Governors at Bruton School for Girls have announced that it will be shut down at the end of the academic year due to low pupil numbers, Somerset Live reports.
A statement from the school said pupil numbers had fallen from 199 in 2018 to just 45 pupils signed up for September 2022.
The announcement comes after there was some optimism about the school’s future when it joined The King’s School, Bruton Foundation in March 2022 and launched a new development plan.
The announcement comes less than 10 days after St John’s College in Portsmouth announced that it would be closing at the end of the academic year.
The foundation said: “At the last ISI inspection in 2018 there were 199 pupils in the school. Unfortunately, pupil numbers have continued to fall at BSG with a total school roll of 45 pupils expected in September 2022.
“The Governors have reluctantly decided that these low pupil numbers are not educationally or economically viable, and have therefore decided to permanently close the school at the end of this academic year. ”
The day and boarding school, founded in 1900, said it will be “doing all it can” to support staff and its pupils through the closure. The closure doesn’t affect other schools within the same group.
The statement added: “It is with sadness that the Governors can confirm that Bruton School for Girls (BSG) will permanently close at the end of this academic year. There will be no change to the BSG Nursery, which will remain open.
“There will also be no change to the location or operation of either King’s School, Bruton or Hazlegrove School, the two other schools in the Foundation. The school will do all it can to support girls and staff over the coming weeks. ”
Senior warden of The King’s School, Bruton Foundation, Stephen Edlmann, said it was “extremely sad” and had been an “extremely difficult decision”. Mr Edlmann also paid tribute to members of staff who have “worked tirelessly”.
He said: “This is extremely sad news after the optimism surrounding Bruton School for Girls joining the King’s Foundation earlier this year, when 114 pupils were expected at BSG in September 2022. Unfortunately, this optimism has not been translated into pupil retention, let alone further pupil growth.
“This has been an extremely difficult decision, but with a projected pupil roll of under 50 girls across nine year groups, from Years 5 to 13, it is not viable to run a school and offer the fully rounded education parents expect, or children deserve.”
