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Pupils, staff, and invited guests were invited to the ceremony at which a plaque was unveiled by Jeremy Miles MS, Welsh Government’s Minister for Education and Welsh Language.

A number of pupils also recited poetry, sang songs and spoke about how important the new school is to them as part of the opening ceremony.

The English-medium school, located on the site of the former Dwr-Y-Felin Lower Comprehensive School, has places for 420 primary and 50 nursery pupils. It has replaced the former Abbey Primary School which was split across three sites.

The new school comes with a 12-place early year assessment centre and also benefits from a newly established 32-place childcare setting.

The new Abbey Primary School will continue to serve the existing catchment area and will be of sufficient size to accommodate projected growth in local pupil numbers.

Councillor Nia Jenkins, Neath Port Talbot Council’s Cabinet Member for Education, Skills and Training, said: “As we officially open the new Abbey Primary School, we celebrate not only the state-of-the-art facilities but also the bright future it represents for the children of our community.

“With its modern design and excellent resources, this 21st century school will provide an outstanding learning environment for our young people, enabling them to thrive and reach their full potential.”

Built by BAM Construction Ltd, the £10.5m cost of the project was 65% provided through the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme. The remainder was funded through the council’s prudential borrowing capacity.