What action is the Minister taking to tackle safeguarding issues due to the closure of Millbrook Primary School?
Local authorities are responsible for school place planning and the maintenance of school buildings. My officials have been in regular contact with local authority officers since the Millbrook Primary School building was closed from September 2022.
In September 2023, the local authority advised staff and the wider school community of their intention to progress a replacement school building rather than to repair, refurbish and reoccupy the existing facility.
The local authority has confirmed that options for the replacement school are currently being considered with a view to the project being progressed as a priority project under the next wave of the Sustainable Communities for Learning programme which will commence in 2024. The school will continue to operate from the temporary location until the new building is available.
The local authority and governing body are responsible for safeguarding of learners and staff. As outlined in Keeping Learners Safe every local authority in Wales must have a single point of contact for those working with children to raise concerns about a child at risk. Everyone working in an education setting should be familiar with the local authority contact and the details of the designated safeguarding person (DSP) within their education setting to raise such a concern. Each school or college must ensure that there is a safeguarding policy that clearly sets out the contact details for the local authority first point of contact. This policy should be readily available to all staff.
The local authority has confirmed that there are no safeguarding or health and safety concerns linked to the temporary site at Brynglas.