THE Government put education at the heart of its agenda so why is the council planning to shut schools?

If we took the council at face value then the only reason for school closures is educational need in the face of falling rolls. This is, to say the least, disingenuous.

The consultation document posted on Bury MBC's website reveals that the principal driver here is finance, and selling off prime real estate will ease the borough's current financial crisis.

Rolls may well be falling, but as we reached an almost all time high in pupil numbers that is not surprising.

The analysis undertaken apparently ignores out of borough children, takes no account of the many families who specifically move into the borough because of the quality of education received, it only looks forward without looking back to see if earlier predictions were in any way accurate.

Nowhere does the council appear to consider the educational consequences of cramming children into huge schools, and even less so the loss for ever to communities of valuable facilities such as sports halls.

If rolls are falling what about smaller class sizes?

This consultation appears to aim to set school against school, child against child in the council's own version of the X Factor, except there will be no winners, only losers. Every school will feel the impact.

Many parents agree that we need a united and widespread campaign of letter writing, petitioning, meetings, and demonstrations to stop all the closures, to make sure our children get a decent education.

If you are interested in building a campaign to stop any school closure or merger email stopschoolclosures@yahoo.co.uk

MIKHIL KARNIK

Guest Road

Prestwich