1:10pm Monday 12th January 2009
By Harry Hogger
PARENTS are vowing to fight to save Wool First School as it faces the threat of closure.
The school held a special meeting to inform parents of the situation on the day a Purbeck Review consultation document was released, recommending the closure of the school as part of a revamp of the district’s education system.
Purbeck is set to move from a three-tier education system – with first, middle and primary schools – to a two-tier system with primary and secondary schools.
As part of the changes, the review recommends merging Wool First School with the village’s St Mary’s Roman Catholic School to create a single primary school at the St Mary’s site.
Almost 90 per cent of the school’s parents gathered in the school hall to meet governors and headteacher Lesley Craze.
Mrs Craze told the parents: “We are going to fight because we do not agree with the proposal, particularly because we think that parents’ choice is being taken away.
“We think that our school is worth fighting for – for our children and for their future – and we need to come together as a community to fight this proposal.”
Chairman of governors John Matthews claimed that other, smaller schools were not being threatened with closure under the review and said that actually implementing the changes recommended in the report would cost more than it was supposed to save.
He added: “The closure of Wool First School would be totally unacceptable.” Vice-chairman of governors Andrew Wilson will be leading a ‘Save our School’ campaign to fight the school’s cause, starting with a public meeting at the school at 7pm on Monday.
Mr Wilson said that after receiving the news about the school’s potential closure, parents were in total agreement that everything possible should be done to reverse the recommendation.
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