THE integrated education sector has been dealt a blow with confirmation one of its schools in Derry will shut next year.
Pupil numbers at Groarty Controlled Integrated PS slumped to just 17 this year and it welcomed no new P1s.
The former state school, which transformed to integrated status 15 years ago, also did not have enough Protestant children.
Integrated schools are required to have a minimum of 30 per cent of their enrolment from "the minority tradition".
Since it transformed, it has experienced a fall in the number of Protestant pupils.
A proposal from the Education Authority had recommended closure in August of this year.
Education Minister Peter Weir approved the proposal but said the school would remain open for an extra 12 months.
Supporters had pointed out that Groarty CIPS remained the only integrated primary school on the city side of Derry.
Those responding to the consultation exercise highlighted continuing residential community segregation and the importance of "retaining as many shared institutions as possible on the western side of the city".
They said the school played an important role in the local community and had developed a strong shared education programme with the Irish language primary Gaelscoil na Daróige.
It was warned that approving the proposal would have an adverse effect on educational experience of young people, particularly those with special educational needs. It has a large variety of children with SEN who are nurtured and supported within a small school setting, they said.
There is another integrated option in the city, the larger Oakgrove IPS, which was undersubscribed last year. It is four miles away from the Groarty site.
Advice from Department of Education officials to Mr Weir said Groarty CIPS could admit nine children into P1 and its overall approved enrolment number was 63.
"The school has historically been undersubscribed. Enrolments have been relatively stagnant in recent years but there is evidence of a recent pattern of slow decline from a peak of 41 pupils in 2016/17 to 17 in 2018/19," officials said.
"The school’s enrolment has remained substantially below the recommended minimum recommended threshold of 140 for a sustainable primary school."
The Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) also noted the low numbers.
"The ETI advises that there are no other integrated primary schools on the city side of Derry. Should parents wish for their children to attend an alternative integrated school, the closest would be Oakgrove IPS on the Waterside area of the city," inspectors said.
"However, the ETI recognised that the school had no intake to Year 1 in 2019/20, and noted that the projected loss of over one-third of the children from Year 7 at the end of 2019/20 will mean that enrolment will decrease further."
Mr Weir said the school would close in August 2021.
"Having weighed up all the information, including the fact that seven of the 17 pupils will be exiting P7, with no new intake for 2019/20 or September 2020, it is clear that unfortunately the school is not sustainable, and that provision for any pupils in an integrated setting can be made elsewhere in the city," he said.
Meanwhile, Mr Weir has also approved the closure of Drumsallen PS in Co Armagh. It had just 22 pupils and will shut next August.
