Ysgol Gynradd pentrefi Hermon, Glog & Llanfyrnach
Hermon Community School
The primary school for the villages of Hermon, Glog & Llanfyrnach
Dyddiad 14/07/03
Annwyl Cynghorydd Sir
Ysgrifennaf atoch fel llefarydd ar ran rhieni Ysgol Gymuned Hermon ble hoffem egluro bod pawb o rieni a llywodraethwyr Ysgol Hermon yn dymuno gweld parhad ein Ysgol lewyrchus, llawn a chost effeithiol. Yn gyntaf mae’r rheini a’r gymuned yn Hermon, Y Glog a Llanfyrnach am ddatgan ein bod yn dymuno gweld ein cymdogion ym mhentref Crymych yn cael y buddsoddiadau a’r gwelliannau i’r campws ac ein bod yn cymeradwyo cyfle i ddatblygu Ysgol ardal a fydd yn adlewyrchu niferodd disgyblion Ysgolion Ardal Gwledig Gogledd Sir Benfro sef rhwng 80 a 130 o ddisgyblion. Yr ydym hefyd yn deall fod y rhan fwyaf o rieni Ysgol Crymych yn dymuno gweld hyn ble yn naturiol ar ol blynyddoedd o orfod gweld ei phlant yn cerdded drwy’r’ gwynt a’r glaw i dderbyn ei cinio yn yr Ysgol Uwchradd ach hefyd cael addysg mewn cabanau a dosbarthau cyfyng mae rhieni Hermon yn cydymdeimlo ac yn cefnogi y cynnig o wella’r diffygion. Wrth siarad a nifer o’r rhieni yn Crymych ddeallwn ei bod wedi cael ei gwasgu i gornel o orfod ddatgan mae yr unig ffordd y byddai Crymych yn derbyn y gwelliannu llawn yma yw drwy orfod cefnogi safbwynt a fynnwyd gan y Cyngor Sir o orfod cau Ysgol Blaenffos a Ysgol Hermon cyn weld y cyllid yn cael ei rhyddhau i wella campws Crymych.
Nid yw’r tactegau yma o droi gymdogion yn erbyn cymdogion a chymunedau yn erbyn cymunedau yn un broffesiynol nac yn foesol, o dderbyn pwrpas y Cyngor Sir yw fod o gymorth i’n cymunedau, mae nifer o rieni o bob pentref wedi datgan siom yn y modd y cynhaliwyd y broses ymgynghori ble eto mae rhieni Crymych yn cael ei gorfodi i ddatgan bod y broses yn deg rhag ofn iddynt golli y siawns o unrhyw welliannau. Ond edrych ar gynifer o bobl a wnaeth droi allan i’r noson ymgynghorol olaf oll ar y 13/03/03 ble gwelwn ar dudalen 346 o adroddiad y cyfarwyddwr addysg mae ond 4 o Ysgol Crymych a ddaeth i ddatgan barn ble roedd y rhai hynny ddim yn bles gyda’r tactegau anwaraidd. Roedd 16 o gefnogwyr Hermon ar y noson eto am gefnogi ymgyrch Ysgol gynradd Crymych am y gwelliannau ond nid drwy wasgu’r bywyd allan o gymunedau Hermon, Glog a Llanfyrnach drwy gau yr Ysgol gynradd lewyrchus yn ei hardal ni.
Rhaid i’r adran addysg yn y Cyngor Sir i ddeall bod addysg ardderchog yn Ysgol Hermon bel mae’r canlyniadau SATS yn dyst i hynny, hefyd gyda 52 o blant a ffrwd gryf o blant yn dod i fyny drwy’r Ysgol feithrin mae’r ffigyrau yn mynd i barhau dros 50 o blant am nifer o flynyddol. Yr ydym yn gweld fod cost y plentyn yn Ysgol Hermon yn llai na’r cyfartaledd sirol a bod yr awyrgylch mewnol ac allanol yn hynod o fanteisiol i blan “Key Stage 1 & 2”. Mae’r adeilad, iard ar gae chwarae yn hollol glud. Yr ydym felly yn pryderu bod cynlluniau y cyngor sir yn mynd i sarnu ar yr addysg ddiogel sy’n bodoli i’n plant ac felly mae’r rhieni erbyn hyn wedi gwneud cais llawn i fwrdd “legal aid” ar gyfer cymorth cyfreithiol proffesiynol i amddiffyn ein hawliau ac i edrych yn fanwl pam mae Ysgol mor llewyrchus wedi cael ei bygwth. Byddwn yn edrych ar faterion megis – gwybodaeth anghywir yn nogfennau, gwybodaeth yn cyrraedd yn hwyr, athrawon heb gael contract llawn ers 5 mlynedd, peidio ymateb yn gywir i ofynion syniad Anecs, gwrthod derbyn opsiynau eraill, hawliau plant o dan yr “UN Convention” ac yn y blaen.
Yr unig beth y gofynnwn i chi yr aelodau etholedig democrataidd ein sir yw, gofyn i aelodau’r cabinet ar cyfarwyddwr addysg pam na ellir bwrw ymlaen a chodi Ysgol ardal 130 yng nghrymych gan adael Ysgol Hermon i fwrw ymlaen i ddarparu addysg dda, am bris rhesymol mewn cymuned sy’n cefnogi’r athrawon a’r llywodraethwyr i ddatblygu’r Ysgol fel Ysgol gymunedol bentrefol yn darparu addysg safonol ar gyfer cwricwlwm yr unfed ganrif ar hugain. Da o beth fyddai holi i holl rieni yr ardal, drwy gorff annibynnol, beth yw y gwir barn am yr opsiwn o ysgol 130 neu Ysgol 180, byddai’n dda i weld adroddiad diragfarn, annibynnol, theg a chywir.
Gobeithiaf fod modd i chi fel ein cynghorwyr sir brofiadol i roi tegwch, moesoldeb a chywirdeb ar flaen ei ystyriaeth wrth benderfyni ddyfodol ein cymuned yn Hermon, Glog a Llanfyrnach.
Yr eiddoch yn gywir,
Rhiant a Llefarydd dros y rhieni
Ysgol Gynradd pentrefi Hermon, Glog & Llanfyrnach
Hermon Community School
The primary school for the villages of Hermon, Glog & Llanfyrnach
Date 14/07/03
Dear Council Member
I write to you as a spokesman on behalf of the parents of Hermon Community School where I wish you to note clearly that all the parents and governors of Ysgol Hermon do not wish to see this flourishing, cost effective and more than full primary school closed. Firstly the parents and the communities of Hermon, Glogue and Llanfyrnach have stated that we do wish to see our friends and neighbours in the village of Crymych receive the investment and improvements that is long over due to their primary campus and that we would indeed commend the action to redevelop an area school which would be in keeping with the other rural area schools of North Pembrokeshire with pupil numbers between 80 and 130. We naturally understand that the majority of parents at Crymych wish to receive the promised investment where after a great number of years of having their children walk through the wind and rain to eat their lunch at the secondary school canteen and having unsatisfactory Porto cabins and poor state of repair, the parents are now anxious to safe guard the improvements. Having spoken to many of the parents at Crymych we understand that they have been compromised into stating that they will accept the closure of Hermon and Blaenffos as the only option for an area school where if they do not agree with this statement then they were told/threatened by county officers that the funding for investment would be greatly reduced. The parents at Crymych felt that they had been cornered into agreeing with this imposed, and supposed only option.
Such tactics as those above of trying to turn neighbour against neighbour and communities against communities are certainly not a professional approach, nor is it morally or ethical behaviour, baring in mind the whole ethos of the social & community provisions that county councils should strive for. Numerous parents and inhabitants of all the villages involved have made clear their dismay at how the whole consultation process has been manipulated, where again the parents of Crymych have had to state that they were happy with the process otherwise they could lose the promised funds for improvement. You only need to look at page 346 of the Director of Educations recommendation to cabinet of the 19/05/03 where the minutes and attendance of the very final consultation meeting on the 13/03/03 showed that only 4 parents of Crymych had turned up where those 4 raised doubts about how the whole process had been manipulated. There were 16 people present from Hermon where again we did not have clear answers to questions, and again reiterated the call to examine the quality of provision at Hermon which provided the excellent educational needs for the children in the villages of Hermon, Glogue and Llanfyrnach a self-standing and flourishing community in North Pembrokeshire.
The education department of Pembrokeshire county council needs to accept the point that there is and excellent provision of education at Hermon School where the latest set of SATS results proves this, also with 52 children and a strong nursery provision the school numbers will remain over 50 for the next few years (capacity 46). We see that the cost per pupil is below the county average and that the educational environment within and outside the school provides a safe and secure atmosphere for the provision of Key Stage 1 & 2 education. The building is sound and does not need any capital expenditure where the enclosed half an acre yard is adjacent to a 2 acre community playing field that the school has full rights to hold sporting events. Therefore the parents of Hermon feel very strongly about retaining these high standards for their children where parents have now submitted legal aid application forms in the name of their children so that we can utilise the services of a professional education barrister to bring the issues to be heard in an open court and to cross examine the process of why a vibrant school has had to be disrupted by such threats to the educational provision. The solicitor has been instructed to note concerns such as incorrect and misleading paperwork from county council officials, minutes arriving late and not correctly representing the discussions held, why the teachers had not been awarded permanent contracts for 5 years, not responding to the request for further discussions on the annex issue, failing to contemplate other options (such as the 130 pupil school at Crymych), The Rights of The Child under the UN Convention… etc.
The only issue we now ask you the elected democratic members of Pembrokeshire County Council to consider is that of thoroughly asking the Cabinet members and the Director of Education why is it not simply possibly to develop a 130 pupil area school at Crymych and allow Hermon to continue providing its excellent primary education, at competitive cost levels within a community that supports the teachers and the governors to further develop the school as an exemplar village primary school for the twenty first century socially based curriculum. It would be an interesting exercise to ask an independent body to conduct an independent poll of all parents to have a true reflection of what peoples views are of having a 130 rural area school or a 180 rural area school on the Crymych campus; it would be refreshing to view independent, unbiased, unthreatened, fair research data.
I hope that you as an experienced county council member can give a fair, just and proper hearing to our views and ensure that the Pembrokeshire community representing the villages of Hermon, Glogue and Llanfyrnach can continue to flourish by retaining its most precious asset – the full to capacity village school.
Yours sincerely
Parent and Spokesman of behalf of Hermon Parents