Liberal Democrat Derbyshire County Councillor Nigel Allwood leads Village fight to keep School open

3.28.40pm BST (GMT +0100) Fri 20th Oct 2006

Derwent Valley County Councillor Nigel Allwood addressed a packed village meeting of governors, parents, staff, pupils and villagers on Wednesday 18th October at Stoney Middleton CofE Primary school following a proposal by Derbyshire County Council to close the school next year.

Stoney Middleton pupils and parents protest proposed closure by DCC

Cllr Nigel Allwood and Peter Hobson, chairman of the school's governing body agreed that: "The news of the closure proposal was a bolt from the blue. We knew nothing of this proposal until early last week. The Governors believe the school is viable and were about to advertise for the second time for a new head as we understood that the Authority's policy was to support small schools."

At the meeting FURIOUS parents have vowed to fight Derbyshire County Council proposals to close a much loved school which has educated generations of the same families.

Falling pupil numbers and difficulties attracting a headteacher are some of the reasons given for the proposal. The school has places for 47 pupils but has just 21 on its roll. - The full proposal can be read at

Dulcie Jones is a governor at the school, she said: "We are disgusted. We feel that this is being rushed through without the proper channels being followed. The school is small but provides excellent education and numbers are set to increase next year. This is a school that is on the up not going down."

"It is not just the pupils and parents who would be affected, the school is the heart of the community, there is no other village hall or meeting place."

The school was built in 1835 by subscription. Some of the relatives of the original founders are still in the village and their children attend the school.

Tara Hancock is a prospective parent whose family own a shop directly opposite the school. Her three and a half year old daughter Emma would be the fifth generation of the family to attend the school.

Tara said: "We are devastated about this. This is a very close-knit community and the school is at the heart of the village. Once the school is lost it is gone for ever. It would be a very long walk to the nearest alternate school in the area along a very dangerous main road."

Councillor Alan Charles, cabinet member for school planning and support, said: "We are recommending it be considered for closure because we believe falling pupil numbers mean the school's funding from the Government will be affected.

"This will have a direct impact on the quality of education that can be offered to children. The school is already struggling to attract a permanent headteacher because pupil numbers are so low."

Other schools in the surrounding area have spaces that could accommodate the pupils but concerns have been raised that the council is not following its own policies.

Mrs Jones said: "The county council's own policy states that 'If situations develop where there are a number of schools within the same area with a significant number of surplus places, a rationalisation of such places will be considered in full consultation with the Governing Bodies prior to any consideration of a public consultation exercise.' No such consultation with the school's governing body has taken place."

A public meeting will be held at the school on Thursday November 2 at 6.30pm to discuss all the options.

COMMENTS

PARENT: Julie Townsend's two boys Brandon, aged eight, and Calum, aged six, both attend the school. She said: "We are really upset at the news.

"It is a really important part of the community and the children absolutely love it, one of them was in tears when we said it might have to close. As I am disabled it would cause me problems having to travel to get the boys to school, here the school is right on my doorstep."

Liberal Democrat MEP for the East Midlands - Bill Newton Dunn has written a letter of support:-

"I give my full support in your campaign to keep open Stoney Middleton Primary School.

Village schools give children a great start in life. More than that, they bind the whole community together. For the sake of maintaining a healthy countryside, schools like Stoney need to be supported, not closed.

I know that Stoney school, like most Derbyshire village schools, gives its children an excellent education in a caring environment. It is also a centre of the community in Stoney Middleton, which has no village hall. From the Well Dressing to the Women's Institute, a whole host of activities, involving the whole community, take place in the school.

The importance of the school to the village is made very clear by the really significant sums of money that the School FPTA raises every year, which amounts to more than £350 per family at the school !

Parents in Stoney Middleton would have real difficulties if the school was closed. The nearest alternative is nearly two miles away, along one of the region's busiest and most dangerous roads. At a time when we need to get school children out of cars and walking to school for physical exercise, and to help prevent climate change, and when we want our villages to be able to accommodate young people with families who may not be able to afford to run cars, closure would be bad for the environment as well as for the whole community.

I understood that Derbyshire had a policy of supporting small village schools. This is a policy that is vital if we are to maintain vibrant and sustainable communities in our countryside. I very much hope that this potentially damaging proposal will be stopped, before it becomes a precedent for the closure of many other small but effective local schools in Derbyshire.

Beth Ely, former headteacher at the school, said: "In the small school, children are treated as individuals, gifted children are not limited by the constraints of year group. The shy, retiring child learns confidence and the child with special needs gains self-esteem."

Related Links:

Campaign to save Stoney Middleton School.

Derbyshire County Council Press Release.

Stoney Middleton CofE Primary School.

Consideration of the Future of Stoney Middleton Primary School.

Matlock Mercury article.

Chesterfield Today.