Past pupils and staff of St Martin-in-Meneage School are being urged to attend a public meeting this Monday over its proposed closure.

An action group set up to protest against the closure, which could happen in a matter of weeks, will be meeting at the school at 7pm and has called for the support of the community.

It comes after the board responsible for the primary school on the Lizard Peninsula revealed that it wanted to seek permission from the Department for Education to close the school with effect from the end of this school year in July, saying it had "reluctantly formed the view that there are no remaining options."

A period of formal consultation is due to end on Thursday next week, when the Keskowethyans Multi-Academy Trust board, which oversees the running of St Martin along with four other primary schools, will decide on a course of action.

A group of angry parents and villagers, calling themselves the St Martin School Action Group, have hit back over a number of points in the consultation document, however.

They include the claim from the board that temporary contracts for staff had "been the only way forward," but protestors have argued that when the multi-academy trust took over in 2013 there were several permanent members of staff in place, adding: "Staff on permanent contracts were replaced by staff on temporary contracts, which the consultation document notes is destabilising for the school."

Similarly, the board's statement that small class sizes "limit the educational experience of the children" was argued by the action group saying: "One of the main benefits of joining the academy was to share resources and it has been disappointing to not see the development of Keskowethyans sport teams across the schools."

One of the key reasons given for the proposed closure has been that the school currently only has 12 pupils on its roll, which will be further reduced to ten in September, compounded by the resignation of two staff members to take up alternative posts elsewhere in the trust.

However, the action group claimed: "There has been an absence of any strategy to address falling numbers and a lack of consultation with parents and community. In fact parents have confirmed that when they have approached the deputy or head to talk about any concerns with numbers or the running of the school they have been assured there are no concerns."

The group raised concerns about the effect of having pupils from St Martin travel to Manaccan Primary School every day, as proposed in the event of permanent closure.

"It [the board] has not considered these negative impacts nor the wider implications, not least the potential cost to the area including the transport of young children - which would be likely to impact local government funds - and the impact on their education of having to travel daily," the community group has said.

It has also argued that the low pupil numbers facing St Martin had been experienced at other schools in the area in the past, but had "all without exception in the area, been turned around by positive action and leadership by the schools working with the community."

It pointed to Manaccan where numbers dropped as low as six or seven in 2004 and Garras in 2010/11 when pupil numbers were down to around a dozen but now saw a full register. In both cases the situation was turned around with the addition of a nursery/playgroup.

Anyone unable to attend the meeting on Monday has been urged by the action group to write to the chair of the Keskowethyans board of directors, Pam Miller.