Ceredigion County Council has signed off on plans to boost its coffers by more than a million pounds by selling off three former primary school sites.

The council’s Cabinet, meeting on 1 July, signed off on the sale of former schools in Cwmpadarn, Tregaron and Trewen.

Cwmpadarn school closed in the summer of 2016 and in 2017 a resolution to sell the site was decided by Cabinet and then subsequently withdrawn.

A report put before Cabinet said that “a developer was interested at the time; however the sale did not progress.”

“The current condition of the buildings is reasonable, but getting to the point of requiring investment to maintain their condition,” the report adds.

“The building has been in use as storage of office furniture, which are in the process of being cleared ahead of marketing and sale.

“Some external elements are beginning to show signs of failure and the buildings have been subject to some damage, and attempted break ins.

“Whilst there may be some development potential, there are associated planning and development risks.

“The recommendation is to offer the site for sale at a fair market value.

“The site was previously valued in 2017 at £350,000, and would currently attract offers in the region of £500,000.”

Members heard that meetings would be held with the community council to discuss a path which runs down the side of the site, and the purchase of the site itself.

The former primary school building in Tregaron has remained vacant since its closure in 2014.

A Cabinet report says the “current condition of the building is poor, and it will require significant maintenance and investment to preserve it in reasonable condition.”

“There is potential scope for development by the council, and whilst some high-level plans were developed in 2019, work stopped at that point due to potential phosphate constraints on the Teifi,” the report adds.

Despite plans to offer the site for sale, the meeting heard that phosphate concerns under new NRW rules “are still ongoing”, making the development of the site a “risk”.

The report recommends the site is put on the open market with a value of around £250,000.

The former primary school in Trewen was closed in 2019.

The building served as a vaccination centre during the coronavirus pandemic but has since been vacant.

The Cabinet report says that the “current condition of the building is reasonable, but it will require maintenance and investment within the next year to preserve it in reasonable condition.”

“We have had expressions of interest in the site from individuals for future use and development, and so the purpose of putting the property on the open market is to achieve best value for the education service,” the report said.

The site will be placed on the open market at around £300,000.

In total, the three sites are valued at £1.1m, with the council hoping to use the sales to significantly boost its coffers at a time of financial constraints.