CONTROVERSIAL plans to merge two Sheffield secondary schools are back up in the air with the city council's Labour group set to order an independent review of the whole strategy.
A decision to close Wisewood and Myers Grove schools and build a £30million replacement on the Myers' Stannington site has already been agreed by the council, despite fierce opposition from Wisewood parents.
But in the wake of Labour's decisive de
feat in the Hillsborough ward in council elections earlier this month, the party is planning a rethink.
If agreed by the cabinet and the full council, a three member review panel will be ordered to look at all the options for the schools again, with a report to be produced within a month.
Members will be a senior city educationalist, a leading parent-governor and a recruit from the public sector.
With the council now hung, Labour expects the LibDems to challenge its merger strategy at the earliest opportunity, as keeping both schools open was one of the opposition party's key election pledges.
City education chiefs insist keeping both open is not practical with pupil numbers in the north west of the city set to fall steadily over the next few years, making the two schools increasingly uneconomic.
Ministers also say funding for a new school in the area will not be available unless the issue of surplus school places is tackled.
But added pressure on Labour is coming from a parents' campaign group, which last week said it would be seeking a judicial review of the merger decision.
"It's clear from the election result in Hillsborough that parents are unhappy with the Wisewood proposal," said council leader Jan Wilson.
"It is absolutely clear that we lost due to new voters voting against Labour on the school amalgamation issue - we need to take notice of that.
"A review panel will look with a fresh eye at our proposals. They need to decide whether the plans provide the best educational opportunities for pupils at Wisewood and Myers, and how do they fit into the city's overall education strategy," Coun Wilson added.
Also under review would be parental preferences, forecast pupil numbers, the best use of available funding and the views of governors and the local communities - although no fresh public consultations would take place.
"We need to ensure that the case for this reorganisation has been made, and that it is the right decision for the north west and for the city as a whole," Coun Wilson said.
"We're taking notice of the fact that so far we have failed to convince some parents that a new school on the Myers site is the way ahead. People feel they are having something taken away, not that they are being given a brand new £30 million school.
"The independent panel will have all the different options on the table to consider."
The proposal will go to cabinet on June 4 before being considered by the next full council meeting on June 6.
