Village Schools (Closure)

HC Deb 20 June 1978 vol 952 cc190-2

3. Mr. Michael Latham

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether she will make a statement on the general criteria which she adopts when deciding whether or not to approve a Section 13 notice to close a village school in a rural area.

Miss Margaret Jackson

My right hon. Friend takes into account the educational and economic factors set out in the Department's circular 5/77, "Falling Numbers and School Closures". She also gives due weight to the social and, where appropriate, denominational arguments.

Mr. Latham

Following her very regrettable decision to close Grimston School in my constituency against the express wishes of both the parents and the managers, does the Minister agree that there is growing parental support for these small schools and that the general presumption in her Department on Section 13 notices should be towards keeping them open rather than closing them?

Miss Jackson

I would contest the hon. Gentleman's assumption that our general view is to close them rather than to keep them open. What we do is to examine each case as an individual case, as we did with regard to Grimston. We know that there is often support from parents for keeping such schools open, but we take considerable advice about the educational aspects of such decisions before we make them. They are often difficult to make, but we seek to make them in the interests of the welfare of the children.

Mr. Grocott

May I suggest to my hon. Friend an additional criterion in deciding whether or not to close a school, which is that she should favour the closure of schools in the constituencies of those Tory Members who voted for cut-backs in public expenditure and should oppose the closing of schools in the constituencies of Labour Members who are in favour of public expenditure? In this connection, will she look particularly sympathetically at the representations of the people of Wall, in Lichfield, who are very concerned indeed about the possible closure of their school?

Miss Jackson

I look sympathetically at representations from all groups of parents, whoever they are fortunate or unfortunate enough to be represented by.

Mr Freud

Does the Minister accept that financial economic criteria are the very worst reasons for closing small schools? Whatever is meant by a school being "financially viable" must be insane when one looks at the realistic benefits which a small school bestows on those who go to it.

Miss Jackson

I do not accept that finance should be totally ruled out, but I certainly accept that it should be very much a secondary consideration and that the educational experience which child- ren are having in a school should be the matter of prime concern.