Margate school for deaf children to close despite petition Published duration 11 December 2015

image caption The Royal School for Deaf Children in Margate was established in 1792

A school for deaf children which parents said was a "lifeline" is to close, administrators have said.

A petition to save the Royal School for Deaf Children in Margate, which was established in 1792, exceeded 10,000 names.

More than 100 jobs had already been lost, with a further 240 job losses announced by the administrators.

The remaining 140 staff are being retained to mange the closure of the school.

Campaigners have appealed to Kent Council Council to provide funding and support to keep it open.

The petition on Change.org says: "Please help put the funding and support in place to keep this wonderful environment open to continue the great work it is doing with the young people to provide them with a better future."

'Vulnerable' children

About 110 young people attend the John Townsend Trust-operated school, administrators said.

Before the appointment of administrators it had been announced that Westgate College, which was established in 1978 as the post-16 department of The Royal School, would close at the end of the current term.

Geoff Rowley, from the administrators FRP Advisory, said: "Our priority has been in assessing the ability of providing ongoing provision of core services and care, and the well-being of all of the John Townsend Trust's pupils and residents and their families."

He said the decision to close the school will have "a significant impact on the many children, young adults, their families and the wider community".

'Lifeline'

The National Deaf Children's Society said it would be very difficult to place the "highly vulnerable" children with complex needs elsewhere.

Brian Gale, director of policy and campaigns, acknowledged the "immense financial tension in the education system" but said the news had been devastating for parents who had described the school as a lifeline.

Nicola Moffat, from Swale, sends her 11-year-old son David, who is deaf and blind, to the school.

She said a closure would turn his life upside down.

She added: "This isn't just a school for these children, this is their life, their community.

"A lot of the children have been there since they were four. We don't know where to turn."

Kent County Council said in a statement: "It will be very important for the council and the administrators to work together to agree a planned and viable way forward.