Cymdeithas yr Iaith has called on the new Executive Committee of Ynys Mon County Council to reject the advice of officers at a crucial meeting of the Committee tomorrow (2/6) to discuss the future of Village Schools. According to Cymdeithas’s message to Committee members, County Council officers appear to viewlast month’s election, which resulted in a new ruling coalition, as an unfortunate inconvenience and they wish to press ahead with a clear-out of village schools.

The official recommendation of Strategic Officer Geraint Elis is that members “should consider the report”. In fact the report pleads with members not to withdraw Closure Notices for Ysgol Aberffraw and Ysgol Llanddeusant and, incredibly, asks for authorisation to hold meetings to discuss the future of 14 other Welsh-medium Village Schools during a 10-day period in the middle of this month.Cymdeithas Education spokesperson Ffred Ffransis commented “ A rush-job of this nature shows that the Officers tend to merely go through the motions of listening to views at Public Meetings. They are using Cut & Paste techniques to create reports for each area and each school. This is completely contrary to statutory instructions which insist that every school is judged on its own merits and that all the options for explored in the context of the individual school rather than listing different models in a general document. It is indeed also an insult to schools which have given a century and more service to their communities to treat them in such a cavalier way.Mr Ffransis added, “ The Assembly Government’s Education Dept will be issuing (for consultation) next month new guidelines as to how Village Schools can co-operate. Simulataneously, the Assembly’s Rural Development Sub-Committee will be holding an enquiry into Rural Schools. The Minister will be making decisions on both reports at the end of this year, and new options could be forthcoming for small schools. It would be illogical to confirm Closure Notices and authorise rushed further consultations until these new possibilities are known.“ The Officers claim that it will “be a poor reflection on the Council” if they look again at the future of Ysgol Aberffraw and Ysgol Llanddeusant. They miss the point entirely that it is voters, not auditors, who decide policies. If the new Executive Committee do not change these decisions, then voter would begin to question what is the point of holding elections.”