PLANS to build a new Welsh-medium primary school in north Powys have reached an important milestone after planning permission was granted, the county council has said.

Powys County Council will now build a new 150-place school with community facilities for Ysgol Gymraeg y Trallwng in Welshpool, a school which was established in 2017 following a re-organisation process.

The council's planning, taxi licensing & rights of way committee approved the planning application today (Thursday, December 3)

The new school will be built on the former site of Ysgol Maesydre with the old Grade II listed building, currently occupied by Welshpool Church in Wales Primary School, refurbished to accommodate early years and community facilities. A new extension will be built to include a new school hall and classroom bases.

This will be a flagship project for the council with it being the first 21st Century Schools build in Powys that will see the integration of old and new, the historical and the modern. The building will also be the first Passivhaus hybrid project in the UK.

The project will help the council deliver its Strategy for Transforming Education in Powys, an ambitious 10-year plan that was approved earlier this year.

Councillor Phyl Davies, cabinet member for education and property, said: "I'm delighted that we have been granted planning permission.

“The new school will provide our learners with 21st Century facilities while preserving and modernising a Grade II listed building for the community of Welshpool to use.

"We have a strategy to transform education in Powys and the Ysgol Gymraeg Y Trallwng new build shows our commitment to deliver this important strategy. When complete, it will provide a learning environment that will allow learners and teaching staff to thrive and reach their potential through the medium of Welsh."

It is anticipated construction work will commence following the completion of the new Welshpool Church in Wales Primary School build, which is due to open in the new year.

The school construction project is being funded by the Welsh Government 21st Century Schools Programme and is 50 per cent funded by Powys County Council. The project is being delivered in partnership with Heart of Wales Property Services.