The Welsh Government has defined a ‘small school’ as a school that ‘contains fewer than 91 registered pupils’ under an order that came into force in May.

Mid and West AM Simon Thomas said: “This decision could disproportionately impact on parents and pupils living in some local council areas as 70% of primary schools in Ceredigion and 62% of primary schools in Gwynedd fit into this category.

“It could also put pressure on local councils with a high proportion of ‘small schools’ to federate schools in the face of increasing local government cuts. It is important to make decisions on educational needs not solely financial considerations.

“Plaid Cymru is concerned about the ‘framework’ nature of Welsh Government Bills. Too much is left to regulation at a later stage without enough of the Welsh Government’s intentions being explicitly set out on the face of the Bill. This makes it very difficult for thorough scrutiny by the National Assembly to take place.”