SIR,

I am writing to express my discontent at the council's decision to erect a parking barrier in the leisure centre car park in Monmouth.

The barrier has been put in place to prevent non-school related drivers parking there and taking up spaces, yet the only people it will benefit are the teachers at the Comprehensive and the staff at the leisure centre, as they are the only ones with permitted access. The sixth form students were told by staff at school that they will not be allowed access to the parking facilities and that they will have to park down the football fields, effectively right behind the goal posts of the frequently used football fields.

The school has said it has no say in the matter, yet it has been said that the school has had a lot of input into the creation of the barrier.

With parking spaces already scarce at school and with the newly painted double yellow lines that seem to have cropped up overnight, the parking issues are sure to have an effect on the A-level results this year as students with afternoon examinations may find that there are no spaces available.

Not only this but the sixth form are continuously having their perks taken away from them. This year the sixth form common room has been taken away due to damages to a steel radiator protector which the students were informed was not financially viable to fix.

The alternative to the common room (after spending winter sitting outside) was leather chairs on the now inactive drama stage where they sit with the rest of the school.

Now I'm no expert, but surely the radiator protectors wouldn't have come to £2,000. There are now plans to turn the common room into a classroom.

There is seemingly nothing differentiating the lower school from the sixth form and again, what will the impact be for results and the amount of 16 year olds hoping to join a sixth form this year? 

Will Hereford College be more appealing? Clearly, Mrs Anderson needs to sit down and ask herself some very serious questions.

Helen Jones

(Monmouth)