Brynmenyn Primary holds official closing ceremony at old school site

Past and present teachers, staff and governors from Brynmenyn Primary’s long history have gathered at the school’s former Bryn Road site to say goodbye to the 100 year old building.

They were there to take part in an official closing ceremony, which included an exhibition of old photographs, and shared stories about their time working at the school before it moves to all-new premises constructed less than a mile away near Coleg Cymunedol Y Dderwen.

Brynmenyn Primary started as the Council Infants School at Betharan Vestry on 18 October 1909, and the present school building opened its doors on 13 January 1913. In more recent years, traffic congestion has become a major concern outside the school, which has also been unable to expand or improve the range of its facilities due to being surrounded by common land.

The £9.14m new premises are larger, equipped with modern educational facilities and designed to cope with rising local demand for primary school places. They will also incorporate a number of historical items from the existing school, including a memorial to Sarah Jane Howell - a former assistant teacher who died in 1911 while saving a pupil from drowning.

Headteacher Clare Dale said: “Today marks the end of an era at our century-old school site. We have joined together to celebrate our past while also looking forward to an incredibly exciting future at our brand new, state-of-the-art school premises.

“This is a fresh chapter for the school, and we are looking forward to welcoming all of our pupils to the new site very soon.”

I am sure that the staff and pupils of Brynmenyn Primary School have many exciting times ahead at their all-new premises.

We are proud of our school modernisation programme in Bridgend County Borough, and this is another fantastic new facility which will provide pupils with a wide range of opportunities.

I’d like to wish the staff and pupils many happy years at their new school, and look forward to hearing about how they are getting on at the new premises shortly.

Councillor Charles Smith, Cabinet Member for Education and Regeneration, said:

Outline planning consent has been provided for a small-scale residential development at the site of the old school, and any funds from the sale will be reinvested back into new school developments and improvements.