HERE we go again with the council doing daft things when they keep pumping home the need to make savings. The latest is changing Duffryn School to John Frost Square School. Why? Cllr Wilcox says it is a way of keeping JF in our history. Why Duffryn? Duffryn school was built before the estate which was then named Duffryn Estate, not the other way around. This was in the 60s and since then thousands of citizens have passed through its academic corridors. Why wasn’t it named John Frost school then - or the new Newport High or Llanwern? What is the cost, Cllr Wilcox, and was there any consultation with the parents at the ward meeting or advance warning? People seem to have been consulted thoroughly on the budget, so why has this little item been kept in the cupboard? Is it going to council for ratification or just a cabinet decision?

This is the type of change that actually does merit public consultation and which will affect parents and pupils. I would love to know what the estimated cost is. There will be new signs, paper headings, badges, books, etc which are not cheap.

Once again, I suspect that this is a council sop for the destruction of the Chartist mural and the eradication of John Frost Square. But why Duffryn school when there must be other projects deserving this title? How about the new shop development in the city centre?

Jim Dyer, Stockton Road, Newport