A STUNNED Powys County Councillor is using the sale of his Abbeycwmhir home to help save a Radnorshire primary school which is scheduled to close next summer.

Cllr Jake Berriman, county councillor for Llandrindod North, put Cross Cottage on sale just over a week before Powys County Council rejected all the alternatives to shutting Llanfihangel Rhydithon Primary School in Dolau.

Now Cllr Berriman is proposing to give 30 per cent of the proceeds of the sale of Cross Cottage, over and above the advertised guide price.

The Liberal Democrat, who has no particular or family connection with Dolau School, said: “The events of last week, with the Conservative/ Independent Cabinet of Powys County Council deciding to press on with the closure of Dolau school, left me stunned.

“It was my view, and that of the scrutiny committee, that this decision was premature and that more work was needed to pursue options around federation and moving the school along the Welsh language continuum to deliver the Council’s brand new strategy.

“Dolau school is at the heart of its own thriving and vibrant community which has rallied round and is determined to fight on to save their high performing, and much loved Radnorshire village school.

“More work was needed to pursue options around federation and moving the school along the Welsh language continuum to deliver the Council’s brand new strategy. Dolau school is, itself, at the heart of its own thriving and vibrant community which has rallied round and is determined to fight on to save their high performing, and much loved Radnorshire village school.

“As a show of my love and appreciation of Radnorshire village life and the strong sense of identity and community it offers active and engaged residents, and as a practical offer of support to the Dolau campaign, I am proposing to give them 30 per cent - one for each year of ownership-after the Government has had its share - of the proceeds of the sale of Cross Cottage, over and above the advertised guide price. Now, house price inflation isn’t of itself a good thing but, in this instance, it could directly benefit a community courageously fighting for its survival. So, if you know of someone who might want to move to Abbeycwmhir, to become part of this lovely village, then point them to Rightmove as, with a bit of luck, you could just be helping Dolau school too.”

Cllr Berriman has “owned and loved” Cross Cottage - a former school and school house - for 30 years.

This former school was opened and closed again over 150 years ago at the whim of the lady of the manor who found the noise of the children playing “tiresome” rather than by a local authority.

Cllr Berriman described Cross Cottage, which is situated between the pub and church, as being at the “centre of this beautiful village” and “heart of the thriving and vibrant community of Abbeycwmhir”.

The planned closure of Dolau School has been met with backlash by various people - including the Conservative MP Fay Jones and MS James Evans who said he would “fight tooth and nail” to save the school.

Cllr Berriman, pictured right, said: “I want to be absolutely clear that I have no particular or family association with Dolau school and I undertook my role on the learning and skills scrutiny committee completely dispassionately and objectively.

“I know, and accept, that transformative change in education across Powys is needed and I am prepared for tough decisions to be made in the wider interest of driving up standards. But I rather naively thought that meant getting under the skin of problem and failing schools, evaluating the evidence, listening to feedback and exhausting all alternatives before resorting to closures.

“I am certainly not against school closures per se, some are clearly justified, but Dolau has shown itself to have an impressive educational records that is, according to Estyn, serving its youngsters well, it is running at its built capacity, and when its shared headship arrangements are taken into consideration it really isn’t that much more costly that the Powys average.

Cllr Berriman - who has a long career in local government and posted his offer to his Facebook page - said: “But more importantly, when taking into account the very high bar set for closures, I really did not feel that this had been met and the scrutiny committee urged cabinet to think longer and harder about the alternatives we had highlighted for consideration, only to have them dismissed out of hand.

“It was at this point, my scrutiny impartially discharged, that I have felt able to speak out and, more than that, act out on behalf of those who feel their voice hasn’t been heard. 

“In this type of planning environment communities like Dolau would likely make decisions about new housing development above the minima set by the Council as a basis of sustaining cherished community assets like their village school and hall.

“It is alarming, therefore, when I see such apparent disregard for the needs and wishes of a community desperately trying to support its school and rural way of life and I have been moved by their evident display of community cohesion that I see also in places like my own village, Abbeycwmhir, which took me in and has had my back for the last 30 years. 

“I have come to politics late in life, only joining the Liberal Democrats when I decided to stand for council in 2019 and, having held politically restricted posts for most of my time in local government, I am largely apolitical, but I do believe passionately in social justice and fairness and, as I have said, I  am driven by a strong sense of community.

“All of which speaks to my Liberal identity. Politics, they say, it the art of the possible and if, through my actions, I am helping to create a different outcome, to create new possibilities, then I am being political and proud of it. Talking is fine, but actions speak louder than words and in anything I do, if people are moved to follow my lead then that is fine, and if they aren’t then that is fine too”

Cllr Phyl Davies, the education portfolio holder for Powys council, had previously described the decision as “emotive and difficult”.

In a statement last week, he confirmed the statutory notice was set to be issued this month.

Powys council carried out a seven-week consultation on the proposal back in April and June.

Cllr Davies said: “We would like to thank all those who took part in the consultation exercise for this proposal

“After carefully considering all the consultation responses, Cabinet have agreed to continue with the proposal by publishing the statutory notice formally proposing the closure of Llanfihangel Rhydithon C.P. School.”