New school opened in Cricieth

The work of building the new school in Cricieth has been completed, and the school opened it's doors to pupils on 5 September 2024. 

The new-look Ysgol Treferthyr will open its doors for the first time at the start of the autumn term, thanks to an £8.8 million project by Cyngor Gwynedd to build a new, eco-friendly school which will provide a first class learning environment for the children of Cricieth and the surrounding area.  

The whole Ysgol Treferthyr family – including learners, parents, staff, and governors – have been eagerly awaiting this moment, having said goodbye to the old school building, which had reached the end of its life, at the end of the summer term.  

The new Ysgol Treferthyr has first-class resources that meet the needs of education and the Curriculum for Wales, such as multi-purpose classrooms, a purpose-built hall for carrying out various activities by the school and the community, as well as playing fields and a multi-sport space.  

The new building will also include facilities for early years provision and childcare which will offer education, play and childcare for pre-school children as well as an after-school club for primary aged children. The ABC Centre on the Ysgol Treferthyr site will also offer a space to assess children with additional learning needs. 

Protecting the environment has been a priority throughout the process of planning and building this eco-friendly school, with green technologies such as air source heat pumps and solar panels powering the building, together with the use of sustainable materials in order to support carbon-free principles. The school also includes electric car charging points and a battery system on site to store and use the power produced.  

The Head of Ysgol Treferthyr, Dylan Roberts, said: “We are all looking forward to the next exciting period as we move to Ysgol Treferthyr's new premises. There are great resources here that are suitable for the twenty first century. The pupils are looking forward to settling into their new classes which are named after local rivers in the Eifionydd area.  

“As a school we are extremely grateful to everyone who has contributed to getting the school ready. We are extremely lucky to have such a special building for our school. We look forward to providing education and creating unforgettable experiences for the children of Ysgol Treferthyr at our new site."  

Councillor Beca Brown, Cyngor Gwynedd's Cabinet Member for Education, said: “I am sure that the pupils of Ysgol Treferthyr and their families are very much looking forward to settling into their new school. The old building was dated and no longer fit for purpose, so I share the excitement of the local community about all the modern resources that are in the new school, and the great educational opportunities that will be available to the pupils.  

“I am grateful to everyone who has worked hard to reach this milestone, and I wish the children and all the staff the best in their new school.”  

Lynne Neagle AM, Welsh Government Cabinet Secretary for Education said: “It is fantastic we have been able to support this new school. The use of green technology is important to me as by building sustainable schools we’re providing for the future.  

“Combined with great teaching and learning, these state-of-the-art facilities can help ensure that our children get the best education possible and I hope it will help the learners and wider community to thrive.”   

The new school was jointly funded by Cyngor Gwynedd, the Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme, the Childcare Offer Capital Programme and Additional Learning Needs, Welsh Government.  

The contractors responsible for realising the vision for the school were Wynne Construction, and Andy Lea, Project Manager said: “The site team have done a fantastic job to deliver Ysgol Treferthyr in time for the new academic year, and we hope the pupils and staff enjoy their modern and inspirational school building.  

“It’s been brilliant to work closely with Cyngor Gwynedd again as well as the local supply chain and community, where we have strived to leave a lasting legacy through job and training opportunities.” 


 

Signing of the beam

Pupils from the existing school took part in a beam signing ceremony to mark the completion of work on the roof beams of the new school building.

Cricieth

 

Turf cutting

A ceremonial event was held in Cricieth to celebrate the start of construction work on the new Ysgol Treferthyr site, with Councillor Beca Brown, Gwynedd Council's Cabinet Member for Education and a group of learners from Ysgol Treferthyr cutting the turf.  

Llun torri'r dywarchen

Councillor Beca Brown, said: 

“I’m delighted to see work start on the new school which, when finished, will provide modern facilities for the children of Cricieth and allow them to reach their full potential.

“The new school will feature six classrooms with external access, a hall, kitchen and a multipurpose room. The outside area will have a hard surface space for play, a multi-use games area and a grass playing field.

“Although the old school has been a much-loved feature of the town, I’m confident that the learners, their families and the teaching staff will be excited by the prospect of the new school.”

 

Further reading

In 2021 a planning application was submitted to the Council’s Planning Service following Welsh Government approval of the funding and permission by the Council’s Cabinet to build the new Ysgol Treferthyr.

However, due to a combination of reasons the timetable for construction has slipped somewhat from that originally planned. An archaeological inspection of the site was required as well as further work on plans for safe routes to the new school in collaboration with the Council’s Highways and Municipal Department.

Planning permission was granted in September 2022 following the completion of this extra work.

Another factor which contributed to the slippage in the timetable was the fact that there was a steady and substantial increase in the cost of material, energy etc in the building sector during this period, which meant that the original budget of around £5m for the project was no longer sufficient.

Therefore, following the planning approval an application was made to increase the funding to just over £8m which was approved by both the Council’s Cabinet and the Welsh Government. In addition to this the Council has also secured extra funding through various other Welsh Government grants to include an Early Years Unit and an Additional Learning Assessment Unit in the new Ysgol Treferthyr.

Opening date

Unfortunately, the issues noted above have meant that the work on the site has been delayed, and as a result it will be necessary to change the opening date for the new school. Following discussions with the Governing Body of Ysgol Treferthyr, it was agreed to change the opening date to 1 September 2024. 

A statutory objection period was held between 24 February and 24 March 2021 on the proposal to increase the capacity of Ysgol Treferthyr to 150 and relocate the school to an alternative site, referred to as the A497 site, on 1 September 2023. No objections were received to the proposal.

On Tuesday 18 May 2021, Gwynedd Council’s Cabinet approved the proposal given through the statutory notice, to increase the capacity of Ysgol Treferthyr to 150 and relocate the school to an alternative site referred to as the A497 site on 1 September 2023, in accordance with Section 53 of the Standards Act and School Organisation (Wales) 2013 and the requirements of the School Organisation Code 11/2018.

The report presented to the Cabinet on 18 May 2021 expands on the background, the consultation and the statutory process. The report can be seen below.

Following consideration of the proposal the Gwynedd Council's Cabinet agreed to “confirm finally the proposal made through a statutory notice, to increase the capacity of Ysgol Treferthyr to 150 and relocate the school to an alternative site referred to as the A497 site on 1 September 2023, in accordance with Section 53 of the School Standards and Organisation (Wales) Act 2013 and the requirements of the Schools Organisation Code 11/2018.” 

 

The Cabinet’s decision came into effect on 2 June 2021 and a decision letter was issued and circulated to all stakeholders.

 

Further information

In accordance with the above decisions, we published a Statutory Notice on 24 February 2021.

Anyone can object to the proposal within a period of 28 days from the date of publication of this notice, that is by 24 March 2021.

Written objections should be addressed to the Head of Education at:

Gwynedd Council
Swyddfa’r Cyngor
Caernarfon
Gwynedd
LL55 1SH

or by sending an e-mail to the attention of the Head of Education to: 
modernisingeducation@gwynedd.llyw.cymru

 

Reports and attachments:

 If you require hard copies of any document please do not hesitate to contact us by calling (01286) 679640 or e-mail  modernisingeducation@gwynedd.llyw.cymru

Following a series of local meetings with a Local Review Panel to discuss possible options for a new school in Criccieth, Gwynedd Council's Cabinet at a meeting on 13 October 2020 decided to undertake a statutory consultation process, in accordance with the requirements of section 48 of the School Standards and Organisation Act (Wales) 2013, on the proposal to increase the capacity of Ysgol Treferthyr to 150 and relocate the school to a new site, referred to as the A497 site, on 1 September 2023.

The Statutory Consultation period will run from 6 November 2020 to 18 December 2020.

The statutory consultation document and all relevant documents are available below:

 

If you require hard copies of any document please do not hesitate to contact us by calling (01286) 679640 or e-mail  modernisingeducation@gwynedd.llyw.cymru

Following a series of local meetings with a Local Review Panel to discuss possible options for a new school in Criccieth, Gwynedd Council's Cabinet decided at a meeting on 13 October 2020 to undertake a statutory consultation process, in accordance with the requirements of section 48 of the School Standards and Organisation Act (Wales) 2013, on the proposal to increase the capacity of Ysgol Treferthyr to 150 and relocate the school to a new site, referred to as the A497 site, on 1 September 2023. 

Councilor Cemlyn Rees Williams, Gwynedd Council's Cabinet Member for Education, said: 

“We are delighted to secure investment from the Welsh Government through the 21st Century Schools Program in order to build  a new school in Criccieth. This means that the children of Criccieth will be able to enjoy their education in a modern building that is fit for purpose for teaching and learning in this modern era.” 

It is anticipated that the statutory consultation period will begin in the coming weeks. The consultation period will provide an opportunity for those involved in the school as well as any others to comment on the proposal. 

Following the decision of Gwynedd Council Cabinet on 2 April 2019 a Local Review Panel has been established to discuss a new school in Cricieth. The intention is for this Panel to discuss the needs of a new school in the town mainly due to the poor condition of Ysgol Treferthyr.

The Local Review Panel will consider the opportunities and options available for the new school and then ask Gwynedd Council's Cabinet to allow a statutory consultation process on the preferred option that will be agreed following the completion of the Panel meetings.

  

More Information:

Cabinet Meeting April 2019 (item 8)