The dedicated campaign to save Keighley schools has failed.

After two lengthy meetings and four hours of speeches at Bradford City Hall on Tuesday, the final proposals put forward by the council's review team to close 76 schools across the district were approved. Under the plans the district will move from a three-tier system to a two-tier primary-secondary structure.

When the full council voted on the proposals 48 members were n favour and 21 were against.

In Keighley, this means:

the town's nine middle schools will close their doors forever

first schools will become primary schools

Oakbank and Greenhead upper schools will become secondary schools.

Most recent revisions to the proposals - published as part of the final plans - are:

keeping Holycroft First School on its present site instead of moving it to another location

reducing the pupil capacity at a new Utley primary school on Cartmel Road from 420 to 315

increasing the pupil capacity at St Andrew's First School from 315 to 420.

Other controversial changes to the current system include :

closing tiny Oldfield First School (reported as being the most expensive education provision in the district at the committee meeting)

cutting the pupil capacity at Oakbank School from 1,500 to 1,350 plus post-16 provision

closing Bront Middle School instead of turning it into a secondary school in its own right, as proposed by Keighley Education Action Group (KEAG).

Parkside Middle School at Culling-worth becoming a 900-pupil secondary school

Worth Valley Middle School having its pupil capacity cut from 630 to 420

Denholme's grant-maintained Keelham First School closing.

At the first meeting, deputy chairman of education Susanne Rooney announced: "This is a momentous day and one of the most exciting of this century." She went on to describe the new structure of education as 'visionary' and an 'opportunity for the future'.

She added that 'numerous people would not be happy but nowhere near the amount who are ecstatic' and said this was reflected in the City Hall chamber during the meeting which contained only a handful of protestors.

One of those protestors was Joyce Newton, from KEAG, who carried a placard bearing the words 'Don't push pupils out of Keighley'. The group has long campaigned for a better deal for Keighley pupils, especially with regard to them having to travel out of the town to be taught.

And teachers' representative Kathy Linfoot-Smith told the meeting that teachers across the district are 'absolutely furious' and 'very, very concerned' about the changes which they believed were purely driven by finance.

She went on to say that the council's no-compulsory-redundancy policy was no assurance that teachers would not leave or lose their jobs.

The council's director of education, Diana Cavanagh, said she was 'somewhat surprised' by Miss Linfoot-Smith's statement. She believed that head-teachers, teachers and teachers' unions had been fully involved in discussions about the review and none of these concerns had been raised at meetings with them. She added: "We want to invest money in training so that all staff will be comfortable and able to handle the new system. I cannot accept that these views are widely held, none of which have come my way. Teachers are anxious and it would be amazing if they weren't."

It is estimated the move to a two-tier system will save the council almost £11.5m.

The proposals will now be sent to the Secretary of State for Education, David Blunkett, for consideration and final approval. During this time, objectors will have a statutory two months to oppose the changes.

A decision from the Government is expected by the end of the year.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.