EAST Lancashire primary schools are facing reorganisation, merger and even closure as education chiefs consider axing 5,000 places over the next five years.

Lancashire County Council announced they are considering cutting the places by the year 2003 - 2004 in their draft School Reorganisation Plan.

County councillors are also expecting a reduction in the number of unfilled places in the county's secondary schools.

But chairwoman of the Education and Cultural Services Committee County Coun Hazel Harding said the primary schools situation would not necessarily hit small and rural schools.

She said: "The local education authority in Lancashire has more than 500 schools which means we are looking at losing an average of 10 places per school.

"That could mean amalgamating small schools, closing classrooms and using them for something else and even something as simple as removing temporary accommodation previously used by bigger year groups.

"It does not necessarily mean we will be closing the small rural schools although we will be re-evaluating them within the plan."

But Mrs Harding agreed that smaller schools did cost much more to run per pupil than bigger organisations and could prove vital in any cost-cutting scheme. She said: "We have to look at schools in rural areas. We are looking at one at the moment which has nine pupils and it costs us £9,000 a year each compared to £1,500 in other parts of the county. "We could send them to public school for that and we are not doing children a service by leaving them in dwindling schools which are eating up resources."

The LEA is also acting on advice from the Audit Commission which recently recommended all local authorities re-evaluate schools with 90 pupils or less.

Mrs Harding went on: "We have an awful lot like that and we are not suggesting we go around closing classrooms wholesale but where there are two small schools we need to see if one school would be more viable and offer better education.

"We have to balance education with the cost of transporting children too."

County councillors also believe the number of children entering secondary schools will increase in the area over the next five years, reducing the number of unfilled places in all districts.

But the authority has been heavily criticised over the allocation of secondary school places and hundreds of disappointed families have appealed against places in recent weeks. Mrs Harding said: "We have put more places on at popular schools but it is almost impossible to predict what parents are going to do.

"Many of those who wanted places at Ribblesdale High in the Ribble Valley were considering Clitheroe Grammar and other independent schools.

"I would reassure parents that there will always be enough places but they should understand they can only express a preference, they cannot choose their child's school."

The draft plan is available to inspect at maintained schools in Lancashire, public libraries, area education offices, county information centres and county hall.

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