Call to re-open Llandrillo village school to meet demand

Ysgol Llandrillo was closed in 2014

Parents in a Denbighshire village say the council should consider re-opening a school it closed, claiming its replacement is struggling to cope.

They claim up to 50 pupils want to have their lessons in Llandrillo rather than at schools including Ysgol Bro Dyfrdwy in Cynwyd, three miles away.

Campaigner Becky Mollison-White said teachers were being put under stress.

Denbighshire County Council said there had been no "significant increase" in pupil numbers from Llandrillo.

The new school officially opened in September 2014 on the site of the former Ysgol Maes Hyfryd in Cynwyd - which also closed - despite protests from residents of Llandrillo.

'Heart ripped out'

Ms Mollison-White has been campaigning to re-open the former school building for local use, either as a community centre or as a school once again.

"Our heart has been ripped out by the closure of the school," she said.

"People know how busy Cynwyd's school is. The impression we have is that capacity is under stress and resources are very limited.

"It's not fair to the teaching staff."

Mabon ap Gwynfor, a Denbighshire councillor who represents both villages, said: "It was a bad decision to close the school in the first place.

"The school we have got serving the community is now becoming full."

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A spokesman for Denbighshire council told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that pupil numbers at Ysgol Llandrillo had fallen from an average of 41 to 29 when closure was proposed, and had been projected to fall further.

He said: "There are 27 full time pupils at Ysgol Bro Dyfrdwy who reside in the Llandrillo area and, since 2010, there hasn't been a significant increase in pupil numbers from Llandrillo."