Isle of Wight parents vow to stay put in battle to keep school

Chillerton and Rookley Primary now has 10 pupils and faces reopening in January without a qualified teacher

Parents of children at a rural school with just 10 pupils are vowing to stay put, despite plans by the authorities to move them.

Chillerton and Rookley Primary on the Isle of Wight could reopen next year without a qualified teacher, the island's council said.

It said it had a legal duty to find suitable schooling for the children.

But parents are resisting the move, one said "we absolutely must keep the school open."

The school had previously been threatened with closure but won a reprieve back in May.

The school, which has a covenant stating it can only ever be used as an elementary place of education, currently has just three year groups after three others were transferred to nearby Godshill Primary.

One parent said: "We absolutely must keep the school open. If it means staff training, promotions and moving around staff then it needs to be done.

"I know that my child will not be able to go to any other school as it will affect her mental health...she shouldn't have to be pressured."

A spokesperson for the Save our School Group said: "It is for families to decide on where their children are educated, not council officers."

'Declining numbers'

Isle of Wight Council said it had written to parents on Tuesday explaining that given the school's "present challenges" it could not be provide a suitable education from January 2023.

Parents were instead being offered places at Godshill with free home-to-school transport.

Councillor Debbie Andre, cabinet member for education, said she had hoped the recent "good" Ofsted rating would encourage more parents to send their children there.

But despite media coverage and a marketing campaign, pupil numbers had actually declined further, she added.

"The very small numbers mean sustaining a varied, thorough curriculum to each child is impossible, due to the lack of similar aged peers and the wide age range across the class," Ms Andre said.

The council had "run out of options", she added.

Despite a nationwide recruitment campaign to fill the teaching position, no applications were received, school governors said.

In June, a group of school leaders called for a quarter of the island's primary schools to close after warning that keeping too many schools risked condemning pupils to a mediocre education.