Decision to be made on school relocation plans

A plea has been made for officials to save a school from closure and ditch plans to relocate it.

Hampshire County Council had previously approved plans to move Henry Cort Community College in Fareham to a new site in North Whiteley.

The decision was then called in for further examination by councillors and has been met with substantial opposition at two public consultations.

A final decision is to be made at the local authority's Children and Young People Select Committee meeting in Winchester on Tuesday.

The council said the meeting - originally scheduled for June - was brought forward to give the Henry Cort community earlier clarity about the school's future.

The local authority's plans involve moving Henry Cort from its Hillson Drive site in Fareham to a new North Whiteley secondary school site about five miles (8km) away.

Development in Whiteley has seen 2,000 homes already built, with a further 3,500 planned north of the Whiteley settlement area.

The council said the plans allowed for an estimated 900 to 1,200 secondary school places needed in the developing area.

A motion from Fareham Borough Council petitioned to keep Henry Cort open at its existing site, alongside the new school in Whiteley.

Leader of Fareham Borough Council Simon Martin said: "We welcome the announcement of a new school for North Whiteley but are fighting for Henry Cort School to remain open."

Councillor Pamela Bryant said local families will for various reasons find going to the new Whiteley School extremely difficult.

She added she hopes if the county closes the school, pupils will be sent to local schools like Cams Hill School and Fareham Academy, not bused to the new Whiteley location.

Councillor Fred Birkett said if the school had to close, he hoped part of it could still be used for students with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities.

Council papers showed the most recent public consultations held in January and February had a total of 140 responses, with 104 objecting to moving Henry Cort.

Cabinet member for children's services at Hampshire County Council, Roz Chadd, previously said keeping existing school sites alongside the new school would lead to "educational and financial decline".

You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.