"Published on Wednesday 9 March 2005 14:33 THE OWNERS of St Elphin's have slammed the door on 160 years of history by announcing the immediate closure of the private school. On hearing the bombshell, tearful pupils rushed up the school stairs to challenge the motives of Kevin Burke, one of the owners, who had just broken the news to teachers on Tuesday evening. The consortium of businessmen who own the Darley Dale school claim they cannot continue to sustain such significant financial losses. But furious parents say the owners, who bought the site for 2.4 million last June, have closed the school without giving it enough time to recover. With some students only weeks away from GCSE exams, parents are planning to club together to pay teachers until that time. Jim Green, who has two children at the school, said: "The kids are sobbing their hearts out and the boarders have been told to pack. We are very bitter because they're messing with childrens' welfare. "This school has been here for 160 years and somebody has just come along, shut the door and said that's it." Steve Crystal, another parent, said: "It's appalling that they are prepared to wreck children's lives." Principal Dr Deborah Mouat, who has been off sick all week, said: "I'm horrified they have taken this decision when I'm not actually there, when I'm off sick. "I'm not really concerned about myself, I'm more concerned about the children. I'm very sad, there is a long history there with some very good staff." The owners say pupils who are about to take public exams can continue to use the school facilities to minimise disruption. A brief statement to parents said: "Over the last six months the owners have made a significant financial commitment to the school to allow it to continue to exist where otherwise it would have failed. "But they cannot continue to sustain such significant losses and have now reached a final decision that the school must sadly close." Rumours about the school's possible closure started to circulate when auxiliary staff were not paid for a fortnight. Union bosses are considering legal action on behalf of their members. Cllr Steve Hibbard, deputy mayor of Darley Dale, said: "The town council is very sorry the school has closed and has great sympathy for everybody involved. When I first came to Darley Dale, there were two private schools and we have lost both." The site is owned by a company called St Elphin's Darley Dale Limited, which was created in August 2004 when it changed its name from House Park Limited. Paul Elliot, from Knutsford, Cheshire, Kevin Burke, from Bletchley, Milton Keynes, and Momcilo Novakovic, from Bedford, are shareholders in the company. by Will Kilner and Tim Cunningham" Reprinted by kind permission of Matlock Mercury |
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