Shropshire Primary Schools to press on in closure fight

THREE CLOSURE-THREATENED Shropshire primary schools today vowed that their battle to stay open would go on.

Shropshire Council plans to close five primary schools –Barrow near Broseley; Maesbury; Ifton Heath in St Martins; Hopton Wafers and Shawbury. Parents and teachers at Barrow are pinning their hopes on the Government granting it permission to become a "free school".

Maesbury is pressing ahead with an application for academy status.

And parents at Ifton Heath today said they would continue to protest against plans to create an all-through school to serve St Martins by extending the age range of Rhyn Park Secondary School.

Ifton Heath head teacher Nicola Bradley said: "This has caused an enormous amount of anxiety. There is no reason whatsoever for us to move. A lot of parents that have said they are not happy and that they will be looking to move their children.

"The plans that we have seen, the architects' drawings for the all-through school, are wholly unacceptable - something considerably smaller than we have."

Mother of three Lian Platts said: "We feel like the council haven't listened to the community. The facilities would not be good enough."

Another parent, Gill Williams, said: "The council said it would provide a better school but looking at the plans it is not doing that.

"I am disheartened."

Simon Pennington, school governor and leader of the campaign to save Barrow school, said: "We are not surprised by the news. We don't believe the council conducted a proper consultation. We believe they decided long ago which schools they wished to see shut down and nothing was going to change their minds.

"We have applied to the Department for Education for them to designate Barrow a Free School. This would allow us to operate more independently and remain open.

"If rejected then Barrow will close for good. There is now nothing else we can do."

The village of Shawbury will have one, not two, primary schools.

But head teacher at Shawbury Primary School, David Martin said: "We have always agreed that one school is best for the village. What is best for the children has always been most important."

Jo Humphreys the chairman of governors of St Mary's said: "The two governing bodies are working together to look at both sites and decide which would be of best benefit for the education of the children and for the community."

By Sue Austin