Plans for some schools in Birkenhead to merge have received a backlash.
Wirral Council has proposed two mergers in the Birkenhead area, as pupil levels in some parts of the town are set to reduce in the coming years.
Tonight’s meeting of the council’s Children, Young People and Education Committee, approved a motion to put the proposals out for consultation, but some strongly disagreed with the mergers plan.
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One proposal also called for a new school to be opened in North Birkenhead to meet demand for new school places in that part of the town over the next 15 years.
Green Party councillor Chris Cooke wanted to get rid of the plan to merge St Peter’s Catholic Primary School in Noctorum and St Paul’s Catholic Primary School in Beechwood, as well as Hillside Primary in Noctorum and Manor Primary in Beechwood.
The council’s justification for the plan is that pupil numbers are falling in those parts of Birkenhead.
In the case of the area which includes St Paul’s Catholic Primary for instance, a council report said the area has an overall occupancy of 82% which is set to decrease to 70% over the next five years, meaning there will be a 30% surplus.
Michael Brown, a governor at St Paul’s, said the school offered high quality education, was not in debt and never has been.
Cllr Cooke, whose plan did not gain any support on the committee, said the council needs to invest more in primary education as a general principle.
He added that he feels the council should be making the most of the opportunity to reduce inequality by allowing schools in the areas of greatest social need to remain open and thrive.
Cllr Cooke said small class sizes lead to better social outcomes.
James Backhouse, Wirral Council’s assistant director of education, said the council had a responsibility to maintain schools and ensure they can provide high quality education efficiently and viably.
Labour councillor Dave Brennan wanted to know how many pupils there were in early years at these schools.
He suggested that if there was a higher volume of early years children, then the projected numbers of future pupils the council was predicting may need to be looked at again.
Mr Backhouse said that only some schools have early years provision, but he was happy to take Cllr Brennan’s point on board and see if it was something which could be carried into the consultation.
Simone White, Wirral Council’s director of children’s services, said she appreciated the difficult time this must be for parents, governors and staff, but wanted to assure them that the council wants the same as them, the best outcome for children.
