Just two years ago Baildon boasted no less than nine schools.

Parents of younger children had a choice of six first schools, covering all parts of the village, as well as two middle schools for slightly older pupils.

But in two years' time, if proposals to shut another primary school are implemented, the ever-expanding village, which has a population of more than 16,000, will be left with just four, giving parents of younger pupils a choice of only three primaries.

Campaigners say plans to shut Hoyle Court Primary School would be yet another blow for Baildon, which has already seen the closure of Tong Park and Ferniehurst primary schools and its two former middle schools as part of Bradford's education reorganisation.

Bradford Council, which is proposing to shut Hoyle Court and six other district primaries in July, 2004, says the city has too many surplus places - 850, or 12.7 per cent, in the Year 1 population alone, costing the authority £1,300 each - and that there are not enough children in the community to make them viable in the future.

An officers' report to tomorrow's meeting of the Council's executive, which recommends members approve a consultation process on the proposals, says that, while Baildon has places for six forms of primary school entry, demand was projected to fall to 4.5 forms of entry, with the closure the preferred option. If approved, the first of two official consultation periods would start in September, with a final decision by the school organisation committee expected in February, 2003.

But governors, staff and parents at Hoyle Court, which received a glowing Ofsted report and was among Bradford's top ten primary schools for last year's SAT results, have already banded together to launch a campaign to save the popular school. They say closure would rip the heart out of yet another Baildon neighbourhood and be an ''abominable waste of money'' following an investment of more than £1 million in new classrooms and other facilities over the last couple of years and a yet-to-be completed new reception class.

They say it would be "ludicrous'' to shut the school when it does not have a problem with surplus places - 184 of its 210 places are set to be filled from September - and its pre-school facility has a waiting list.

Miranda Vasey, an LEA governor at Hoyle Court, said: "Baildon's a growing community with a lot of new housing developments and family homes being built all the time. We should be keeping its schools open rather than closing them."

Hoyle Court's chairman of governors Michael Heaton said they "totally reject the reasons and statistics for this decision'', and he added: "Hoyle Court Primary School has no problems in attracting the requisite numbers of children to be viable."

Shipley MP Chris Leslie said: "A lot of parents are already sending their children 'over the border' to schools in the Leeds district, and closing yet another Baildon school will give parents even less choice and make the situation worse. They've got the figures for pupil numbers wrong once already and that could happen again.''

Councillor Grahame Thornton (Lib Dem, Baildon) said: "We need to check that the figures show a definite long-term downward trend and aren't just a blip that occasionally occurs. In other areas, such as children's homes, the Council's pursued a policy of closing facilities, only to have to then provide new ones later. So, if this goes ahead, are we going to end up having to build a new school in a few years? I've been told there are schemes which already have or are seeking planning permission for 360 new houses in Baildon. In light of that, it doesn't seem right to be thinking about closing down another school.''

Councillor David Ward, Bradford's executive member for education, said: "There are some very strong and well made arguments being put forward and they'll all be fed through and considered as part of the formal consultation exercise."

Schools Section