§ Mr. Clayasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science to how many (a) proposed primary school amalgamations, necessitating the closure of one of the schools involved, and (b) proposed primary school closures, he has received objections under the Education Act 1980; and, of these objections, how many (i) he subsequently upheld, (ii) he subsequently overruled and (iii) caused him to amend the local education authority's original proposals.
§ Sir Keith JosephThe amalgamation of schools can be achieved by securing the approval of the holder of my office to proposals published under sections 12 and 13 of the Education Act 1980 either to close one school and transfer its pupils to the other, or to close both schools and to establish a new school in their place. The Department's records only allow the separate identification of the latter category.
Details of proposals to amalgamate primary schools which were decided between August 1980 and 31 December 1983, and which attracted objections, are as follows:
Approved Approved with modification Rejected 75 10 5 In addition, decisions during the same period on proposals to close primary schools, which may have involved amalgamations, and which attracted objections were:
Approved Approved with modification Rejected 197 18 28