Two petitions calling on Pembrokeshire County Council to keep open village schools, threatened with potential closure will be debated at future council meetings. An e-petition in the case of Manorbier School has gained 1,298 signatures to date.

At the May meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council, members backed a report of the School Modernisation Working Group which included statutory consultation with the St David’s Diocese on proposals to discontinue Manorbier Church in Wales Voluntary Controlled School, Ysgol Clydau in Tegryn, and establishing Cilgerran Church in Wales Voluntary Controlled School as a 3-11 Community School.

Manorbier Church in Wales VC School and its adjoining schoolhouse was severely damaged by a fire in October 2022, which broke out in the school roof space.

A ‘school from school’ has since been set up in Jameston Village Hall.

After the May meeting, a general consultation on Manorbier and Ysgol Clydau was backed by councillors in July.

At the July meeting, St Davids Diocesan Board of Finance (DBF) said it had always required that the school be reinstated and was against the proposal to discontinue Manorbier, asking: “Would a consultation on the closure of Manorbier VC School have been proposed had it not been ravaged by fire?”

The public consultation in the case of Manorbier was launched recently.

Councillors have previously heard Manorbier has seen “a 59.8 per cent decline in the school’s pupil population during the period 2015-2025, with no indication that this will be significantly reversed during the next 5-6 years,” a report for members said, adding: “This decline cannot be attributed wholly to the fire which occurred in October 2022, with a 30.7 per cent decline from 2015 to 2022.”

Those objecting to the potential closure of Manorbier have disputed the figures, saying the temporary site for the school, with 30 places, had seen an actual surplus of 21.7 per cent, adding the decline in numbers was exacerbated by the fire, and a parental preference in favour of other schools shaped by the nature of the temporary school accommodation.

They have also said a previously quoted £2.6m rebuild figure “lacks transparency on insurance coverage, reinstatement funding, and actual quotes,” with the St David’s Diocesan Board of Finance’s opposition to closure not reflected in the consultation.

An e-petition on behalf of Manorbier, on the county council’s own website, has gained 1,298 signatures to date, with a similar petition on behalf of Ysgol Clydau attracting 648 signatures.

A plea on behalf of Ysgol Clydau was previously made by Cllr Iwan Ward, local member, who said it was “the heart of our society not just a school, it’s family, a community, an anchor for children who deserve the opportunity to grow”.

He added that closure was “a disaster for the future of education locally” and was “not fair and was not moral”.

If a petition gets 500 signatures, the creator will have an opportunity to debate it at a future full council meeting, both petitions crossing that threshold.