PARENTS have questioned why a primary school is being shut for a whole day so that staff can attend the funeral of a teacher’s partner.

All at Northumberland Heath Primary School, at Erith in the borough of Bexley, were stunned by the death of deputy head teacher Sharon Terry’s partner, Ian Cumming, in a car crash.

But many were shocked to receive a letter from head teacher Angela Barry, telling them that the school would be closed this Thursday (March 1) and a planned parents’ evening was being moved forward a day.

Head teacher Angela Barry told the Bexley Extra she made the decision to shut the school for the day because a number of staff wished to attend the funeral and she could not guarantee sufficient supervision for the children.

She said: "We don’t close lightly and it wasn’t a decision taken in the heat of the moment.

"I do understand and sympathise with parents, as a working parent myself, but as a head teacher I have to make difficult decisions and this is one of them."

The school does not like to use supply teachers, because a lot of the pupils have emotional difficulties and do not like change.

But the decision, made with the backing of school governors, left parents of some 420 pupils having to make arrangements for looking after their children.

One parent, who did not want to be named, was concerned parents were having to take more time off work so soon after half term.

They said: "How many parents have to lose their wages or worse, risk another tragedy by being forced to leave their children on their own for the day? This is a recognised area of high deprivation and yet low paid parents are being penalised."

Another parent, who also wished to remain anonymous, said he had expected some disruption on the day of the funeral, but felt it was unacceptable to close the entire school.

Mr Cumming, 36, from Belvedere, died earlier this month on a roundabout near the Bluewater shopping complex at Greenhithe. He was a corporate projects officer at Bexley council and had taken a keen interest in the activities of the school.