Isle of Wight School merger plan recommended

An option is being put forward to close Newport's Carisbrooke College

An Isle of Wight School has been recommended for closure as part of plans to tackle over-capacity at the island's secondary schools.

A report before the full council next week will propose Newport's Carisbrooke College is shut and merged with Medina College.

Medina College would be refurbished and expanded by 2017.

If the merger is approved, the remaining four other secondary schools will have their pupil numbers adjusted.

The island's two new free schools, the Island Free School in Ventnor and Isle of Wight Studio School in East Cowes, would also be retained.

If the expansion at the Medina site goes ahead there would be no year 7 admissions to Carisbrooke College in September 2016.

Medina College would take on additional Year 7 forms.

A decision is expected at a meeting of the full council on 8 July.

Education has been run by Hampshire County Council since 2013 following concerns over standards on the island.

In 2008, Isle of Wight Council scrapped the island's three-tier education system for two tiers, which led to the closure of some schools.

Four of the island's six secondary schools were rated "inadequate" in their Ofsted reports from 2012 - the lowest grade.