Plans to make Ysgol Bro Caereinion a Welsh medium school will be considered by the council's Cabinet next week.

Powys County Council confirmed that the objection report will be considered on Tuesday, May 28.

The announcement follows Cabinet giving the go-ahead for a statutory notice to be published in April, formally proposing the change. During the statutory notice period, 16 objections were received by the council.

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Cllr Pete Roberts, Cabinet Member for a Learning Powys, said: “This proposal would see the council providing well planned provision for increasing the opportunities for a growing number of children and young people to become fully bilingual, fluent in both Welsh and English and therefore contributing to the Welsh Government’s aspiration to achieve a million Welsh speakers by 2050.

“This proposal meets the aims of the Strategy for Transforming Education in Powys and implements the commitments in our Welsh in Education Strategic Plan, which will enable us to make good progress against our target of increasing the number of pupils being taught through the medium of Welsh.

“It is important that Cabinet hears the views of those who have objected to the proposal and these will be carefully considered before any final decisions are made.”

'Fully bilingual'

Despite some objections to the proposal, Powys Council has maintained that such a move would facilitate students developing skills to “become fluent in Welsh and English, ensuring that they become fully bilingual, and able to confidently use both languages in the future”.

The proposal would be introduced on a phased basis starting with Reception in September 2025 and Year 7 in September 2026.

Faced with concerns from some parents regarding their transport options should the proposal go ahead, Powys Council added that they will offer free home-to-school transport to pupils at years 4 and below at Ysgol Bro Caereinion and Ysgol Rhiw Bechan, in Tregynon, to their nearest English-medium secondary provider when they transfer from primary to secondary, should that be their preference.

The council also said that additional support would be provided to pupils not yet in the Welsh stream as part of the proposal in the form of immersive Welsh language support.