Small schools grants

Carmarthenshire £199,671 Gwynedd £165,587 Powys £163,443 Rhondda Cynon Taff £143,165 Pembrokeshire £118,665 All 22 councils benefit

The cash can also be used to promote the use of school premises for other community uses.

Another £1.2m will be given to help schools throughout Wales create a computerised pupil census.

All counties will benefit, with the largest sums set to go to rural authorities such as Carmarthenshire, Powys, and Gwynedd.

But urban areas of the south Wales valleys, such as Rhondda Cynon Taff and Caerphilly, will also benefit as a result of their legacy of small schools in former mining villages.

Campaigners say schools are vital for rural communities

The grants are intended to boost the effectiveness of small schools through a variety of measures.

Local authorities will be encouraged to set up clustering or federation initiatives, IT networking or other measures of collaboration between schools.

They will also be asked to develop schemes to increase the community use of school buildings for pre-school groups, after-school projects, libraries or even non-educational activities.

Small schools have come under threat in many parts of Wales as cash-strapped councils try to save money.

In Carmarthenshire, it is estimated that education in a village primary school costs almost £6,000 per pupil per annum, compared to an average of £2,300 across the county.

Education officers say many buildings are in a poor state of repair, and claim larger schools can provide a wider curriculum.

Many buildings are in a bad state of repair

But closure plans have been bitterly opposed by parents, who say schools are vital for the survival of village communities.

Groups like Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg - the Welsh Language Society - claim they are particularly important in securing the long-term future of Welsh speaking villages.

Earlier in April, Carmarthenshire County Council voted to press ahead with plans to close 10 village schools despite fierce opposition from parents and Welsh language activists.

Similar protests have also taken place this year in Pembrokeshire and Monmouthshire.

Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg has given the grant scheme a cautious welcome.

Language campaigner Ffred Ffrancis was arrested during a protest

Sioned Elin, the society's chair in Carmarthenshire, said it could prove to be "real turning point" in the fate of Welsh medium village schools.

"Rather than a steady decline, our schools could develop into centres to revitalsise our Welsh-speaking village communities," she said.

"We hope to see the fund swiftly rising to a level which will make a real difference to the prospects of our schools."

However, she feared that some local authorities were still committed to a policy of school closures and may not give serious consideration to federation schemes.