Parents of St George’s CE primary school in Langton Matravers in Dorset have appealed to Dorset Council to scrutinise a multi academy trust’s consultation into the proposed merger of their village school with a primary school in Swanage, which they say is, “biased and predetermined”.
At a Cabinet meeting of Dorset Council on Tuesday 23rd June 2026, parent Chris Pike clearly voiced his serious concerns over the issue which threatens to devastate family life in the village, leaving parents, carers, and villagers shocked and upset.
Chris Pike, parent at St George’s school puts his case to councillors at Dorset Council’s Cabinet meeting
Rapid decline in pupil numbers at St Mark’s
Falling pupil numbers has been given as the reason by the multi academy trust Coastal Learning Partnership (CLP) to merge St George’s with St Mark’s CE primary school on the St Mark’s site in Swanage.
However figures released as part of the consultation, show it is St Mark’s pupil numbers which have rapidly declined since 2023, not St George’s.
Only four children are expected to join St Mark’s in its reception class in September 2026, while St George’s, which has always operated as a small rural village school, is expecting 11 children to enrol, in line with previous years’ data.
The Coastal Learning Partnership’s own figures predict that the total number of pupils at St George’s is likely to exceed those of St Mark’s as soon as September 2027.
Pupil numbers
- 2016: St George’s reception entry 23, overall 106 / St Mark’s reception entry 17, overall 158
- 2017: St George’s reception entry 16 , overall 99 / St Mark’s reception entry 22, overall 163
- 2018: St George’s reception entry 10 , overall 93 / St Mark’s reception entry 25, overall 172
- 2019: St George’s reception entry 9, overall 84 / St Mark’s reception entry 19, overall 160
- 2020: St George’s reception entry 12, overall 84 / St Mark’s reception entry 20, overall 151
- 2021: St George’s reception entry 12, overall 88 / St Mark’s reception entry 14, overall 148
- 2022: St George’s reception entry 5, overall 87 / St Mark’s reception entry 23, overall 156
- 2023: St George’s reception entry 8, overall 75 / St Mark’s reception entry 8, overall 136
- 2024: St George’s reception entry 12, overall 74 / St Mark’s reception entry 7, overall 128
- 2025: St George’s reception entry 9, overall 69 / St Mark’s reception entry 6, overall 94
- 2026 forecast: St George’s reception entry 11, overall 74 / St Mark’s reception entry 4, overall 76
This has challenged the general assumption in Purbeck that St Mark’s is and would always be the larger school, while St George’s remained the smaller school.
Hence the parents at St George’s say the sudden announcement that their school would be the one to close was a complete surprise.
St George’s school has been part of the village for more than 150 years
“This is not the standard of impartiality expected”
Speaking in the Dorset Council chamber in Dorchester, parent Chris Pike addressed councillors:
“This proposal is presented as a response to falling pupil numbers across Purbeck. However, despite repeated assurances from CLP that the consultation is open and undecided, the overwhelming view of parents, carers, and the wider Langton community is that the process is biased and predetermined.
“The consultation materials consistently assume that closure is the only viable solution, frame alternatives as unsustainable, use persuasive rather than neutral language, and position CLP’s preferred outcome as both logical and inevitable.
“This is not the standard of impartiality expected in a statutory consultation affecting children, families, and the school that we consider at the heart of the village.”
He added:
“We as parents are deeply concerned about the emotional impact on our children, many of whom are now anxious and unsettled.
“These harms could have been mitigated had the consultation followed the Gunning Principles: that consultation must occur at a formative stage, provide sufficient information for meaningful response, allow adequate time, and ensure that responses are considered.
“Given these issues, I am here this evening to express serious concern about the level of scrutiny and oversight currently applied to CLP.”
Dorset councillor Claire Sutton, cabinet member for children, families, and education responding to the concerns of a St George’s parent
“I might wish that we had greater local control”
In response Dorset councillor Claire Sutton, cabinet member for children, families, and education said:
“Dorset Council does not have the remit to carry out a full and independent scrutiny of the process. That belongs with the Department for Education, and, as a proposal of this nature constitutes a significant change, it requires the DfE’s formal approval.
“Any application on CLP’s part can only be submitted once the consultation has concluded and must include a full account of the consultation outcomes.
“Whilst I might wish that we had greater local control, concerns regarding the consultation process need to be raised with CLP or escalated direct to the DfE.”
Claire Sutton added:
“We really encourage all members of the community to engage fully so that final decisions are informed by a broad and representative range of views.”
Local MP Lloyd Hatton is on the case and says St George’s is an essential part of the Langton Matravers community
“St George’s primary school is a brilliant local school “
The community has rallied to save St George’s which campaigners say sits in the heart of Langton Matravers.
They argue closure of the school would lead to the decline of a thriving village, with families leaving, and the end of more than 150 years of education in the village.
Lloyd Hatton MP for South Dorset which covers Langton Matravers and Swanage said:
“Like so many local people, I am frustrated with the proposed merger of St George’s primary school in Langton Matravers and St Mark’s primary school in Swanage.
“St George’s primary school is a brilliant local school and an essential part of the Langton Matravers community. I firmly believe that this school site should be protected and not mothballed.
“While a consultation process is underway and no final decision has been made, we must ensure that the voices of those directly affected – teachers, parents, and the pupils themselves – are at the heart of the decision-making process. I will do everything I can to amplify their voice.
“If the current setup is unworkable, then we owe it to the whole community to look at every viable alternative to protect St George’s primary school. It’s essential that both primary schools continue to serve the local community.”
Councillor Ben Wilson says St George’s must never become more unaffordable housing
“No outcome should be considered inevitable”
Councillor Ben Wilson who represents South East Purbeck ward on Dorset Council said:
“The imperative is first to find the right education solution for the pupils of both schools with minimal disruption; second is to safeguard the future of St George’s – either as an alternative education institution or for other community use.
“The loss of the St George’s site altogether – especially to further unaffordable housing – would be a ‘lose lose’ for Langton Matravers.
“At this stage, no outcome should be considered inevitable and the community should continue to work together, as they are, to explore all options.”
Langton Matravers parish council held a meeting and resolved to write a letter to the CLP detailing its serious concerns
“Take a step back”
Langton Matravers parish council has written a letter to the Coastal Learning Partnership in which it raises its concerns about a number of issues including the unexplained underperformance of St Mark’s, in terms of academic measures and expected pupil numbers.
It concluded:
“Langton Matravers parish council finds a great deal which is inadequate in the current consultation both in terms of how it has been conducted to date and in the information provided.
“Regrettably it seems this process has been launched without the necessary rigour in preparation or oversight in conduct leading to flaws, errors and misrepresentations which the CLP is struggling to address with new communications every other day.
“Langton Matravers parish council urges the CLP to take a step back, work through the analysis more carefully and present it in a single coherent consultation document which addresses all the issues thoroughly.”
The parents and the wider local community have leapt into action to save their village school
“Flawed document”
At a meeting of Swanage Town Council on Monday 22nd June 2026, there was further criticism and surprise at the consultation process run by the Coastal Learning Partnership.
Councillor Gary Suttle said:
“The consultation is a flawed document which does not take into account the future development which is happening in Swanage.
“There’s the community land trust sites creating affordable social rent housing and the Dorset Local Plan which allocates land for 400 new homes in Swanage of which 200 will be designated as affordable.
“It seems that everyone in Langton and Swanage are working towards creating thriving communities but the consultation is working to achieve the complete opposite!”
“Shortsighted”
Councillor Mike Bonfield said he thought the consultation was purely financially led and the children were just being used, while Councillor John LeJeune branded it shortsighted.
Councillor Cliff Sutton said that the consultation looked as it had been set up to put one school against the other and criticised the CLP for not turning up to its own public consultation meeting.
“I do feel the CLP has moved too fast”
Swanage town mayor, Chris Tomes who was chairing the meeting confirmed that like Langton Matravers parish council, the CLP had not contacted Swanage Town Council for discussions in advance of the surprise move.
He said that he’d had a meeting with the childcare group Explorers which provides wrap round care and holiday club provision at St Mark’s for the whole Swanage community. They said they had effectively been served notice to quit from September 2027.
Chris Tomes added:
“The figures show that St Mark’s had a good record until about two to three years ago and I do feel the CLP has moved too fast, causing a backlash.
“We need to put the children first – we are lucky to have four good primary schools in Swanage and Langton. The communities need to work together.”
St Mark’s could be closing the door to the popular Explorer’s childcare service
Loss of Explorers childcare at St Mark’s
In public participation time at the Swanage Town Council meeting, residents expressed concern over the reliability of the figures included in the consultation documents, and the huge loss that closing the Explorers childcare provision at St Mark’s would create for Swanage families.
The vicar of St Mark’s Church in Herston Dave Richards said he felt St George’s was trying to denigrate St Mark’s adding:
“I know when I see a good school and St Mark’s is a good school.”
A Langton Matravers resident countered that there was no campaign against St Mark’s, they just wanted to positively save St George’s and the heart of their village.
“This is not a campaign against another school”
Although no parents from St Mark’s attended the meeting, a former St Mark’s member of staff had earlier told Swanage.News:
“This is not a campaign against another school. It is a community coming together to support a school that many families value deeply. St Mark’s has dedicated staff, happy pupils and a strong place within the community.
“We hope the consultation process will genuinely listen to local families and consider the educational, social and community impact of any proposed changes.
“The discussion should not be about which school is ‘better’, but about what is right for local children, families and the wider community.”
The campaign to save St George’s has been embraced not only by the parents but also the grandparents and the wider community
“Helping to shape our thinking”
Coastal Learning Partnership has stated it wants to hear all views and has reiterated that the consultation is open and transparent.
However it postponed the community consultation event which was meant to be held on Thursday 18th June 2026, although the parents organised a meeting anyway in the village hall. In a letter, CEO of the Coastal Learning Partnership Paul Howieson wrote:
“The Trust Board of Coastal Learning Partnership has arranged to meet on Monday 22nd June specifically to take time to reflect carefully on everything that has been shared with us during the consultation so far.
“In view of that meeting and given the volume and quality of responses and views we have already received, we feel it is the right thing to do to pause and consider all of that information carefully before the third community meeting takes place.”
The letter continued:
“Following Monday’s board meeting, we will be in touch with an update, which will include confirmation of a rescheduled date for the community evening session.
“Thank you once again for your continued understanding, patience and engagement. It means a great deal to us, and it is genuinely helping to shape our thinking as we move through this process.”
The Coastal Learning Partnership may have postponed its meeting but MP Lloyd Hatton is planning his own community meeting in Langtom Matravers
MP holding community meeting
The new date for the Coastal Learning Partnership community consultation has yet to be announced, but in the meantime the MP Lloyd Hatton has organised a community meeting on the issue at Langton Matravers village hall from 11 am to 12.30 pm on Saturday 27th June 2026. All welcome.
The short consultation by the Coastal Learning Partnership runs to Friday 10th July 2026.
Despite the postponement of the Coastal Learning Partnership information meeting, the community event still went ahead in the Langton Matravers village hall where the parents spoke passionately about why their school did not deserve to close
Further information
- Read the Coastal Learning Partnership letters and consultation documents
- Complete the Coastal Learning Partnership consultation form or submit comments and queries via email mergeconsult@coastalpartnership.co.uk
- Read Langton Matravers parish council’s full letter to the CLP
- Swanage Town Council will discuss the consultation and detail any action at the planning and consultation committee meeting at 7 pm on Monday 6th July 2026 at the town hall
- Watch the Dorset Council cabinet meeting
- Websites of St George’s and St Mark’s primary schools
