SO MICHAEL Waine thinks the community of Botley is best served by a more co-ordinated approach to education and management (Oxford Mail, February 24)?

He has left out the detail of how he thinks this can be achieved, so I would like to explain to your readers that he intends to close Elms Road Nursery School, recently rated outstanding by Ofsted, and merge this provision with Botley Primary School. This is a brave decision, you might think, from a councillor whose portfolio is that of school improvement.

I think it is foolhardy, by anyone’s standards, and would deprive the community of a scarce commodity – that of an outstanding school near to Oxford city.

I think the 68 per cent who voted against the proposal during the informal consultation stage are feeling their views have not been given their due consideration.

This proposal, despite everything Mr Waine has said, does not equate to the existing provision in a specialist school, which has a co-ordinated approach to education in early years, reflecting the good practice backed up by years of research in the education and care of very young children.

It seems likely that cabinet will vote yes to this proposal and, come September, the community of Botley will have lost its outstanding school.

I fear that in the future other nursery schools in Oxfordshire will find themselves in a similar situation and I will be writing to you again.

Oonagh Stephenson, Weyland Road, Headington, Oxford