FOLLOWING the news a West Wight primary school could close due to falling pupil numbers, an Isle of Wight Councillor has singled out All Saints in Freshwater as the only logical choice.

Newport West Cllr Chris Whitehouse said All Saints CE Primary School was no longer sustainable and ‘must close.’

Last week, the Isle of Wight Council said a West Wight primary school could close due to an anticipated decline in the number of young children living in the area.

The council said a consultation would be carried out before any decision was made, although it expected ‘a great deal of speculation’ on the issue.

Cllr Whitehouse said All Saints, where admissions are set to drop from 30 to 15 children a year, was the most likely choice for closure.

All Saints has been rated ‘requires improvement’ by Ofsted for the past decade. Brighstone Primary School also has a ‘requires improvement’ rating and the other three primary schools in the area — St Saviours in Totland, Shalfleet and Yarmouth Primary Schools — are rated ‘good.’

In a letter to Father Bishop Phillip Egan, the Catholic leader of Portsmouth Diocese, Cllr Whitehouse said St Saviours RC Primary School should be opened to All Saints pupils in an ‘act of Christian solidarity with our Anglican neighbours.’

“The local authority will have to act to reduce this capacity, and the only logical outcome of a review of places in the West Wight will be that All Saints is no longer sustainable and must close,” he said in the letter.

“The local authority is already in dialogue with the school and with the Anglican diocese to manage this process.”

However, he said it was important the Catholic ethos at St Saviour’s was maintained.

“I am fully aware the pupils in question are unlikely to be Roman Catholics and that this will increase, at least some degree, the challenges in maintaining the Catholic ethos of Saint Saviour’s, which I personally agree is of huge importance.

“That said, the pupils will all go on together to our joint faith high school, Christ the King, at age 11, so this problem should readily be manageable.”

When asked for a response to Cllr Whitehouse’s suggestion All Saints should close, the school referred all questions to the council.

The cabinet member for children’s services, Cllr Paul Brading — who will oversee the review — said he was sensitive to the concerns of the community and would lead the process with the best interests of the children in mind.

He said: “The fact is the Department for Education has highlighted to us the need to address the problem of too few pupils for the number of schools because this has a direct impact on our duty to meet their educational needs.

“A formal paper will be published on Friday which I will consider on March 1, in accordance with due process. If I approve the recommendations, that will start a six-week consultation with parents, headteachers, governors, staff and other stakeholders.

“I will listen carefully to the outcomes of the consultation before taking any further decision.”