'DETERIORATING' SCHOOL SET FOR £5.5M UPGRADE

A BANGOR city centre school which has seen its 1970s buildings deteriorate and maintenance costs rise is set to get a £5.5m upgrade.

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An application by Cyngor Gwynedd to its planners is calling for the demolition of part of Hirael School. The proposals would see an extension built to form new classrooms and school facilities, including a new access gate from Seiriol Road.

The school has capacity for 238 pupils, with 186 in reception to year six, 22 nursery and 30 CaBan places.

Cyngor Gwynedd announced in April 2023 that £5.5m would be invested to "transform" the school, with almost £3.6m coming from the Welsh Government's Sustainable Learning Communities, and the rest from council match funding.

At the time, it said that extensions built in the 1970s had reached the end of their lifespan, and were "not cost effective to refurbish".

Planning documents noted that the "condition and accessibility" of the Orme Road school now "falls below other schools in Bangor".