Education chiefs want to merge Wisewood and Myers Grove schools due to falling pupil numbers in the area, with a new secondary to be built on the Myers' site at Stannington.

But campaign group SOCS - Save Our Community Schools - has asked solicitors to give the council ten days to reverse the closure decision.

If if fails to do so, SOCS says it will seek a judicial review of the case on the ground that the proposals are unlawful.

The group will base its bid on a number of arguments:

n Wisewood is oversubscribed and successful and is likely to attract sufficient numbers of local pupils in future

n Transport issues have not been effectively considered, with pupils from Hillsborough forced to travel through congested routes around Malin Bridge

n Hillsborough would be left without its own secondary school, restricting choice for parents and students

n The initial manager and author of the consulation process was a governor of nearby Bradfield School, creating, say campaigners, a conflict of interest.

SOCS also plans to keep up the pressure on the Lib Dems, who pledged to reverse the Wisewood decision during the recent election campaign.

Campaign secretary Toby Mallinson said the overwhelming majority of parents and residents in Hillsborough opposed the proposal to close their school.

"This was clearly shown by the huge swing to the Lib Dems in the Hillsborough ward at the recent elections," he said.

"In March the Lib Dems, along with all other non-Labour councillors, opposed the proposal. We expect the Lib Dems to now fulfil their manifesto pledge to save the schools by submitting a motion to the next full council meeting reversing the decision," Mr Mallinson added.

Executive director of children's services Jonathan Crossley-Holland said the challenge to the local authority had always been to produce a proposal that was fair to all pupils in the area. "They need high-quality education that will serve them well in the future, at a time when pupil rolls are falling," he said.

"We accept that there are very divided views about the local authority proposals, but it is our view following the consultation that many parents across the whole of the area support our proposals."

To obtain a judicial review the campaigners would have to have permission from the judge who would need to be persuaded that there was a legal issue to hear, Mr Crossley-Holland said.

"We expect the findings, should there be a review, to show that our consultation process has been sound and that there are no grounds for legal action," he added.