Ysgol Llanfair DC moves another step closer to completion

The construction of a new Ysgol Llanfair Dyffryn Clwyd will reach another milestone this week as internal works reaches completion.

The new bilingual church school is being built on land opposite Bryn y Clwyd, Llanfair. It is jointly funded between Denbighshire County Council and Welsh Government as part of the Welsh Government’s 21^st Century Schools and Education programme, in partnership with the Diocese of St Asaph.

The new building will provide a transformation of the teaching and learning environment for the pupils and teachers of Ysgol Llanfair.  The move will see them leave their cramped main building and mobile classrooms and see them move into state of the art facilities where for the first time they will have a main hall which will include a dining area away from their classrooms and bright and airy classrooms with direct access to the external areas.

Bodelwyddan-based Wynne Construction are the main contractor for the construction who started on site in June 2018.

The next phase of the works will be to undertake the connection of the foul and surface water drainage to the new school and to complete works to the external areas, including the forming of the main entrance and the new car park.  Once issues regarding the drainage has been resolved, the Council will be in a position to confirm when the school will be moving in to the new site.

Cllr Huw Hilditch-Roberts Lead member for Education, Children’s Services and Public Engagement said: ”This is a much needed investment for the school. The current school facilities are dated and are in desperate need of modernisation, this demonstrates Denbighshire’s commitment to invest in education facilities, ensuring that pupils have the best opportunity to achieve their full potential”.

“The next phase of the works is the final piece of the jigsaw and we are looking forward to the completion of these works and the new school opening”.

Geraint Jones Chair of Governors for Ysgol Llanfair DC said: “The building is progressing well and the new facilities look fantastic. I’m looking forward to the planned visits for all pupils to see the new building before the end of term. Everyone is very excited for the completion of the new school and we are looking forward to moving to the new site once the remaining works have been complete”.

Rosalind Williams, Director of Education and Lifelong Learning for the Diocese of St Asaph said: “We are delighted that the new bilingual Church School in Ysgol Llanfair DC has reached the next crucial milestone within the project. We are looking forward to the final stages of the works now being completed and the school moving in to their new building”.

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Ruthin schools celebrate special milestone

The First Minister of Wales, Mark Drakeford joined in the celebrations at Ysgol Pen Barras and Rhos Street School, Ruthin as they celebrated a special milestone in their history.

Both schools, which opened in April 2018 were officially opened by the First Minister at a ceremony on Thursday, July 4.

A total of 428 pupils moved into the brand new schools, located on the Glasdir site on the outskirts of Ruthin on April 10, 2018.  The £11.3 million project was funded by Denbighshire County Council and the Welsh Government through its 21^st Century Schools programme.

Councillor Huw Hilditch-Roberts, Cabinet Lead Member for Education, Children’s Services and Public Engagement, said: “We’re delighted that the Minister was able to come and share in this important day with the school communities of Pen Barras and Rhos Street. It’s a momentous occasion.

“Denbighshire, working with Welsh Government,  made a commitment to invest in schools and the condition of school buildings and that has certainly paid dividends.  The creation of brand new, fit for purpose buildings for both schools has been a major success and the modern, state of the art facilities built on the Glasdir site replaced the tired and old buildings on the former site on Mold Road. Our children and young people deserve the best possible start and we were delighted to realise the dream of building brand new schools for Pen Barras and Rhos Street.

“The building of the new schools marked a significant investment in education in the Ruthin area and will benefit pupils for generations to come.  We have also seen an overall investment of £90 million in schools in the county, including brand new school buildings at Rhyl High/ Tir Morfa, Ysgol Glan Clwyd, Ysgol Carreg Emlyn and and two others being built in Llanfair Dyffryn Clwyd and Christ the Word school in Rhyl.

First Minister Mark Drakeford said: “It’s been a pleasure to visit Ysgol Pen Barras and Rhos Street today and see the results of investment in education.  Schools and colleges in North Wales have benefited from more than £280m during the first phase of the Welsh Government’s 21^st Century Schools and Education programme.  And there is more investment to come through the second phase.  This has been the largest investment in school buildings since the 1960s and has been delivered in partnership with local authorities and communities. It is something everyone can be proud of.  I wish the staff and pupils here in Ruthin the very best in their new state-of-the-art facilities.”

The contractor responsible for building the new school for Ysgol Pen Barras and Rhos Street was Wynne Construction.

 

Bishop makes visit to new £23million faith school in Rhyl

The Bishop of Wrexham has been to see progress at the new £23million faith school in Rhyl.

The Right Rev Peter M Brignall met Amanda Preston, headteacher of Christ the Word Catholic School, and pupils on site and said he was ‘delighted’ with the progress.

Christ the Word Catholic School, which will replace Ysgol Mair and Blessed Edward Jones Catholic High School, is set to open in the autumn and will cater for 420 full time pupils aged 3-11 and 500 pupils aged 11-16.

It is funded in partnership by Denbighshire County Council and the Welsh Government through its 21st Century Schools Programme.

Kier Construction has been appointed by the Council as the main contractor for the new school, which will be part of the Diocese of Wrexham, and the build is progressing well.

Bishop Brignall said: “It was with delight that I recently saw the stage to which the new Christ the Word School building had progressed over the last couple of months. Better still was to see and hear the workmen keen to complete the project on time; the enthusiasm of Mrs Preston at the potential the school has to offer; and the delight of the young people.

“The facilities and the opportunities that the school will provide are really beginning to take shape and it is not difficult now to imagine the true wonder of the school – staff and pupils working together to learn, grow in aspiration and achieve their individual best. I look forward to my next visit and more still to the opening of the school and it being alive with the sounds, activity, joy and silence of learning and teaching, sport and recreation, friendship and caring.”

Supporting young people is a priority for the Council under its Corporate Plan and so far more than £90 million has been invested in Denbighshire’s schools which has seen more than 3,500 pupils benefit from improved facilities.

Mrs Preston said: “I was delighted to be able to welcome Bishop Brignall to the school and share the vision and the outstanding facilities.

“He was pleased to see how well the construction was going and to have the chance to talk to pupils about how excited they are to start at their new school.

“I’d like to thank the whole school community for their support, already there is a great understanding and everyone is working together to ensure the children’s education is of the highest possible quality.”

Ysgol Carreg Emlyn pupils take a sneaky peek at their brand new school

Pupils at Ysgol Carreg Emlyn have been given the chance to visit their new £5million school as work reaches the final stages.

The new school building for Ysgol Carreg Emlyn is being developed on a new single site in Clocaenog to replace the current sites in Cyffylliog and Clocaenog.

The project is funded by Denbighshire County Council through its 21st Century Schools programme and the Welsh Government with Wynne Construction the main contractor for the building work.

Karen Evans, the Council’s Head of Education & Children Services, said: “This is such an exciting opportunity for the pupils to see for themselves how the work has progressed.

“Pupils have visited the site throughout the project, as part of our commitment to involving pupils in the development and their reaction is always one of sheer excitement.

“With the works to the building coming to the final stages, we are looking forward the new school opening.  The project marks another significant investment in education facilities in Denbighshire, ensuring that pupils have the best opportunity to achieve their full potential.

“Giving young people the best start in life is a priority for the Council and building new schools helps us achieve that goal.”

So far more than £90m has been invested in new schools through the 21st Century Schools programme.

Alison Hourihane, Business and Community Development Manager for Wynne Construction, said: “We are delighted to welcome the children to visit their new school and familiarise themselves with the building and its surroundings.  This follows on from previous visits, where we looked at the building plans and highlighted the types of construction skills involved in the build.  This has provided pupils with an insight into the different career opportunities within construction.”

Pupils will be moving into the new site in June after the May half-term.

 

Christ the Word Catholic School launches new school uniform

The new uniform for the £23million 3-16 faith school in Rhyl has been launched.

Christ the Word Catholic School will open in September and the uniform will have common themes for all pupils with those in Year 7 and above wearing a blazer to recognise their progression to the upper school.

The school, which will cater for 420 full time pupils aged 3-11 and 500 pupils aged 11-16, is funded in partnership by Denbighshire County Council and the Welsh Government through its 21st Century Schools Programme.

Gill Greenland, Chair of Governors for the school, said: “We were keen to consult widely on ideas for the new uniform.

“We were delighted with the large response from parents to the questionnaire sent out and nearly 250 replies were received.

“We also had a great response from pupils at both schools where we discussed the options with the school councils.”

The Governors met with local suppliers to discuss how the ideas from the pupils could be developed before they finally approved the new uniform.

Mrs Greenland added: “The uniform reflects our new school logo and the colours were inspired by designs submitted by current Ysgol Mair and Blessed Edward Jones pupils. We feel confident we have developed a uniform that reflects our identity.”

The Governors are also looking into other funding possibilities to assist families with the cost.

Cllr Huw Hilditch-Roberts, the Council’s lead member for Education, Children and Young People, said: “It is great to see progress at Christ the Word Catholic School reach yet another milestone with the launch of the school uniform.

“The fact that current pupils have been directly involved shows the kind of atmosphere that is being created at the school.

“Supporting young people is a priority for the Council under our Corporate Plan and so far more than £90 million has been invested in Denbighshire’s schools which has seen more than 3,500 pupils benefit from improved facilities.”

Visit to Catholic school site as part of national construction campaign

A £23million Catholic school site was opened up to guests to launch a national construction campaign.

As part of the Open Doors campaign, an initiative led by Build UK, in partnership with the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), guests had the chance to see how the new build was progressing at Christ the Word 3-16 Catholic School in Rhyl.

The school, which will cater for 420 full time pupils aged 3-11 and 500 pupils aged 11-16, is funded in partnership by Denbighshire County Council and the Welsh Government through its 21st Century Schools Programme.

The school, which will replace Ysgol Mair and Blessed Edward Jones Catholic High School, will be part of the Diocese of Wrexham and Kier Construction is the main contractor.

Cllr Huw Hilditch-Roberts, lead member for Education, Children and Young People, said: “It is fantastic to see work progressing so well on site and we have been working collaboratively with Kier Construction and the Diocese of Wrexham on this project.

“This new school will provide modern facilities for children in Denbighshire to give them the best possible learning environment.

“Both Denbighshire and the Welsh Government are continuing to invest in delivering first-class learning environments for the children and young people of Denbighshire. The capital programme has seen huge investment which will enable a better education environment for our children, a priority for us under our Corporate Plan.”

Amanda Preston has been confirmed as the new Headteacher of Christ the Word 3-16 Catholic School, which will open in September.

So far more than £90 million has been invested in Denbighshire’s schools which has seen more than 3,500 pupils benefit from improved facilities including a new £24million replacement school of 1200 places for Rhyl High School and Ysgol Tir Morfa, a £16.5m extension and refurbishment for Ysgol Glan Clwyd in St Asaph and a new £10.5 million joint site for Rhos Street School and Ysgol Pen Barras in Ruthin.

The Open Doors campaign offers the public the opportunity to discover how the buildings and structures in their community are constructed.

It also offers students the chance to find out about the diverse range of skills and professions needed on site – latest CITB statistics estimate that 168,500 construction jobs will be created across the UK between 2019 – 23.

Martin Walsh, project manager for Kier Construction, said: “Open Doors Week is an ideal opportunity to showcase a live construction site to local communities. The event demonstrates modern construction techniques being implemented on projects and provides valuable insight into the vast amount of career opportunities in construction.” 

The public can book to visit the school site as part of this campaign on March 21 at the following link https://opendoors.construction/site/31

Headteacher appointed at Christ the Word school

Amanda Preston has been confirmed as the new Headteacher of Christ the Word 3-16 Catholic School in Rhyl.

The school, which will be part of the Diocese of Wrexham, will open its doors in September in a brand new building and the appointment is a significant step forward. 

The school, which will cater for 420 full time pupils aged 3-11 and 500 pupils aged 11-16, is funded in partnership by Denbighshire County Council and the Welsh Government through its 21st Century Schools Programme.

Christ the Word Catholic School will replace Ysgol Mair and Blessed Edward Jones Catholic High School. The building programme is progressing well and remains on target.

Mrs Preston, who is currently deputy headteacher of Elfed High School in Buckley, said: “I am hugely excited and immensely privileged to have been appointed as the first Headteacher of Christ the Word Catholic School.

“I have been teaching for over 20 years in a range of schools. During my teaching career I have held several senior leaderships posts, including acting headteacher, deputy headteacher, assistant headteacher and Head of Mathematics.

“I graduated from Strathclyde University with a Masters in Engineering and relish teaching Mathematics to all abilities.

“I have held responsibility for a number of key aspects of school leadership including standards and progress in Skills, Curriculum and Wellbeing.

“My immediate priority will be to ensure that both children and staff are settled and happy in our new school.

“I am passionate about learning and believe that, as well as ensuring outstanding educational provision across the board, a truly outstanding community school needs to nurture confidence and resilience in young people so that they are able to meet life’s challenges with enthusiasm.

“I believe that children need a secure foundation from which to grow and flourish, in all areas, and I am so looking forward to leading Christ the Word Catholic family. Supporting and developing every single young person’s faith, abilities and aptitudes and hence preparing our children to live and lead in a changing world.”

Cllr Huw Hilditch-Roberts, lead member for Education, Children and Young People, said: “I’d like to congratulate Mrs Preston on behalf of the Council and wish her well in her new role.

“Mrs Preston will provide vital leadership and help contribute to the success of Christ the Word Catholic School, which will offer first class facilities for pupils and provide a great learning environment for them to thrive. Supporting  young people to reach their potential is a priority for the Council and providing modern school facilities that further enhance pupils’ learning helps us achieve that.”

Gill Greenland, Chair of the Temporary Governing Body, said: “This is really positive and exciting news for the new school. We look forward to welcoming Amanda to our community as a new chapter in Catholic education begins in Rhyl.”