A LEARNING centre in Pembrokeshire, which offers specialist learning provision for secondary school aged Gypsy, Roma and Traveller pupils, has just been awarded with the ‘Closing the Gap’ Inspire! Award.

The Priory Learning Centre, based in Monkton Primary school, recognises the needs of children from the local Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities and offers a tailored range of courses to encourage them to continue to secondary education.

Co-ordinated by Learning and Work Institute with support from the Welsh Government and the European Social Fund, the Inspire! Awards reward those who have demonstrated the power of learning, building confidence and developing vibrant and successful communities.

The Priory Learning Centre was awarded one of 12 awards which feature as part of Adult Learners’ Week, a week full of taster sessions and masterclasses aimed to inspire others to follow in their footsteps, which this year takes place online from 21-27 September.

This year, 80% of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller pupils attended secondary school from primary school – the highest ever in history at the centre.

Kellie Bellmaine, who works at the Priory Learning Centre along with lead teacher Claire Arnold, said: “There’s a well-established Gypsy, Roma and Traveller population in Pembrokeshire. Historically, people living in those communities are very unlikely to have any education past primary age; even now only 20% of registered Gypsy, Roma and Traveller pupils regularly attend the mainstream secondary school.

“We know a lot of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children are expected to help their parents with work, so The Priory is more flexible on attendance than mainstream school. Claire has developed a new syllabus focusing on more vocational subjects, and since then attendance has increased along with the number of qualifications being gained.”

The Priory works in tandem with Monkton School, which runs Launch Adult Learning, to offer adult courses tailored to the needs of the community. As a result, more than 3,000 adults, many of them parents, have enrolled on courses with 200 working towards degree-level qualifications.

Kellie continued: “We want integration, so it’s important to put work into understanding the community and gaining their trust. Now, the parents of our Gypsy, Roma and Traveller pupils at Monkton and Priory will come to see Claire and me for help with all sorts of things, like driving licence applications, that they would otherwise struggle to do on their own.

“The relationships between pupils have improved as well, and this year we’ve seen the highest number of pupils that we’ve ever had go on to the mainstream secondary school. More Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children are being allowed to go on Duke of Edinburgh, which is a huge show of trust from parents who might not have been comfortable with their children leaving the town 10 years ago.”