Footpath dispute may delay £9m Welshpool school project

Powys Council had intended to extinguish the footpath by the Maesydre school in the town to allow the project to turn it into a 150-place modern school building for Welsh medium primary school Ysgol Gymraeg y Trallwng to go ahead.

The path currently leads to the Welshpool bypass, having been severed when the road was built 27 years ago.

But the Open Spaces Society had objected to the stopping-up plans for the path, leading to a new route being planned to allow the work to go ahead.

Now, however, a councillor has said he may object to the proposed route – which may mean the plans have to be seen by a Welsh Government planning inspector, potentially delaying the scheme by as much as a year.

The current route of the path.

At a meeting of Powys Council's planning, taxi licensing and rights of way committee on Thursday, July 1, Cllr Phil Pritchard who represents the Welshpool Castle ward, said a better diversion that would leave the school “self-contained” should be considered, and put forward a motion that the proposal be deferred to allow him to speak to staff and come up with a better alternative.

Countryside access and recreation officer Sian Barnes said: “There have already been significant delays to this programme, this is what the school service want to put forward as their final proposal having tried to negotiate with the objector.

“I appreciate it may seem an oddity that a single objector can have that much weight, but in the public path order process they can. A single objector can completely stall the process.

“It has to go to the planning inspectorate and the timescale for a case is a year or more.”

Cllr Phil Pritchard

She added that such a delay could pose a "significant risk" to the funding of the project.

The committee opted to press ahead with the current plans, fearing the Open Spaces Society's objection could put the project at risk – but Cllr Pritchard could yet also lodge an objection to the new route chosen.

Cllr Pritchard believed that work on the new school could start before the path issues had been settled.

“I have to be honest with members, if I have to make an objection, I will,” said Cllr Pritchard.

Cllr Kathryn Silk said: “Even if it’s illogical to retain the footpath to a spot that nobody will go to, it’s clearly what we have to do.

“If we don’t then the stopping up order clearly will be objected to by the Open Space Society.

“It’s completely bonkers but losing the money for the school doesn’t seem a risk worth taking.”