Plans threatening primary schools

The council said £3.5m a year was being wasted on 14,270 empty desks at primary schools across the county.

By far the worst affected area, with the biggest surplus capacity of 15.98%, is the Dover district.

Campaigns have been set up by many of the threatened schools to fight the proposals.

Click the relevant link below for the situation in your area:

Maidstone, 1,675 empty places - one closure and two mergers

Consultation will take place on a proposal to shut Detling CE Primary School, but the governing body has already agreed to work towards a managed closure by September 2007.

The council said the school had shown improvement since being placed in special measures by Ofsted in April 2005.

"However, the governing body has concluded that the school is no longer viable", it said.

The two mergers involve Platts Heath and Kingswood schools, and Hunton CE Primary and Laddingford St Mary's Primary.

Laddingford parents protested at County Hall on 8 June, with head teacher Charlotte Jarvis claiming "the roll is rising, we have numerous awards and we are very much part of the community".

Dover, 1,553 empty places - five closures and two mergers

The Kent Primary Strategy proposes the closure of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, St Radigund's Primary School, Langdon School, Goodnestone and The Ripple School.

South Deal and Mongeham primary schools are being suggested for amalgamation, as well as Melbourne Community and The Powell School.

The Ripple School was saved from closure in 2004 and Andy Roberts, chairman of the governors, said the new threat was "absolutely shameful".

"The gloves are off and the bloody nose that the local education authority got last time, they will get again," he said.

George Hannah, from the South Deal Action Committee, said there were safety concerns over children having to relocate to Mongeham and possibly walk an extra mile along a road with no pavement in places.

The council said there were more than 600 empty places at the nine primary schools earmarked for closure or merger in the Dover district.

Tonbridge & Malling, 1,550 empty places - one closure

With a surplus capacity of 15% identified by KCC, the proposal in the Tonbridge and Malling district is to close Trottiscliffe CE Primary School.

Trottiscliffe is a small school, with a capacity of 84 but only 61 pupils at present.

Campaigners compared the closure plans to "some madcap scheme developed by Davros for his army of Daleks".

They have asked: "Does someone really think it's a good idea to rip out the very heart and soul of a community?"

One Trottiscliffe parent, Robin Lee, is taking their fight with him as he runs the Three Peaks Challenge.

Mr Lee is wearing a signed campaign T-shirt as he attempts to conquer Mount Snowdon, Scafell Pike and Ben Nevis.

Swale, 1,541 empty places - one closure and one merger

Similar to Detling school in Maidstone, the closure of Doddington Primary School in the Swale district is already being worked towards.

The small rural school, situated just outside Faversham, has a surplus capacity of almost 50% - room for 105 pupils but only 55 on the roll at present.

The council said Doddington's governing body had proposed closure because the school could no longer "offer its pupils an appropriate education".

Doddington Parish Council agrees with the move and, though there will be consultation, implementation of the closure is planned between December this year and Easter 2007.

The proposed amalgamation in Swale concerns Homewood Infant School and Barrow Grove Junior School, which have 137 empty spaces between them.

Dartford, 1,185 empty places - one closure and one merger

Members of Dartford Borough Council have unanimously backed a motion to support a campaign to save Darenth Community Primary School from closure.

Leader of the council, Jeremy Kite, said the school was "a shining example of how teaching should be delivered in local communities".

Darenth Community was one of Kent's most improved schools in 2005 and the borough council has called on KCC to "offer complementary uses on the site to secure its long-term future".

The merger of Swanscombe Infant and Sweyne Junior schools is also being suggested under the Kent Primary Strategy.

KCC admitted significant house building proposed for the Kent Thameside Development would boost pupil numbers in the Dartford district, but said new communities would be accompanied by "modern 21st Century schools".

Ashford, 1,008 empty places - three mergers

The Kent Primary Strategy proposes merging Ashford South Primary School and Oak Tree Primary School.

Also suggested for amalgamation are Beaver Green Infant and Hopewell Junior schools.

The final proposed merger for the Ashford area is between Charing CEP School and Hothfield Village School.

The council said Oak Tree and Ashford South, which already share a site, offer 602 places between them with only 405 currently being taken up.

The idea is to merge them into a single 420-capacity school which "would be sufficient for the needs of the community".

Shepway, 908 empty places - one closure & one merger

The Save Selsted School Action Group has vowed to fight its proposed closure "tooth and nail".

A school fun day is planned, while the children have recorded a protest song to be released on CD and DVD.

Spokesman Costas Sotiriou said Selsted was important because it was the only Church of England school in the area and 33% of its pupils had learning difficulties.

"The children don't want to go anywhere, they've bonded with their friends," Mr Sotiriou said.

Morehall and Harcourt primary schools are being suggested for amalgamation in the Shepway district.

Former Conservative leader Michael Howard, the MP for Folkestone and Hythe, has pledged his support, saying: "I shall do all I can to fight these proposals."

Sevenoaks, 733 empty places - one closure & two mergers

Closure-threatened Seal St Lawrence Primary School has the backing of Sevenoaks MP Michael Fallon.

Mr Fallon said: "If schools are half-empty and unpopular, then Kent is right to consider closing them, but Seal St Lawrence is well-subscribed and successful.

"This school plays an important role in the wider community and has a fantastic record in academic results, in the arts, and in taking care of children with special needs."

The school has arranged a Summer Soiree in support of its campaign to stay open.

The two proposed mergers in the Sevenoaks area are Hextable Infant and Junior schools, and Birchwood and White Oak primary schools.

Tunbridge Wells, 542 empty places - one closure & one merger

St Luke's CE Infant School has a 23.53% surplus capacity - the Audit Commission's trigger for a local education authority to take action is 25% for an individual school.

KCC said it should be closed because of problems with a constrained site and poor classroom accommodation, plus the fact there is no partner junior school for infant pupils to feed into.

Mandy Crossan, head teacher at St Luke's, said there was no disputing the facts, but argued that the proposal "doesn't take into account the basic human need".

"The parents are shocked because they value the work the teachers do for their children.

"It's a very well-performing school and the work we do with the children is very good," Mrs Crossan added.

Aside from the proposed closure of St Luke's, the Kent Primary Strategy suggests merging St Paul's CE Infant and Junior schools in Tunbridge Wells.

The council said the area's relatively small surplus capacity was "expected to almost double in the next four years".

Canterbury and Thanet districts

The Canterbury district has a surplus capacity of 11.9% (1,316 empty places) while Thanet's surplus level is 9.77% (1,092 spaces).

The proposed mergers of Joy Lane Infant and Junior schools in Whitstable, and Garlinge Infant and Primary schools in Margate, have been discussed by the School Organisation Advisory Board and are now out for the first round of public consultation.

RELATED INTERNET LINKS
Kent County Council
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites