A PEMBROKESHIRE school at threat of closure as part of education reorganisation in the south of the county is now expected to remain open following a call from the council’s deputy leader.

Stepaside CP School was being earmarked for closure by Pembrokeshire County Council, as part of proposals to establish a new 3-11 primary school on the Saundersfoot School site, discontinuing both Saundersfoot School and Stepaside school.

The Stepaside proposal was based on surplus places for all the schools in the proposals, with Stepaside having a surplus capacity of over 50 per cent, councillors had previously heard.

An e-petition on the council’s own website, started by Angela Robinson, called upon Pembrokeshire County Council “to Save Stepaside School and work with local communities to look at alternative solutions” attracting nearly 2,000 signatures.

In March, a vote at a full meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council reaffirmed the decision of last December, that the Director for Education be authorised to commence statutory consultation to discontinue Stepaside and Saundersfoot schools and establish the new three-11 primary school.

Since then, Pembrokeshire’s deputy leader, who has recently taken on Cabinet member responsibility for education, is now recommending the school doesn’t close.

That takes the form of a notice of motion, due to go before full council meeting on July 16 which, if approved by, rescinds the earlier December 2025 decision.

Cllr Miller said: “Following a thorough review, I have decided to recommend to Council that it not proceed with the closure of Stepaside School. I believe the school is providing good educational outcomes for its local population and is sustainable in its current form.”

The statement was welcomed by Angela Robinson of Standing Together for Stepaside School, who said: “After months of challenges for our dedicated staff, students, families, and the Kilgetty community, we’re thrilled to share that Stepaside School is here to stay!

“With 1,952 signatures backing our cause, we’ve shown just how vital our school is to the community. We’ve held meetings with council members and engaged our Senedd and Parliament representatives, resulting in countless discussions, reports and late nights trying to challenge an unfair process.

“Our community has truly rallied together, building stronger relationships along the way.”

Local county councillors Alistair Cameron and Alec Cormack, who both battled to keep the school open, said they were delighted by the decision, indicating their support for the motion.

Cllr Cameron said: “We owe a huge debt of gratitude to Mr Jones, Headteacher at Stepaside School, and all of his colleagues at the school for their continued dedication and hard work to the school children during this very unsettling time.

“Thank you also to the parents, governors and local residents for their magnificent support for our local school. I never believed it was right to consider closing Stepaside School with its modern building, stable pupil numbers of over 100 and excellent report from the school inspectors, Estyn.

“The school staff can now concentrate on what they do best, which is to provide excellent education in a caring and nurturing environment.”

Cllr Cormack welcomed the Cabinet decision: “This decision removes the cloud of reorganisation hanging over both Saundersfoot and Stepaside/Kilgetty. Now both head teachers, staff and governing bodies can continue to deliver excellent education to their local communities.”

PEMBROKESHIRE could soon introduce an additional separate kerbside waste collection service for soft plastics, at a cost of nearly £1m over three years, in a call recommended for approval by senior councillors.

At the July meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council’s Cabinet, members are recommended to introduce a weekly kerbside soft plastics collection service for all households in Pembrokeshire, joining the existing recycling collections.

The proposed service will enable the separate collection of soft plastic packaging such as carrier bags, food wrap, and plastic film alongside the council’s existing kerbside recycling system, in line with Welsh Government expectations, a report for members says.

Cabinet is asked to approve the scheme be implemented by the end of March 2027 and to procure the necessary materials and treatment arrangements to support delivery.

At present soft plastics are not included in the ‘core’ set of materials collected by Pembrokeshire County Council.

The report ahead of that meeting says the four UK governments have previously stated that “recyclable plastic film and flexible packaging is to be collected for recycling from both households and businesses across the UK by March 31, 2027”.

The Pembrokeshire proposal follows a pilot scheme in the Vale of Glamorgan, and, based on modelling, it is estimated that Pembrokeshire could generate approximately 419 tonnes of recyclable soft plastics a year.

If approved, residents will be issued with an initial supply of red tie-handle bags (equivalent to 52 weeks’ supply), the same colour as the existing plastics and cans recycling bags; the proposed plastics bags collected on a weekly basis alongside existing kerbside recycling.

In order to meet the Welsh Government’s target implementation deadline of March 31 of next year, it is proposed that bag distribution will take place from mid-February, with free additional bags provided after the initial roll-out.

Total costs of the proposed scheme are 2026-‘27: £215,000; ’27-’28: £361,000; ’28-’29: £373,000, amounting to £949,000 over the three-year period.

The report says, at present, the recycling costs for soft plastic is above the cost for the material to be sent to Energy from Waste, but it is anticipated that the cost difference will decrease over time, with all costs for rollout and recycling offset through Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) funding.

The report adds: “The cost of implementation is expected to be lower than the long-term financial risk of non-compliance, including increased residual disposal costs (following the introduction of the Emissions Trading Scheme in 2028) and loss of EPR income.”

It is recommended to approve the introduction of the scheme, along with a procurement exercise for the supply of soft plastics collection bags and a supporting offtake arrangement for the treatment of collected materials, with an estimated contract value of £272,000.

FURTHER concerns have been raised to Pembrokeshire’s council about road safety in Neyland after a parked car was hit by a vehicle, just months after a car hit a house wall, described as “sheer good luck” that “a terrible tragedy” was avoided.

Local social media community group Neyland News recently posted: “There is real public concern about road safety in Neyland especially on Honeyborough Road. On Thursday a driver hit a parked vehicle.

“These incidents have happened a number of times with cars losing wing mirrors and scrapes to bodywork. This has been reported to the police and the county council. This comes after incidents where cars have lost control and hit houses in Kensington Road.

“The county council are carrying out a topographical survey from Honeyborough Roundabout to Kensington Road and they will come forward with proposals to physically slow down traffic which they will consult on.”

The post author added: “This cannot come soon enough. I will keep everyone updated on this. I have asked the police to carry out much more regular speed checks. I am in direct contact with the Inspector.”

Local county councillor Cllr Simon Hancock said: “Speeding on Honeyborough Road and Kensington Road are matters of great concern. A number of serious incidents have been reported recently but this situation is getting worse.

“I am pushing hard for much greater speed enforcement checks from the police and physical traffic calming measures from the highways department of Pembrokeshire County Council.”

Back in February, Cllr Hancock had called for traffic calming measures in the town where “a terrible tragedy” was avoided by “sheer good luck” after a car hit a house wall, the fifth such incident in less than a decade.

Residents had expressed their concerns at vehicle speeds at a meeting of the town council at the start of the year.

After that meeting, Simon Hancock said: “They came to express their concern at speeding cars losing control on the corner where Honeyborough Road leads into Kensington Road.  On Sunday afternoon a speeding car mounted the pavement and smashed into the wall of No 43 coming to rest in the middle of the road. Emergency services were on the scene.”

He said images of the incident and its aftermath were shared on social media and to the council.

Following that, Cllr Simon Hancock, who is also the county council’s presiding member, said: “I am extremely concerned by some drivers travelling at excessive speeds at this bend.  This is the fifth serious incident in nine years where cars have collided with houses in the terrace.

“Any pedestrians on the pavement at the time could have been killed or seriously injured. I have written to the chief executive, leader and cabinet member [of Pembrokeshire County Council] insisting on road traffic calming measures at this location.

“It is by sheer good luck that a terrible tragedy has been avoided.”

After that incident, a Pembrokeshire County Council spokesperson said: “We are liaising with the police over the incident to determine the cause of the accident before considering what measures the Highway Authority may take.”

The council has been contacted for a response following the latest incident.