Campaigners have reacted with fury as Wrexham Council looks set to plough ahead with plans to close an English-medium primary school.

It comes despite more than a thousand objections being received against proposals to shut Ysgol Pontfadog in August next year, which have been put forward by the authority as it says there is a low demand for English speaking school places in the area.

However, teachers, parents and local residents have fiercely opposed the move and submitted 1,349 objections, claiming the consultation process was flawed and that the Ceiriog Valley is a predominantly English speaking area.

Video: Teachers and parents from Ysgol Pontfadog protested outside Wrexham's Guildhall last month

The council's executive board will meet on Tuesday, August 7, to make a decision and has been recommended to support closing the school and sending its pupils to the dual-stream Ysgol Cynddelw two miles away despite the level of concerns.

Campaigner Jools Payne, a former governor at the school, has slammed a report set to go before leading councillors and said the authority should consider getting rid of the role of mayor to make savings instead.

She said: “The report that goes before the executive board on Tuesday spits in the face of local democracy and localism.

“Wrexham Council has a track record of complicity in accepting officers’ flawed reports and consultations that is shameful.

“We will be there on Tuesday to seek answers to the questions we have put to the board on whether they are satisfied the entire premise and process has been followed in accordance with its own Schools Organisation Code guidelines.

“If the council wants to save hundreds of thousands of pounds to give taxpayers value for money, as Councillor Phil Wynn claims he always seeks to do, I suggest they get rid of the vainglorious office of mayor."

In the report, Cllr Wynn, lead member for education said Ysgol Pontfadog was no longer sustainable with pupil numbers currently standing at just 18.

He said: "There is a growing Welsh medium demand in the Ceiriog Valley and the English medium numbers are dropping as a consequence at both Ysgol Pontfadog and within the Ysgol Cynddelw English medium stream.

"Sustainability has become a significant issue within the federation and other models for delivery need to be explored.

"The authority acknowledges that any school reorganisation proposal will lead to a period of uncertainty for those affected by the proposal and is keen to conclude this process as swiftly as possible to minimise this period of uncertainty."

The report outlines the nature of all the objections received as part of the consultation, which included 83 individual letters, while the remaining 1,266 were completed on pre-prepared templates.

A total of 882 responses mentioned that the consultation itself was flawed, 733 said the closure would have a detrimental effect on the community and 705 highlighted that the majority of people wanted to keep the school open.

Meanwhile, 562 responses said the proposals did not make financial sense despite an estimated saving of just under £100,000, 517 cited the impact it would have on pupils, parents and staff and 417 raised transport issues.

In response to the comments, Cllr Wynn said there had been a 'clear demonstration' of increased demand for Welsh medium places, both in the Ceiriog Valley and Wrexham as a whole.

He said: "School organisation consultation documents are subject to rigorous compliance checks prior to their publication, which includes verifying information provided by the schools and national sources.

"The local authority accepts and has published in reports that the proposal received the least support of the three options considered during the consultation.

"The local authority however maintains that this model remains the most appropriate and sustainable model moving forward for the Ceiriog Valley Federation and its pupils.

"There are clear financial benefits and savings for the local authority and the Ceiriog Valley Federation."

He added that all interested parties had been consulted with and the council had carried out a number of assessments to monitor the impact on those affected.