A VILLAGE school without pupils will be closing for good at the end of the year.

The 26 pupils that had been on the roll at Minsterworth Primary School in July have either progressed on to a secondary school or have moved to another nearby primary school.

And now following a public consultation Gloucestershire County Council has agreed to the board of governor’s request to close the school.

With a smaller budget to operate on each year due to the very low pupil numbers the board of governors felt that there was not enough projected funding for future years and felt that the only option open to them was to close it because it was financially unsustainable.

The school is currently operating with a skeleton staff.

Gloucestershire Councillor Richard Boyles, cabinet member for children and young people, said: “The board of governors at Minsterworth asked us to look at closing the school because so few pupils wanted to go there.

“The decision to close a school is not one that we take lightly.

However, it is clear that this was the only option for the school due to its financial situation.

 “There has been no decision made about what will happen to the site as yet, but staff from the county council and the Diocese of Gloucester will be visiting the premises to make sure it is secure once it closes."

If the statutory proposal is approved, the school will formally close on December 31.