Council to request funding for replacement special school

Just last week Powys County Council’s planning committee approved a planning application for a new replacement building for Ysgol Cedewain in Newtown.

Education service staff were congratulated by the cabinet at their meeting today, for being able to bring down the funding requirements of the new school by £3million

Education portfolio holder, Councillor Phyl Davies said: “The strategic outline case was approved by Cabinet in May 2020 and Welsh Government in July 2020.

“The total cost would be £19.7 million which is within the £22 million that was originally outlined for the project.

“Thanks to the team for working on that to bring the full design element of the build within the outline figure that were estimated at the beginning.

“I think it’s important to recognise the work done, the pupils and staff at Cedewain have been long waiting for this news.”

Council leader, Councillor Rosemarie Harris added that this project “had been a long time in the cooking.”

Marianne Evans, service manager for schools transformation at the council, said: “The school is in a sorry state of repair so we're very pleased to see this one coming.”

Ms Evans told cabinet that the £19.7million would see 75 per cent of the funding, or £14.788 million come from the Welsh Government.

Powys will stump up the remaining 25 per cent which is £4.929 million.

The outline business case figure for the project had been £22.7 million

Ms Evans said: “So we’ve actually come in £3millon under budget which is very pleasing, and we can allocate that against other projects in the 21st centuries schools programme.

She added that a £2million contingency fund would be kept in case the project has extra costs.

Ms Evans added that the next stage would see it taken forward to the Welsh Government for their approval on February 17.

If the Welsh Government also give the project approval, building work could start as soon as next month.

Finance portfolio holder, Councillor Aled Davies, said: “It’s a school full of wonderful children, it does show the commitment of this cabinet, we’ve been pushing for this for a long time.”

The new school will have purpose-built and state-of-the-art facilities including a hydrotherapy pool, sensory and physiotherapy rooms, and garden as well as a community café.

With an internal floor area of 5,146 square metres, the new school will be more than double the size of the current one.

A Multi Use Games Area (MUGA), yard and sports pitch is part of the proposal.

The school provides education for pupils from two years of age to 19 years old, with wide range of complex educational, sensory, and physical needs.

Most pupils have a statement of special educational needs (SEN).

If everything goes to plan the new school could be completed and open by the end of April 2023.