I AM not surprised to read of the decision by AET to close Severn View Primary School which now has a tiny student roll.

It has been clear for some time that the school cannot be sustained on the numbers which have dwindled over recent years.

It shows the over provision in Stroud that even with closure there is enough room in other Stroud schools to take the children who will be affected.

At its best, Severn View was an exceptional school with innovative teaching, a fantastic campus, enthusiastic staff and some great work.

Sadly, in recent years the head’s office has been a rotating door with numerous changes including sharing heads with Brockworth School which has led to much less community engagement and families feeling a lack of connection to the school.

You can’t run a school meant for 200 plus children with only 30 children and you can’t attract new families unless you have consistent leadership.

I suspect it is almost inevitable the school will close leaving behind a very large campus with some excellent facilities.

I hope the county council and AET will work hard with partners to use the site wisely, the school is in an area with some of the greatest deprivation in Stroud and abandoning the school could mean abandoning that community and that cannot be allowed to happen.

Marcus Green

Former parent

Stroud