OVER 2,800 Save our School campaign coupons were handed to Gloucestershire County Council in a bid to convince the authority the Vale of Berkeley College should not be shut.

The Gazette, together with representatives from the school, travelled to the council offices in Gloucester last week to personally hand over the coupons, which urge the council to reject proposals made by Government education expert Graham Badman to close the school.

On receiving the coupons Cllr Jackie Hall, deputy leader of the council and lead member for education, said she would ensure that they would be put before cabinet members at their meeting on February 10 in which they will decide the fate of the school.

Ellie Greenway, 12, a student at the school who helped hand the coupons to Cllr Hall, said: "The Gazette campaign has given all the children an active part to play in saving the school. By collecting over 2,800 coupons I feel more confident that the school closure will not happen, as everyone has pulled together and they can now see how strong the school and community really are.

"I do feel nervous about the school possibly closing as it took me a long time to make friends and settle in and my sister is doing her GCSEs. We will all be spilt up and could end up anywhere."

David Drew, MP for the Stroud constituency, this week officially gave his backing to the campaign to save Vale of Berkeley College and sent a four page letter to the county council urging them to give more time to making the decision.

In the letter, shown to the Gazette by Mr Drew, he says that he opposes the closure of the school in "the strongest possible terms".

He said: "I have the ultimate respect for all associated with the place and have come to love what it does and what it stands for."

Last week at a full meeting of Gloucestershire County Council Dennis Andrewartha, councillor for Cam and Dursley, put forward a motion which urged the cabinet members to listen to parents and local people and to ask the Government for more time to work out a suitable solution for the school.

"I am convinced that working together and given time we should be able to resolve the problems at the Vale of Berkeley College," he said.

The motion was seconded by county councillor for Berkeley Basil Booth and all county councillors voted in favour of the proposal except for four Labour councillors who abstained.

The consultation period to comment on the recommendations is now over and the final decision rests with the council.

The school is continuing to work on a plan for becoming a co-operative school trust and this will be presented to the council ahead of the meeting when the decision will be made.