MORE work needs to be done before a catchment area for Brynmawr Foundation school can be finalised, senior councillors have agreed.
At a meeting of Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council’s Labour Cabinet on Wednesday, April 9 councillors received a report on the: Admissions Policy for Nursery and Statutory Education for 2026/2027 and Consultation on Catchment Area Review.
The catchment area review included details of a consultation held by the council between February 4 and March 14 on creating a catchment area for Brynmawr Foundation (secondary) school which came out of Estyn special measures in December 2023.
The consultation centres on officially placing Beaufort Hill, Blaen y Cwm, Ystruth and Coed y Garn primary schools all in the catchment area for Brynmawr.
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This would address is school capacity issues by sharing pupils around more equally between Brynmawr and Ebbw Fawr Learning Community
But respondents to the consultation are overwhelmingly against the proposal with opposition to the scheme being especially strong from Beaufort Hill primary school which is in Beaufort – which lies roughly between Ebbw Vale and Brynmawr.
Earlier this month councillors looked at the proposal in a meeting of the council’s People scrutiny committee and agreed that they wanted more work done on this review.
The People scrutiny committee chairman, Cllr Tommy Smith (Labour) appeared before cabinet to explain the reasons behind his committee’s recommendation of the need to find another way.
Cllr Smith said: “The committee unanimously agreed to recommend a third option to cabinet, to approve the admissions policy for nursery and statutory education for 2026/2027.
“But recommend that cabinet do not support the consultation catchment area review and agree that a separate report on it be submitted for further scrutiny considering the concerns raised by members around topography, demographics, access to transport, parental choice, friendships of pupils being broken and the active travel review.”
Cllr Smith added that the major concern councillors had was that the proposal would affect cluster working between schools in the area.
Cabinet member for social services, Cllr Haydn Trollope welcomed the comments.
Cllr Trollope said: “We had a great consultation, and we have to look and listen to what people have said and I don’t think there has been enough time to look at the work that’s been done.”
Deputy council leader, Cllr Helen Cunningham said that this seems like a “sensible way forward” and she wanted to “understand more” of the concerns that have come up from the consultation responses.
Cabinet member for economy and regeneration Cllr John C Morgan added: “To me Beaufort is part of Ebbw Vale.”
Cabinet went on to unanimously support the option.
A foundation school means that the governing body have a far greater say on running the school and what is taught there.
Brynmawr comprehensive school became a grant maintained foundation school back in the 1990s to save it from being closed by the council.
Ebbw Fawr Learning Community has too many pupils and is eight per cent oversubscribed while Brynmawr Foundation School has too few and has 25 per cent spare places.