Alternative options to moving three Vale primary schools to a planned super campus were put forward at a heated public meeting last week.

West Dunbartonshire Council is currently consulting on plans to build a £17.2million campus partially built on an all-weather pitch at the Vale of Leven Academy.

Under the plans, St Martin’s Primary – the smallest school in the region – would close and merge with pupils from St Mary’s, Alexandria, in a new St Mary’s school built on the site of the current St Martin’s primary.

The overcrowded Renton Primary and Language Unit and Riverside Early Learning and Childcare Centre would move into new buildings on the campus.

The council’s head of Educational Services, Terry Lanagan, was grilled by parents at the public meeting at Vale of Leven Academy on Thursday.

One parent said parent councils from each of the primaries wanted to stay on their own sites while another accused the council of ‘mortgaging’ St Mary’s to build the new ‘superschool’.

Alternative options put forward were St Mary’s being refurbished and the other primaries being built on their current sites; or St Mary’s being rebuilt on its current site and the other schools moving to the new campus.

Mr Lanagan said rebuilding the primaries on their current sites would cost between £5-7million more but could not provide a cost for the other options.

He said: “I am trying to deliver a brilliant new facility for your children. If you are unhappy about it – that’s what this consultation is about.” He said the campus location was ‘the only one suitable’ and plans would provide modern 21st-century buildings for education and denied accusatins that the schools had been deliberately run-down to give parents no choice but to opt for the new schools, although he did say the maintance could have been better.

Renton councillor Jim Bollan accused Mr Lanagan of trying to ‘sell’ the proposed option with no alternatives being offered – and brought up the previous Our Lady and St Patrick’s site choice problems which cost the council £1million.

He said the three parent councils were ‘totally opposed’ to the super campus plan with Renton Primary wanting a new school on their current site, St Martin’s asking for the same and St Mary’s calling for a refurbishment.

Cllr Bollan said: “If that was to happen it would be done in the £17.2million I have no doubt about that. I think what we have to do as a council is stop coming to these consultations with one option – take it or leave it – and I hope the council listens.” Mr Lanagan said the consulation was not ‘take it or leave it’ and said people could put forward alternative options, as had happened with OLSP.

Concerns were also raised about the educational impact of bigger schools with one parent claiming bigger schools lead to poorer quality education and saying there was no evidence to the contrary.

Mr Lanagan said there was no evidence in Scotland that smaller schools peform better than larger schools, and that the merged schools would be of medium size by national standards.

Another parent said she was concerned about the size of the campus and the children mixing with pupils from the high school.

She said: “You’re going to drop them into a campus with over 640 pupils on a daily basis. My four-year-old is not ready for that on an emotional basis. I think you are going to expose children that are not ready to influences that are beyond their years.” Mr Lanagan replied: “Children are astonishingly adaptive and benefit from opportunities open to them.” He said the campus would be ‘completely separate’ from the academy.

Johanne Grace, speaking on behalf of St Mary’s Parent Council, said moving St Mary’s to the new school would cost £48 per pupil more – or £10,000 for the school.

She said: “You can understand the feeling we are being mortgaged for the new superschool.” She added they were ‘suspicious’ about the prime development land around the school being valued at £430,000 for sale, along with the Renton school site and was told by a council official the local authority is legally obliged to report the social housing value, although it the site was put up for sale it could attract private developers.

Mr Lanagan said the plan was driven by education, not finance.

He added: “You say you are being mortgaged for the new super school but I say to you we are prepared to invest £17.2million so your children will be educated in super buildings.” Further concerns were raised about the separate classrooms for Catholic and non-denominational children creating ‘division’ since the pupils can mix in the playground and other areas.

Mr Lanagan pointed out the currently the children go to separate schools and said other co-located Catholic and non-denominational schools had not reported problems.

The consultation runs until October 30 copies are in the schools and online at the council’s website.