FORMAL approval has been given this week by the Welsh Government of funding for two new secondary schools at Caldicot and Monmouth.

Monmouthshire's £80m educational investment programme, funded 50 per cent by Welsh Government and 50 per cent by the county council, provides the green light to deliver the two new schools for 2017.

Sarah McGuinness, Chief Officer for Children and Young People said: "This really is an exciting time for the whole of Monmouthshire; this programme delivers not only modern teaching and learning environments for our students but provides a civic asset that can benefit the whole community it serves in many ways".

This is the first of two stages in Monmouthshire's 21st Century Schools strategy, with the development of two other secondary schools in Chepstow and Abergavenny pivotal to the next round of government funding for 21st Century Schools programmed for 2018.