Welsh politician Heledd Fychan has backed a campaign to save a Penarth nursery school from amalgamation as a public consultation is set to close.

The Senedd Regional Member for South Wales Central visited Bute Cottage Nursery School today (Wednesday 3 November) after learning about proposals which would see the school lose its independence and autonomy. During her visit, she saw the fantastic learning resources which have inspired generations of nursery children and compelled locals to launch a campaign to preserve the school.

The Save Bute Cottage Nursery campaign has seen nearly 1,000 people sign a petition against the proposal to amalgamate the school with Evenlode Primary School. Campaigners are now urging people who want to "keep Bute as Bute" to reply to the Vale of Glamorgan consultation by Friday, November 5, to make sure their voice is heard.

Heledd Fychan, MS, Plaid Cymru, commented: "It was wonderful to visit Bute Cottage Nursery School and see first-hand the wonderful learning environment. I am pleased to support the campaign to Save Bute Cottage,and hope Vale of Glamorgan Council will re-think their proposals to amalgamate the school."

Helen Jones, Bute Cottage Parent Governor, added: "It was wonderful to see Heledd come to Bute to see the exceptional teaching first hand and I'm so pleased she shares our determination to provide a best in class early years education and experience for children."

As a stand-alone nursery school, Bute Cottage is able to offer a difference experience to a primary school, say campaigners.

They say having its own budget, leader, staff and governing body allows the nursery to create complete focus on the three and four-year-old children and campaigners believe its independence is one of the main factors in enabling its high standards.

As Evenlode is the lowest funded school in the Vale of Glamorgan, there are concerns amalgamation will lead to a reduction in the overall budget which will then be pooled rather than ringfenced and spent on the children it is intended for.

Meanwhile, Evenlode governers have penned an open letter , stating that the unique identity of Bute Cottage could be maintained and the proposed amalgamation would enable the transition between nursery and reception to be seamless.

While councillors have denied there are "plans" to close Bute Cottage, council documentation states the Vale of Glamorgan will prioritise relocating the nursery provision to a single site at Evenlode should the proposal be approved.

Mum-of-two Laura Windeatt added: "Anyone who knows Bute Cottage knows that the current set-up works well; the children are well nurtured and have the most wonderful, inspiring start to their education.

"While Evenlode is a great primary school, change is always unknown and there are no guarantees as to what amalgamation will bring. What we do know is that it will lead to a period of disruption after Bute loses its autonomy, independence, identity and standalone budget.

"Therefore, why change something which isn't broken? In fact, Bute Cottage is far from broken, it's an exemplary learning setting which is leading the way in nursery education.

"We're also concerned about the future. There are no guarantees that the existing investment will be safeguarded for nursery children and while it has been widely said that there are no 'plans' within this proposal to close Bute Cottage, nobody seems to be addressing the fact the consultation clearly states a single-site is a priority and that a feasibility assessment is the next step. We all need assurances about the consequences of this proposal and what will happen next.

"We're appealing to people to respond to the consultation to ensure their view counts. Consequently, all we are asking is for our voice to be listened to during this consultation and our views genuinely considered when it comes to making the decision."

For more information and a link to the consultation, visit: the website and sign the petition.