Claire Archibald says proposals affecting Cilgerran and Manorbier show rural families risk losing real parental choice

A REFORM UK Senedd member has asked the Welsh Government to intervene over the future of Church schools in West Wales, following growing concern about proposals affecting rural schools in Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion.

Claire Archibald MS, who represents Ceredigion Penfro, has written to Education Minister Anna Brychan asking what safeguards are in place to protect Church schools, Christian education and parental choice.

Her intervention follows months of controversy over the future of rural education provision, including proposals affecting Cilgerran Church in Wales Voluntary Controlled School and Manorbier Church in Wales Voluntary Controlled School.

Pembrokeshire County Council has consulted on plans to discontinue Cilgerran Church in Wales VC School and establish a new 3-11 community school in its place.

In Manorbier, the council has also progressed proposals to discontinue the village’s Church in Wales school, which has been at the centre of a long-running row following a serious fire.

Ms Archibald said the issue should not be treated as a simple administrative change.

She said: “Christianity has helped shape Wales for generations. It is part of our history, our values, and the life of many of our villages and towns.

“Church schools matter. They give parents the choice of a Christian education for their children, and in rural areas that choice can be lost very easily when a school is closed, reorganised, or stripped of its Church status.

“I fully understand that councils face financial pressures and difficult decisions, but we cannot allow those pressures to quietly erase Christian school provision from rural Wales.

“These are not just technical changes. They affect parental choice, community life, and the future of Christian education in Wales.”

Rural school concerns

The Herald has previously reported on strong opposition to changes at Cilgerran, where many parents and residents have argued that the school’s Church status is part of its identity and community role.

The Manorbier case has also attracted significant local attention, with campaigners arguing that the village school should be protected following the disruption caused by the fire and the temporary relocation of pupils.

Ms Archibald said the pattern across rural Wales was worrying.

She has also raised concerns about proposals affecting village schools in Ceredigion, including Ysgol Llanfihangel y Creuddyn, a community school on a Church in Wales-owned site.

She said: “Parents should not be told they have choice on paper when the nearest realistic alternative may be many miles away.

“In rural areas, distance matters. Transport matters. Community matters.

“I have asked the Education Minister to set out what safeguards are in place to protect Church schools, Christian education, rural communities, and parental choice before these decisions are allowed to go ahead.”

Questions for ministers

In her letter, Ms Archibald asked the Welsh Government to confirm what assessment has been made of Church schools closed, discontinued, or proposed for category change in Wales.

She has also asked whether stronger guidance will be issued to councils considering proposals that affect Church schools.

The MS has requested that the minister meet affected parents, governors, local representatives and the relevant dioceses.

Councils have previously argued that school reorganisation proposals must take account of pupil numbers, building conditions, budgets, educational standards and long-term sustainability.

However, campaigners say that in rural communities the closure or reclassification of a school can have consequences beyond education, including the loss of community identity, longer journeys for children and fewer realistic choices for parents.

A CALL to allow a Pembrokeshire chapel to keep a temporary classroom used as a Sunday school while funding for a permanent building is sought has been submitted to county planners.

In an application to Pembrokeshire County Council, Rev Jennifer Gough, through agent Harries Planning Design Management, seeks permission for the retention of a temporary classroom at Bethlehem Chapel, Bethlehem, near Haverfordwest.

A supporting statement says: “The chapel maintains an active congregation with Sunday school provision. The temporary classroom gained planning permission in 2017 and comprises a portacabin arrangement located to the west of the chapel. It comprises a single classroom internally and simple elevations. The structure is temporary with all services located within the existing chapel.

“Planning permission was originally granted in 2018 for temporary consent for the classroom. This has been reissued twice [in 2020 and 2022 schemes] whilst the chapel secured funds and agreed designs to allow for a permanent solution.

“This application seeks to renew consent for the temporary classroom which lapsed in February 2026, to allow for a final period of use of the temporary arrangement.

“Work is underway to submit a long-term, permanent arrangement to secure a classroom for the Sunday school but future planning and building work could still take some time. Therefore, to future proof the Sunday School and continue to support the congregation, further temporary permission is sought.”

It adds: “All features of this application remain the same as previous, with no additional arrangements proposed. There will be no foul output generated from this proposal.”

In finishes: “Overall, this application seeks to retain the temporary classroom for one further period to allow a permanent solution to be submitted into planning and subsequently be built, all whilst supporting the existing Sunday school and maintaining a functional congregation and chapel.

“The temporary classroom has been deemed appropriate under previous applications and there are no changes proposed, with all detailed matters remaining acceptable.”

The application will be considered by county planners at a later date.

At the start of the year, an extension to the chapel, for community activities, was approved by planning officers.

RHUN AP IORWERTH faced questions on safeguarding in Welsh schools, taxation and overseas spending during today’s First Minister’s Questions.

Facing colleagues in the Siambr, the Plaid Cymru leader defended the work of his Welsh Government.

The First Minister clashed once again with opposition leader Dan Thomas over the Welsh Government’s international relations budget.

During plenary on June 2, Mr ap Iorwerth referred to the £9m budget for international relations as “small change”.

Speaking in the Siambr today, Mr Thomas said: “It’s a sum that most people wouldn’t classify as small change and it’s money that Reform believes should be spent on employing newly-qualified nurses at a time when the NHS is on its knees.

“If £9 million to you is small change, surely you can find some small change at the back of the Welsh Government sofa and you can say to the student nurses that you will be able to guarantee them jobs when they graduate.”

The First Minister said his health minister had “already begun” work to ensure students could build careers in the NHS.

He added: “In terms of scales of spending on our overseas office it’s not that much more, is it, than the leader of your party [Nigel Farage] took to secure his own security, or was it to buy a house?”

The First Minister also faced questions on safeguarding arrangements in Welsh schools from Reform MS Andrew Griffin.

Mr Griffin highlighted the case of former headteacher Neil Foden, who was convicted in 2024 of sexually abusing four girls over a four-year period.

A Child Practice Review published in November 2025 found more than 50 opportunities to stop Foden had been missed.

Mr Griffin said: “While the criminal proceedings have been concluded, many questions remain about the actions, decisions and oversight of the Plaid Cymru-controlled Gwynedd Council. Public confidence can only be restored through full transparency and accountability.”

He called on the First Minister to support an independent review of Cyngor Gwynedd’s handling of the case.

Mr ap Iorwerth responded: “Everyone was appalled, of course, by the actions of Neil Foden, for which he is now being punished. And we remember the bravery of all those who came forward and spoke and assured that conviction.

“We have to now act on what came out of the child practice review. I was minded to pursue the avenue of a further inquiry, but we have to be guided by the views of the independent chair of that report, who advised that a further inquiry just would not add value in this space.

“What we need to do is to continue to fight for justice for these young people, and future young people, through the actions that we take in fostering a strong safeguarding culture, embedding accountability at every level, and now ensuring children’s voices shape decision making in future.”

Plaid Cymru’s Beca Brown asked what action the government would take to ensure lessons from the “Our Bravery Brought Justice” and “Clywch” reports were fully learned.

The First Minister said the government was “taking every possible step” to reduce the risk of similar cases happening again, including building a culture in which children and staff feel able to speak up.

Welsh Labour’s education and children’s spokesperson, Lynne Neagle, noted that the previous Labour administration had accepted every recommendation of the Child Practice Review and pressed the First Minister on whether his government would do the same.

Mr ap Iorwerth said: “We want to continue with and build on the work that had previously been done. Because we remind ourselves of the title of that report: ‘Our bravery brought justice’.

“Only part of the justice has been brought so far – the justice in ensuring that the perpetrator was found guilty and was imprisoned. The real justice is in making sure that we have the measures in place to stop this happening again.”

Welsh Conservative MS Sam Rowlands also asked whether the government would support a ban on smartphones in Welsh schools.

The First Minister said the government was “determined” to protect children and their education from the impact of mobile phones in schools.

Reform MS Benjamin Mckenna asked what action the Welsh Government would take to minimise the tax burden in Wales.

He asked the First Minister to rule out introducing or increasing taxes during the current Senedd term.

Mr Mckenna said: “The First Minister has said previously that his government will not raise income tax.

“Previous governments in Wales have made similar commitments, but we still have seen taxes risen through new mechanisms, such as the tourism levy.

“Can the First Minister today confirm that his government will not be raising any taxes, new or existing, in Wales during this term?”

Mr ap Iorwerth reiterated there would be “no change to rates of income tax”.

He said: “We don’t have the tools to set a taxation system that works for Wales. I’ll say this: I want to bring in further taxation in Wales through a thriving economy and through businesses that flourish.

“But let me make it clear: taxation is a fundamental part of our democratic and governmental structures. What we should seek always, be that for individuals or for businesses, is fair taxation.”

Welsh Conservative finance spokesperson Peter Fox urged the government to review land transaction tax for first-time buyers and business rates. The First Minister said both would be reviewed.

Reform MS John Clark called for the tourism levy to be scrapped, describing it as “one of the biggest worries for businesses in [his] constituency”.

The First Minister defended the policy, saying: “We live in a beautiful country. We have facilities that lend themselves to tourism. I want to use the tourism levy in a way that improves the tourism offer.”

He added the levy could also help communities manage the impact of tourism while supporting the industry.

Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Jane Dodds described calls for tax cuts as “absolutely astonishing” and “completely reckless” at a time when public services are under pressure.

She said: “Let us also not forget that many of those calling for tax cuts were also among the strongest advocates of Brexit.

“Wales continues to pay the price of that decision, and recent analysis suggests that Brexit is costing the Treasury £90 billion every year, and Wales £3 billion every year, losing that revenue.

“So, would you agree with me, Prif Weinidog, that we need well-funded public services and that tax cuts should not be happening?”

The First Minister responded: “I certainly agree with the member about the damage of Reform policies, and Brexit is one of those, and remember that reducing income tax by 1p would have cost £299 million. Now, that would be to the detriment of public services in Wales and the people we are here to serve.

“I again reiterate that my belief is in a fair taxation system that’s also a realistic taxation system, that recognises the need to have not just well-funded, but well-run, public services. And this government is all about making sure that our public services are well run and that that is done within our means too.”