THE first Welsh medium class for pupils with additional learning needs in Merthyr Tydfil has been given the green light.
The council’s cabinet on Wednesday, December 4, officially approved plans for a new Welsh medium learning resource base (LRB) for pupils with ALN at Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd y Grug in Aberfan.
There is currently no Welsh medium LRB in the county borough, and establishing specialist ALN provision through the medium of Welsh is a priority for the council, the cabinet report said.
It will be a 12-place class for pupils aged between reception and year six with ALN to be located at Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd Y Grug and will be able to accommodate pupils for whom a full-time mainstream placement is not deemed suitable.
It will accommodate pupils with ALN requiring a specialist class placement and cater for a range of different needs including but not limited to Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and complex needs.
Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd Y Grug is currently a single-form entry primary school with capacity for 288 pupils of statutory school age with a pupil admission number of 40.
There is also a nursery class able to accommodate 49 full-time equivalent pupils. The nursery class numbers include pre-nursery age children who are admitted in January and April on a part-time basis dependent on space.
Capital grant funding has been secured from Welsh Government (WG) to expand the school’s capacity to 329, increasing the pupil admission number to 47, and making the school 1.5 form entry.
This will also allow the school to accommodate 63 full-time equivalent nursery education places, ensuring sufficient space for part-time pre-nursery pupils each January and April, the cabinet report said.
Capital grant funding has also been secured from Welsh Government to develop a community room facility and to co-locate a Cylch Meithrin childcare provision on the site of the school.
The capital project to increase the capacity of the school, develop an LRB class, provide a community room and a new Cylch Meithrin childcare facility will be taken forward as a single project using Welsh Government funding.
No objections were received during the objection period and so no amendments are proposed to the statutory notice.
Tender processes are currently being completed to appoint a contractor to undertake the required capital works and the timescales for the completion of the works, currently estimated to be September, 2025, will be confirmed once a contractor is appointed and the programme of works is agreed.
Establishing an LRB class at Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd Y Grug will require the school to employ an LRB class teacher and two learning support assistants.
The local authority will support the school to recruit appropriate teaching and support staff ready for September, 2025, and help with any pupil transitions.
If there are any delays to the building being ready to accommodate pupils in the LRB class from September, 2025, consideration will be given to deploying a peripatetic LRB approach until accommodation is ready.
The council said it would continue working with Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd Y Grug, Ysgol Gymraeg Santes Tudful and the seedling Welsh medium school to identify potential pupils who might be appropriately placed in the LRB.
The required budget to fund the Welsh medium LRB class at Ysgol Gymraeg Rhyd Y Grug has already been secured within the council’s revenue budget from September, 2025.
The capital budget required to develop the LRB class within the school has been secured from Welsh Government using Welsh medium capital grant.
