A PUBLIC meeting is to to be held in Dulverton to discuss changes to two of the town's schools that could see local children receiving secondary education at Kingsmead in Wiveliscombe.

As revealed in last week's Free Press, Somerset County Council is proposing to turn All Saints from a first school to an early years and infant school catering for children aged from 0 to seven.

Dulverton Middle would become a junior school, taking pupils aged seven to 11, while Kingsmead would consult on a change in its admissions arrangements to give priority to year seven children in the Dulverton catchment area aged 11 from September 2015.

The proposals, sparked by a funding crisis at the middle school, have won the support of the governors of the Exmoor Federation, which includes the two Dulverton schools and Exford First, which would be unaffected by the changes and continue to take pupils up to age nine.

However, Dulverton Town Council is calling for the full details behind the need for the changes to be made publicly available.

And it is taking the lead in organising a public meeting.

Around 22 local people, including parents and former teachers, turned up at the town council's monthly meeting on Monday to hear county council schools placement officer Julia Ridge explain some of the background to the proposals.

But local resident and former education worker Marion Silverlock, who was also at the meeting, said the costs involved were not made clear.

She said the comments from the public at the meeting emphasised the high regard the Dulverton schools were held in and called for a solution to the financial crisis to be found that would protect the high educational standards achieved at the middle school.

"Concern was expressed several times that to reduce educational provision would put the long term viability of the community - and therefore of southern Exmoor - at greater risk," said Mrs Silverlock.

She said the unique Exmoor Curriculum - a Dulverton specific initiative focusing on the local environment - and the links with the Exmoor National Park were highly valued and had to be protected.

Other concerns raised focused on the long journeys faced by pupils from the Exmoor area, the majority of whom currently transfer to the West Somerset College in Minehead at 13.

"It was said they find it difficult to bear at 13 and many felt very strongly that 11 is too young," said Mrs Silverlock.

"One 15-year-old described doing all her homework 'in the breaks' because she gets home at 5pm too tired to concentrate.

"Parents will consider this when deciding whether to stay or move to the area, thus threatening viable community life."

Mrs Silverlock said it was suggested that Dulverton Middle could become an academy and widen its catchment area.

And her husband Leslie, a member of the town council, told the meeting: "There are no educational reasons for these changes, only financial ones - let's focus on solving that problem and keep our school and community alive."

Dulverton Mayor Cllr Nick Thwaites told the Free Press after the meeting it was clear there was a lot of concern and uncertainty about the schools issue.

"It was felt that a public meeting would be the more appropriate place to deal with the concerns that could not be addressed at the town council meeting." he said.

Cllr Thwaites said it was important that all the necessary financial information was available before the public meeting.

"People need to have all the facts before a sound judgement can be made on these proposals.

"We need to consider the long-term effect these changes might have on the town - if people move out or don't move here in the first place because their children cannot be educated here after the age of 11, it would change the make-up of the people living here.

"We are very clear about the importance of our schools to our viability as a community."

The county council will consult on the proposed changes before making a decision on whether to go ahead with them next year.

The Kingsmead proposal comes in the wake of earlier suggestions that Dulverton Middle pupils could transfer to the West Somerset College at 11.

Despite a consultation which showed overwhelming opposition to the move, the college has pressed ahead with seeking formal approval from the Secretary of State to lower its age range from September 2015 to allow it to enrol 11 and 12-year-olds.

This week the college refused to say whether or not approval had been granted.

It also refused to say whether it intended to launch a formal consultation on any changes to its admissions policy.