SIR — I was amazed to see the report on the front page of last week's Free Press regarding the "all through school" - what exactly does this mean?

And sharing resources - what resources would they be? Does it mean books etc or teachers and administration - the latter I think!

The college seems to be wanting to make itself into the "West Somerset Education Authority".

We had a two-site school in the first years of comprehensive education here and it did not work. Staff were often late for lessons caused by having to commute.

Thus the only option for a global administration would be to concentrate more pupils at the college, making it 11 -18 and leaving the middle schools relatively empty.

The next step would be to consolidate the primary schools into the old middle school buildings and doing away with the small uneconomic ones, all following a syllabus provided in a proscribed way and to a formula.

We can, I think, look forward to bussing primary children round the area and those in isolated communities having no prospect of pre-school classes and head teachers having no real control over their own schools.

West Somerset is a unique area, with if not the largest catchment area certainly one of the largest in the country.

The system that has been built here comes from many years of experience - let's not throw away the baby with the bathwater.

Co-operation between the college and its feeder schools is important, but the word is co-operation and not dictation.

The college has some way to go to raise its own standards but it must not blame this position on the middle school system.

Let's wait to see if they can up their game before allowing them the chance to reorganise the rest.

West Somerset beware of Greeks bearing gifts!!

R J Parham,

Blenheim Road,

Minehead.