THE decision to close a school - no matter how small - is never one that is taken lightly. When Worcestershire County Council announced that Malvern Hills Primary should close in August 2006, a chain of events was put in place to see if that decision was the right one.

The council had wanted to close the school after a number of scathing Ofsted reports.

Only 54 children attend the school, with just one child - out of a possible 400 in the school's catchment area - enrolling last September.

Shut it down, the council said, and we can place the children elsewhere.

We are sure that the councillors had the children's best interests at heart when they made their decision. This was, after all, a school that had previously been derided for its "poor quality, ineffective education" and "low academic standards".

But, a lot can happen in a school in a short space of time. There is a new headmaster, a new, more positive, Ofsted report and, it would seem, a new determination on the part of the school's wider community to make it a success.

The Government adjudicator has now decreed that the council's decision was not the right one and the school will stay open.

Amid the sounds of rejoicing coming from the classrooms, Malvern Hills Primary's teachers and governors need to remember - it is up to them to ensure the school is a success and continue the good work they have started. The children's futures are far too important.