Cabinet has agreed to continue to the next stage of the consultation process on the proposal to move the sixth form from Mountain Ash Comprehensive School to Aberdare Community School. It will address concerns raised about the sixth form’s viability, restricted subject offer, the ongoing decline in student numbers, and the effect of this on the overall learner experience. In addition, around 75% of the current sixth form cohort in Mountain Ash already travel to schools in Aberdare for at least part of their studies.
On Wednesday, February 19, Cabinet considered the consultation feedback on a proposal brought forward in November 2024 – to transfer future sixth form learning in Mountain Ash to Aberdare Community School. This was prompted by concerns from the Education and Inclusion Service’s Directorate and a request from the governing body for the Council to review the current sixth form offer.
The subsequent review found that small pupil numbers in the sixth form inevitably restricted subject choices for learners in the school, which impacted upon the financial viability of the provision. Due to the small number of pupils attending the sixth form, the school is redirecting valuable resources intended for learners in years 7-11 to support its small sixth form – requiring an extra £125,000 above the school’s post-16 allocation.
Mountain Ash Comprehensive School is part of the Cynon Valley Post-16 Consortium, and has formed a supportive partnership with Aberdare Community School and St John Baptist Church in Wales High School. This partnership results in learners from Mountain Ash attending a number of schools to access post 16 education. Around 75% of sixth form learners in Mountain Ash already access at least part of their education at other schools in the Cynon Valley.
The Council consulted residents from December 2, 2024, to January 17, 2025 – under the arrangements of Welsh Government’s School Organisation Code. Wednesday’s Cabinet report contains a full consultation report, summarising the feedback received and the responses given. These include queries from the public and both school councils, and the response from Estyn.
Meetings were held with the governing bodies, school councils, and staff members at Mountain Ash Comprehensive and Aberdare Community School, while a public drop-in session was also held at each school – to which a combined 15 people attended. In total, 248 responses were received across the wider consultation. Find out more in Wednesday’s Cabinet report.
In addition, no negative impacts were identified in respect of the Equality Impact Assessment and Welsh Language assessment. Estyn noted that the proposal will likely improve the standard of post-16 provision within the area.
Having considered all of the consultation feedback as part of their decision making, Cabinet Members agreed to progress the proposal at their meeting on Wednesday. The process will now move onto the Statutory Notice phase of the consultation.
If implemented, no current sixth form learners would be impacted. From September 2025, no new Year 12 pupils would be admitted to Mountain Ash Comprehensive (instead starting sixth form in Aberdare or attending college), while Mountain Ash pupils due to enter Year 13 would continue their studies at the school, or as part of the partnership arrangements in place across the Cynon Valley. If proposals are progressed, this would be the final cohort of learners to access sixth form education in Mountain Ash School before the sixth form closes.
In addition, all learners who reside three miles or further from their school or college will qualify for Home to School transport. Therefore, it is likely that all post-16 learners living in Mountain Ash Comprehensive School’s catchment area would be entitled to free transport to Aberdare Community School.
The council’s spokesperson said: “We understand that any significant change to existing Education arrangements is difficult to make – however, it’s clear that this proposal for Mountain Ash has a sound rationale. It has been brought forward due to several concerns raised by the school itself, around the sixth form’s viability, its shrinking size, limited subject choice, and increasing cost – impacting the overall school budget across years 7-11.
“The experience of learners in Mountain Ash is at the centre of the proposal – they deserve a broad and balanced sixth form offer, with first-class facilities that are available in Aberdare. The change also aims to address the decline in Mountain Ash pupils attending sixth form, with only 16% of Year 11 pupils choosing this path in 2023/24, down from 60% in 2014/15. There were just 72 learners in October 2024, which has roughly halved in the past nine years.
“There are close ties between the schools in Mountain Ash and Aberdare via the Cynon Valley Post-16 Consortium – which is an established arrangement for sixth form learning. This existing relationship is highlighted as around 75% of the current sixth form learners in Mountain Ash already access some of their education in another Cynon Valley school. Also, it’s likely that all learners in the Mountain Ash catchment area will qualify for free transport to Aberdare.
“I’d like to thank everyone who took part in the consultation – from pupils, staff and governing bodies via internal meetings, to residents who had their say in the public part of the process. While a large percentage of public respondents didn’t agree with the proposal, Cabinet also listened to representations made by the school, looked at the future viability of the sixth form, and considered how learners deserve a better overall experience in their post-16 education.”
Under the proposals, the Post-16 Consortium would continue with Aberdare Community School and St John Baptist Church in Wales High School. As is the case now, post-16 learners could also choose to attend Coleg y Cymoedd.
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