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Councillors have backed plans to expand schools across Caerphilly County Borough.

At an Education Scrutiny Committee meeting held on Monday, January 10, councillors were presented with three proposals for schools across the borough.

The proposals include plans to merge Llancaech Junior School and Llanfabon Infants School, build a new “state of the art” Plasyfelin Primary School, and create a pupil referral unit on the former Pontllanfraith Comprehensive site.

A new building will be built to accommodate key stage two pupils at Llanceach Junior School, and refurbishments will take place on the existing Llanfabon Infants School – if approved, the project is expected to be completed by September 2024.

The new “fit for purpose” Plasyfelin Primary school will be built on the current school grounds. It will have 420 places for school pupils and 40 nursery places – the expected completion date is September 2024.

The new pupil referral unit is referred to as the “centre of excellence” and will accommodate 80 to 120 pupils. If approved, it is expect to be completed by September 2023.

The proposals are part of the 21st Century Schools and Colleges Programme, that is jointly funded by the Welsh Government and local authorities.

The public were consulted on all three proposals, but responses were limited with only 46 responses overall.

At the scrutiny meeting, Labour councillor Brenda Miles, who represents Nelson, questioned whether the amount of respondents was normal for these types of proposals.

The proposals will now be considered by Cabinet before a decision is made.