The Roman Catholic Church in Wales has joined the voices calling on Pembrokeshire County Council to drop its threat to remove the church status of Ysgol Cilgerran.

Back in May, Pembrokeshire County Council voted to remove Voluntary Controlled (VC) status from Welsh-medium Ysgol Cilgerran’s Church in Wales school despite 97 per cent of the responses to a consultation having opposed a change which the church describes as ‘entirely unnecessary’.

That consultation followed a review which “considered the extent of surplus school places in the area, set against a significant decline in the pupil population,” the council has previously said.

Hundreds opposed the proposed changes, with a petition on the council’s own website gaining 391 signatures.

The Church in Wales has objected formally to the proposal and has warned it will take legal action on the grounds of “public misrepresentation and unqualified legal assertions made by Pembrokeshire County Council officers,” and “discrimination against faith schooling”.

At the council’s July meeting, Cilgerran parents, teachers, and students travelled to County Hall, Haverfordwest to protest.

Their colourful protest signs, made by students, carried messages such as “You can’t fix what isn’t broken”, “Leave our VC status alone”, and “Don’t take away our identity for a few £££”.

One of the protesters, an ex-pupil and governor, Sarah Moore, has said: “I’m here today because I’m horrified that the council are talking about taking the church status away from our school. The church gave that land for the school over 180 years ago.

“97 per cent have voted against this and yet they’re still trying to do it. If we want our children to stay in a church school, the nearest one is Letterston. So where will these children have that good education that they are getting now?”

The Church has said it has deep concern about what it sees as a pattern of the council’s recent actions regarding Church Schools.

In June, councillors voted to close Manorbier Church in Wales Voluntary Controlled School, which was damaged by a fire in 2022.

It has also expressed concerns about VC status being lost for Tenby Church in Wales VC school after councillors backed a consultation on penitential education changes in the Tenby area.

In the formal letter to Pembrokeshire Council, objecting to the council’s proposal, Angela Keller, the Wales Adviser of the Catholic Education Service says: “…we support the position of the Church in Wales that the proposal has not demonstrated that the statutory tests set out in the School Organisation Code have been met. There is no evidence to suggest that the removal of the school’s religious designation will be of any educational benefit as the school is already performing well and has a stable leadership profile. The local authority has also acknowledged that the proposal, whilst incurring the cost and disruption associated with school reorganisation, will deliver no identifiable educational or financial benefit.

“The actions of Pembrokeshire County Council in proposing to remove the religious designation of Ysgol Cilgerran sets a worrying precedent for all Church schools in the area. The proposal is making a negative statement about the long-term strategic value placed by the Local Authority on retaining diversity within local educational provision.

“The Church in Wales and the Catholic Church as providers of schools, have worked in partnership with the Welsh government and local authorities for many years. This proposal undermines the positive relationship the Churches have had with Pembrokeshire County Council. We join the Church in Wales in urging Pembrokeshire County Council to withdraw this proposal.”