Labour Cllr Fran Lister questioned whether the scheme would make life harder for families in Saltney Ferry on lower incomes.

“The National Education Union’s objection to this proposal notes that 41% of Saltney Ferry learners and 37.8% at Wood Memorial are eligible for free school meals,” she said. “We cannot deny this is an area of deprivation.

“This proposal removes choice of schools and does not sit in isolation, because three primary schools in Saltney are under attack, which concerns me.

“I question whether this proposal is acceptable if it will make the lives of hard‑working people on low incomes more difficult.

“For a single working parent the extra travel could cost them their job, many families cannot afford daily bus fares; these are real problems.​

“If cabinet deems this proposal should go ahead, I would really want them to look at how to mitigate barriers to education for children living further from the Wood Memorial site.​”

Despite strong opposition the committee voted to send the report to Cabinet for a decision on whether to proceed.