Parents will fight merger

They say merging Lickhill Primary, Stourport Primary and Tan Lane First School, with pupils moving to the Lickhill Middle School site, would raise security problems.

They have now formed Stourport Parents Against the Merger – known as SPAM – to fight the proposals and plan to present a petition to Worcestershire County Council.

Lickhill Middle School is due to close as part of a county-wide change from three-tier to a two-tier education system where children will change from primary to secondary school at age 11.

Parents are worried that younger children who would move to the old middle school would be at risk because of a footpath which runs through the site. They say it gives unrestricted access to outsiders.

John Caldwell, 27, of Birches Estate, Stourport, whose ten-year-old and four-year-old daughters would be affected by the changes, said: "We are concerned about the possible closure of Lickhill Primary School.

"Without people's support Worcestershire County Council will decide to merge Lickhill and Stourport Primaries into one two-form entry school, double the present size of Lickhill.

"This would be a recipe for disaster.

"There are many concerns raised over the safety of young children attending a school on the Lickhill Middle site. The main one is over the footpath that runs through the middle of the site.

"We are also concerned about the dangers of children and parents walking to the school from Park Avenue. There is no footpath on this road.

"The implications of this merger are huge. We could lose our children's school and must act now to save it."