Llanpumsaint School stands in the heart of the beautiful village of Llanpumsaint. The school is surrounded by the wonders of nature which is a means of enriching the pupils’ education and experiences. The school endeavors to nurture the feeling of belonging to a community by participating in events held in the village.
It is a mixed county primary school, teaching children from 3 – 11 years of age. Children are admitted to school at the beginning of the term in which they reach their fourth birthday, and they are transferred to Bro Myrddin Bilingual Comprehensive School, or Queen Elizabeth High School Carmarthen in the September following their eleventh birthday. Parents, however, have the right to send their children to any secondary school of their choice, following consultation with the Education Department.
The school is classed as a ‘Category 1’ school which means that Welsh is the main medium of life and work in the Foundation Phase and Key Stage 1 (KS1), to ensure that the children acquire a sound foundation in the language. We emphasise however, that we treat children with an English background with great sensitivity, ensuring that they understand, feel secure and happy, and progress to the best of their ability. Needless to say therefore, English is spoken as necessary. In Key Stage 2 (KS2), there is a strong element of bilingualism in the teaching to ensure that the children are prepared for further education at secondary schools in the language medium of those schools.
The aim of this bilingual policy is to teach children to be totally bilingual by the time they leave primary school, and this school is remarkably successful in this matter. Results at secondary schools show that bilingual education promotes later success in foreign languages.