Rural school and sixth form to close permanently

A primary school and a sixth form which have both seen student numbers fall recently are to close permanently.

Hackforth and Hornby Church of England Primary School, near Catterick Garrison, had suffered financially with "only a handful" of pupils attending, a North Yorkshire Council meeting heard on Thursday.

Meanwhile, entries to the sixth form at The Wensleydale School in Leyburn were temporarily suspended for two years in September 2023 after numbers dropped to just eight students.

The council said Hackforth and Hornby Primary School would officially close on 31 August, with sixth form provision at The Wensleydale School ending on the same day.

Consultations on the proposed closures ran for six weeks at the end of 2024, followed by a public meeting in December.

The council's executive considered the consultation feedback in January 2025 and allowed further representations to be made until 28 February.

Following a meeting of North Yorkshire Council's children and young people's service, Councillor Annabel Wilkinson, executive member for education, learning and skills, said: "Closing a school is never an easy decision to make.

"However, pupil numbers at Hackforth and Hornby Church of England Primary School have continued to drop since 2017.

"The school has a capacity to accommodate 42 children, but currently there are only a handful of primary age children attending."

She added: "The decision had been made with a heavy heart, we have no choice but to close the school."

Meanwhile, a decision was also made to end sixth form provision at Wensleydale School, in Leyburn, where there have been no post-16 students in Years 12 and 13 for the past two years.

A council spokesperson said the school would continue to remain open to pupils aged 11 to 16.

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