Protests at the Town Hall last night

SENIOR councillors last night (Thursday) voted to open a formal consultation on ­closing two primary schools – as pupils, ­parents and teachers protested against the move on the steps of the Town Hall.

Children from St Jude and St Paul’s Church of England primary school wore red, waved heart-shaped balloons and handed out sweets and notes in a bid to “spread the love” and save their school on the eve of Valentine’s Day.

Year 2 pupil Scarlet-Rose read out a poem she had written, which included the verse: “I hope someone will listen, And understand our heart, Closing down our school, Will tear our community apart.”

Highbury Quadrant school’s supporters, meanwhile, marched from their primary to the Town Hall, with placards that read: “If our learning matters, keep us open.”

But the campaigns to save both schools, which have been running since November, were dealt a heavy blow by a vote in the council chamber as Labour cabinet councillors voted to push ahead with the process on the grounds that neither has enough pupils to make them viable.

After an “informal” survey before Christmas, parents had hoped councillors would vote to stop the process last night.

But Islington will now move to a “formal” consultation – the last stage before the closures are set in stone for this summer.

Islington’s claim that there are enough places in local Islington and Hackney schools to accommodate pupils affected by the potential closures was brought into question at the meeting.

Highbury Quadrant parent Becky Hunter told councillors: “What counts as ‘local’? The report highlights schools within 1.5 mile walking distance.

“This may be acceptable for some but anyone who has walked a small child to school will know that it would be a long old undertaking.”

Children looking for school places in future years may find themselves on the periphery of various catchment areas but not close enough to be sure of getting a place at those schools, she added.

Islington North MP Jeremy Corbyn was also among those to make clear his concerns in the chamber.

Councillor Ernestas Jegorovas-Armstrong, from the Independent and Green Group, also contested the mention of schools in neighbouring Hackney as an option for displaced pupils.

“We have no authority in terms of what Hackney does,” he said.

“We have a legal duty to provide a place for every child in Islington. Every single mention of Hackney should be taken out of this report.”

He added that the selection of the two schools for potential closure “feels like picking on the smallest and most vulnerable”.

In response, Islington’s head of education Paul Senior said there would be sufficient school spaces in Islington “regardless of what happens in Hackney”, while schools chief Councillor Michelline Safi-Ngongo said that no decision on the closures has been made.

The final decision will be made in April but the cabinet’s vote this week sets in motion a formal consultation which is essentially a final step in the process.

Meanwhile, parents at St Jude and St Paul’s contacted the Tribune this week to criticise the “integrity” of how this is working after learning that the council has been contacting prospective parents to tell them about the possibility of the school’s closure.

In a voicemail, a council staff member told one parent who had selected SJSP on their child’s school application form about the possibility that it might be shut down.

The official could be heard saying: “I don’t know what the outcome will be – the school may remain open, it may close – I just wanted you to know that.”

Mother of two Andri Andreou said: “We had 28 applicants for reception this year from prospective Islington parents. Who knows how many more we may have lost because of these phone calls?

“They say they need to close the school because there aren’t enough pupils. By calling prospective parents, they’re stopping us from addressing that problem. This is a complete breach of the process and the faith parents have that it’s being done fairly and with integrity.”

Cllr Michelline Safi-Ngongo said: “We want parents and guardians to have all the information they need to make informed decisions about school admissions.

“In line with our standard approach when a school closure is being considered, we have contacted those people that listed St Jude and St Paul’s as their first preference to advise them of the informal consultation to ensure they’re not disadvantaged in the admissions process.

“This outreach exercise is separate from the consultation itself, which remains open and transparent. Senior council officers have reviewed recordings of a number of the telephone calls made to parents and we are confident that the tone and content of the communication were both appropriate and unbiased.”