A DOZEN Church of England primary schools across rural North Yorkshire are set to become academies in a bid to safeguard their future.

The move is a joint venture between the Diocese of Leeds and the Diocese of York and will see the schools come under the banner of a newly formed Dales Academies Trust.

Schools involved include Richmond Church of England Primary and Nursery School and schools in Barton, Middleton Tyas, South Otterington and Kirkby Fleetham among others.

Parents are currently being consulted over the plans, with meetings taking place at the schools involved.

Sharon Stevenson, executive headteacher of Barton Church of England School, believes the move is a positive one.

She said: “This is an exciting time for our schools and a great opportunity for us to come together and create a very strong partnership.

“We already work closely and if we form a trust we can work even closer and help each other even more.

“We want to be strong together but still be separate schools and this is what we would like to do when we form the trust.”

The Rt Revd Jonathan Gibbs, Bishop of Huddersfield and Chair of the Church of England Diocese of Leeds Board of Education, said: “Schools are a central part of the life of our communities, especially in rural areas, as well as being vital for the education and nurture of our children.

“We are determined to do all we can to promote and support the life of schools across our region, and working together in Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs) will be a key way of helping both church and community schools to meet the challenges of funding cuts and to provide a rich and varied curriculum for their pupils.

“Many parents will have heard of the recent closure of some smaller schools in our region, and MATs are an important part of our strategy to enable such schools not only to survive but to thrive in the future.

“We believe the formation of new MATs such as the Dales Academies Trust is a good news story about schools taking greater control of their own destiny and working together to ensure a positive outcome for their children and communities.”

The schools that are proposing to form DAT are:

• Ainderby Steeple Church of England Primary School

• Bolton on Swale St Mary’s Church of England Aided Primary School

• Eppleby Forcett Church of England Primary School

• Kirkby Fleetham Church of England Primary School

• Middleton Tyas Church of England Primary School

• South Otterington Church of England Primary School

• Croft Church of England Primary School

• Barton Church of England Primary School

• Ravensworth Church of England Primary School

• Richmond Church of England Primary & Nursery School

• East Cowton Church of England Primary School

• All Saints Church of England Academy (TBC)