A Ripley councillor has hinted that a judicial review could be sought if the county council decides to close the local primary school.
Colin Cross, who is both a borough and parish councillor, said it was “no surprise” that Surrey County Council (SCC) officers had recommended closing Ripley Church of England Primary School, and described the public consultation on the matter as a “sham”.
Ripley has been threatened with closure since May 2017 when it received an “inadequate” Ofsted rating and was ordered to merge with an academy chain.
No such chain was found and, after an informal consultation in which 96% of respondents opposed closure, SCC published a report recommending the school be closed.
Cllr Cross, a Liberal Democrat, said: “It has come as no surprise to me and many others that SCC are choosing to totally ignore the opinions and wishes of the 96% of those that responded to the recent consultation sham.
“Around 417 people made it abundantly clear that the school must not close and if it did it would be a shameful episode in SCC Education Department’s history and an even greater blow to Guildford Diocese’s failing reputation locally.
“This has been a failure of their strategic leadership. That’s not my words but those of the Ofsted inspector back in May 2017.
“The diocese and SCC Education have proven themselves to be dire judges so far and they are about to repeat that error. This is not over, the legal experts have already advised that the argument for a judicial review is overwhelming and so the fight for Ripley’s school will continue.”
Parents of children at the school and members of the local community have been highly critical of the handling of Ripley Primary School by both SCC and the Diocese of Guildford since closure was announced as a possibility.
They have pointed to Ofsted’s criticism of SCC’s leadership and have highlighted the lack of a long-term plan and the refusal to appoint a permanent, full time headteacher for the school.
Some have also been strongly critical of the diocese’s decision to block South Farnham Educational Trust from carrying out due diligence prior to a potential takeover on religious grounds.
A parent of a former pupil told Get Surrey : “At present, the Diocesan Board of Education seems would rather see the school close and scatter the children across Surrey, with no way of safeguarding their religious education, rather than find a compromise and continue to support a rural school.”
Catherine Bremford, who has been part of the campaign to keep Ripley Primary School open, said: “We are deeply saddened that this is the recommendation but Ripley parents and the parish council and Guildford Borough Council are not giving up.
“We’re not accepting this and nobody in the village supports it. There is a want and a need for this school.”
The campaign has also received support from Guildford Borough Council leader Paul Spooner, who has written to SCC leader David Hodge to oppose the school’s closure.
A final decision on whether to close Ripley Primary School will be taken by SCC’s cabinet member for education, Mary Lewis, on May 8.
Article originally appeared on Get Surrey
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