EDUCATION chiefs say they will not be able to cope if an under-fire school is closed down due to a poor Ofsted rating.

Chiltern Edge Community School houses more than 400 children from Reading, but Oxfordshire County Council is in the middle of a consultation to consider if the school has a future.

Ofsted branded the school 'Inadequate' earlier this year and it was promptly plunged into special measures.

Councillor Tony Jones, lead member for Education at Reading Borough Council, believes his Oxfordshire counterparts have jumped to the conclusion that closing the school down is the best and only alternative.

He said: "It is not good enough to day that just because the school is failing it should close. We should try to improve the school and it looks like they have jumped to the conclusion that closure is the only option.

"I am not sure we will have the capacity and would not be in a position to accept places for all those children. These are times of concern, but it is not a straightforward situation."

Council leaders from Reading and Oxfordshire met last month to explore options for keeping Chiltern Edge open, but campaigners from Save Our Edge continue to criticise the ongoing consultation for pressuring families.

Education watchdogs criticised the quality of leadership at the school and Moira Green was appointed interim head teacher.

Cllr Jones added: "The director of Children's Services at Oxfordshire says the school will not close without appropriate transfer arrangements for children.

"However, I have had a worrying indication from the county council that they will not be able to take on the Reading pupils, which leaves us with a worrying number of children with an uncertain future.

"It is not possible for us to just build a new school, but we do have a huge responsibility and we must ensure school standards are acceptable and around two thirds of the pupils come from Reading families.

"We are determined to keep the school open and we will be holding them [Oxfordshire County Council] to account for whatever decision is reached."