Consultation on 'super-school' plans to continue despite criticism

A consultation to replace four schools in north Wales with a new £55m "super-school" is to continue, despite criticism from some councillors.

The plans would replace four Catholic schools with a three to 18 super-school in Flint, operated by the Diocese of Wrexham.

Some councillors wanted the consultation paused after the original process was scrapped at the eleventh hour following a legal challenge.

But others argued restarting the consultation showed it was listening and acting responsibly.

The consultation will continue after a vote to halt it was defeated by 26-21 votes.

The proposals would see the closure of St Anthony's Primary in Saltney, St David's in Mold, St Mary's in Flint and St Richard Gwyn High School in Flint.

The proposals were relaunched unchanged despite 96% of respondents opposing them in the first consultation, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

On Wednesday, at a Flintshire County Council meeting, councillors debated the Notice of Motion titled "Loss of Confidence: Halt the Schools Closure Consultation".

Liberal Democrat Group Leader Cllr Andrew Parkhurst said the debate was about restoring confidence in the consultation process, not the school closures themselves, adding: "That is a debate for another day."

He called for the consultation to be paused until the council explained why the original process failed and what had changed.

"The previous consultation generated overwhelming public concern," he said.

"Members are being asked to support a fresh consultation without knowing what went wrong the first time or whether those issues have genuinely been addressed.

"That is not good governance."

However, the Cabinet Member for Education, Youth and Welsh Language Mared Eastwood rejected the suggestion that public confidence had been damaged following the relaunch of the consultation.

"Restarting the consultation demonstrates that the council is prepared to listen, reflect and act when concerns arise about process or engagement," she said.

"We have chosen to reset and ensure it is robust, transparent and inclusive.

"This is a sign of accountability, not failure."

Eastwood added reopening the consultation would strengthen trust by giving residents and stakeholders a "renewed opportunity" to have their say.

"Had we not restarted the consultation in light of the issues released, we would likely face far greater criticism," she added.

Other councillors were also unhappy with the outcome, with Carolyn Preece saying the cabinet had not been listening so far.

"I feel our voice has not been heard," she said.

"The majority of the committee wanted a halt for this.

"They wanted it to be a reset for people to understand and see what went wrong with the previous consultation. Not to dive straight into another one."

Similarly, Fran Lister, also part of the Lib Dem group, expressed her concerns over the impact on staff and pupils, saying public confidence was low.

"The level of stress on families and staff is very high. Simply restarting the consultation without setting out first what has changed is not good enough."

She questioned whether a third consultation would be restarted in a few months time following a further legal challenge.

Another councillor, Richard Lloyd, who represents one of the areas directly affected, said the consultation must not be stopped.

"My residents and Cllr Jason Shalcross' residents in Saltney deserve to have a consultation," he told the chamber.

He said people need to know what the consequences would be if the consultation did not go ahead.

"It's important that their views are heard and they should be heard now, not put off again and again," he added.