§ Mr. Geraint Howellsasked the Secretary of State for Wales how many small village schools have been permitted to close in Wales during the last two years; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Michael RobertsBetween January 1980 and January 1982 54 primary schools were closed; of these 14 had fewer than 20 pupils and eight had between 20 and 50 pupils. While some of the 54 closures formed part of reorganisation or rationalisation schemes where educational facilities were amalgamated, modernised or replaced, all but one of the 22 schools with 50 or fewer pupils involved total closure with the premises being taken out of use.