STAFF, pupils and parents at Northcourt School at Gravesend have been told it is to close halfway through the autumn term on Friday, October 1.

The adjudicator's decision comes just days before the start of the new term. It follows weeks of waiting for anxious parents who now urgently have to find a school for their children for the next academic year.

Parent governor Patricia Harman has fought for months to keep the Dickens Road school open. She said: “We just feel really let down and we are all really disappointed. We don’t understand why the decision has been dragged out for so long.”

The adjudicator has told Kent County Council: “The closure of the school is in the best interests of the pupils.”

Mrs Harman said parents and pupils can come in on Wednesday, September 3, where teachers will do their best to tell parents where they can find places.

Gravesham MP Chris Pond said: “I will make sure KCC holds to its commitment that the premises is used for community uses.”

Leyland Ridings, KCC’s chief for school organisation, said: “Closing a school is not a decision we make lightly. There has been no sustained improvement at this school during the last three years despite extensive support from the LEA.”