A CALL for a special group to evaluate “sustainable, inclusive, and effective practices for the maintenance of local Gypsy Traveller sites within the county” is to be heard by Pembrokeshire councillors later this week.

In a notice of motion before the December 12 meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council, Pembroke Monkton and St Mary South councillor Aaron Carey will call for ‘The establishment of a cross-departmental Working Group for the maintenance of local Gypsy Traveller sites’.

Cllr Carey’s motion reads: “That council agrees to the establishment of a cross-departmental working group, comprised of relevant council representatives, stakeholders, and representatives of local Gypsy Traveller communities, with the objective of assessing, evaluating, and recommending sustainable, inclusive, and effective practices for the maintenance of local Gypsy Traveller sites within the county.

“The working group will: Assess the current condition of Gypsy Traveller sites, including infrastructure, safety, sanitation, and accessibility. Engage with Gypsy Traveller communities to understand their specific needs and concerns regarding site maintenance.

“Review best practices from other local authorities and regions for managing and maintaining Gypsy Traveller sites. Consider the financial and resource implications of maintenance proposals and develop a clear action plan.

“Provide recommendations to the council for improvements and sustainable management of the sites, with the aim of improving living conditions for residents. The working group will present its findings and recommendations to full Council/Cabinet/O&S (where appropriate) within six months of the establishment of the group, following a series of consultations and site visits.”

Cllr Carey’s notice will be heard by members at the meeting.

Motion demands assessment of drainage infrastructure after Castle Pond overflow

A MOTION on emergency flooding concerns was brought before Pembrokeshire County Council this afternoon after the Presiding Member agreed to take it as an urgent matter under section 4.18.3 (b) of the constitution.

Councillors Aaron Carey and Jonathan Grimes tabled the motion, warning that repeated and increasingly severe flooding in coastal, estuarial and river-fringe communities — particularly around the Commons and Castle Pond area — has become a “live, ongoing problem” affecting residents and businesses.

Flooding ‘overwhelming’ current infrastructure

Members were told that, according to correspondence from the council’s Coastal, Rivers & Drainage Team Manager, the barrage tipping gate at Castle Pond remains out of operation until mid-January due to mechanical faults. In the meantime, a combination of high tides, heavy rain, wind-driven tidal surges and overspill at the sluice has repeatedly overwhelmed local drainage and outfall systems.

The motion notes that while the current maintenance schedule — delayed until after the summer for recreational and biodiversity reasons — had been justified internally, it “failed to foresee” the heightened likelihood of severe winter storms and surge events, which climate change is making “more frequent and more intense”.

Call for urgent infrastructure assessment

Cllrs Carey and Grimes called on Cabinet to commission an urgent review into:

The adequacy of existing drainage, outfall and tidal-sluice infrastructure, including the barrage tipping gate, sluice system, flap valve and overall outfall capacity.

The council’s maintenance scheduling policy for coastal and estuarial flood-risk assets, with a view to ensuring that essential works are completed before the winter storm-surge period rather than postponed for non-safety considerations.

Pending the outcome of that review, the motion states that the Council should allocate emergency capital funding to repair or upgrade any barrages, sluices or outfalls considered at risk of failure or blockage, in order to protect residents, properties, highways and public amenities.

It further calls for a county-wide public flood-resilience plan, identifying all hotspots, maintenance schedules, responsible teams and timelines for upgrades, to give residents “clarity and confidence” in local flood-prevention measures.

Sinnett pressed on outfall capacity

Alongside the motion, a separate Cabinet Member question was submitted to Cllr Rhys Sinnett, the member responsible for the portfolio.

He was asked what assessment had been made of the adequacy of Pembrokeshire’s tidal outfall infrastructure in the face of current and future storm surges and rising sea levels, and whether the council would now commit to commissioning an immediate structural and risk-capacity audit.

The question seeks a report to Full Council within three months, together with proposals for funding any remedial works necessary to prevent further disruption to residents, roads and public spaces.

Image: Martin Cavaney

PEMBROKESHIRE councillors are being asked to back major potential changes to school provision in the south of the county which could see multiple schools discontinued, along with the potential establishment of new 3-19 and 3-11 schools.

At Pembrokeshire County Council’s full council meeting of December 12, a recommendation before members asks that the Director of Education be authorised to undertake a public consultation on establishing a new 3-19 school, on a split site initially, but as part of a future investment to rebuild/extend Tenby’s Ysgol Greenhill site, or on a new site.

As part of that it also recommends Tenby Church in Wales Voluntary Controlled School and Ysgol Greenhill are discontinued.

A second part of the series of recommendations is a call to establish a new 3-11 primary school on the Saundersfoot School site “that encompasses the catchment of Saundersfoot and the catchment of Stepaside and Kilgetty, discontinuing Saundersfoot School and Stepaside school”.

A report for members says: “At a meeting of Cabinet on November 3, cabinet resolved that the [schools] Modernisation Working Group be requested to determine the final preferred outcomes in relation to the Tenby Area and that those recommendations be presented to full council in December 2025.”

It adds: “There are 534 surplus places in the primary sector in the Tenby area. There are 341 surplus places in the secondary sector in Greenhill School. Welsh Government does not set a fixed percentage or number of surplus places for schools, but there is guidance in the School Organisation Code and related documents.

“Surplus places should be minimised to ensure efficient use of resources and value for money. Historically, Welsh Government has considered 10 per cent surplus capacity as a reasonable planning margin for flexibility. When surplus places exceed 25 per cent, local authorities are expected to review provision and consider reorganisation or alternative use of space.

“In the Welsh context there are approximately 17 per cent surplus places in primary schools and 18 per cent in secondary schools. The Tenby area is 10 per cent above this in the primary phase at 27 per cent, and 10 per cent above in the secondary phase at 28.6 per cent”

In the case of Tenby Church in Wales VC it says the school has a surplus capacity of 38.1 per cent in 2025, and over a 25 per cent level for at least four years.

For Ysgol Greenhill it says the 1,194-pupil-capacity school has 877 pupils as of 2025, 28.5 per cent surplus places.

In the case of Saundersfoot Community Primary School, which has a capacity of 280 places, it says numbers were down to 151 by 2025, creating a surplus of almost half its capacity, (49.2 per cent).

For Stepaside, it says: “By 2025, enrolment is projected at 107, creating 101 surplus places—over half of the school’s capacity (50.5 per cent).”

The recommendations “to meet the council’s responsibility towards the planning of school places and ensuring a sustainable school estate to address the surplus places in the Tenby Area,” which will need public consultations, will be debated by members.

The meeting also includes two petitions opposing the potential closure of Manorbier and Ysgol Clydau, Tegryn, schools, after consultations on their futures were previously backed by councillors.