EDUCATION chiefs have been left red-faced after being forced to confess to depriving a Yate school of millions of pounds.

They were accused of "systematically running down" King Edmund Community School after investing just £100,000 in the school in the past five years - compared to the £2.8million poured into Chipping Sodbury and the £2.5million South Gloucestershire Council has injected into Brimsham Green School.

The shock revelations came to light at a packed public meeting into secondary school provision on Tuesday night.

Yate town councillor Justin Aldhouse said: "The council's policy statement says that each child has the right to enjoy quality in their education. How is that equality?"

Parents were outraged at the disclosure, which many saw as a betrayal and accused the authority of leaving King Edmunds "out in the cold". Mother-of-two Tina Blake told director of education Therese Gillespie she should be ashamed of herself.

"I don't know how you sleep at night," she said. "The council has a duty to serve our children fairly but King Edmunds has been left out in the cold for too long.

"The school has been systematically run down over the years and you are trying to tell us that there is no favouritism."

The admission comes at a worrying time for many parents, pupils and staff at King Edmund School in particular, as the council investigates four solutions to address the problem of falling pupil numbers in the two towns.

Three of the four options parents were being consulted on at Chipping Sodbury Town Hall on Tuesday, and at the Merloni social club last Thursday, include closing King Edmund School.

Cllr Alan Lawrance (Lib Dem, Yate North) said: "Having considered the issues, local members conclude that the papers, though purporting to be a consultation are in fact a declaration of intent."

He said keeping all three schools open was the only viable option and a further community-led consultation could then be carried out.

However, Ms Gillespie insisted that change was needed and added: "exam results at all three schools are not good enough".

She said: "It will be impossible really for the cabinet to maintain the status quo when it meets in October. Things may remain the same but pupil numbers will continue to fall and therefore that option needs to be considered within context."

The hundreds of people who turned out to both meetings, predominantly in support of King Edmunds, warned:

* that their children are already traumatised by the idea of change, especially those who are studying for their GCSEs.

* that the value added score for each pupil, which shows their improvement socially and academically year on year, should carry more weight than exam results.

* that thousands of extra homes are planned for the area and closing a school will only result in the need to open another one in the future. They also called for the £3.1million King Edmunds was due to receive to build a new vocational centre before the consultation process began should be released immediately.

In September there will be a total of 90 spare places at Chipping Sodbury and King Edmund Schools whilst Brimsham Green School is over-subscribed.

Ms Gillespie added: "It is important to remember children and young people are at the centre of this and we are looking at providing the best education possible."