THE Sandown Bay Academy sixth form will be axed once a single 'all through' school is created in the town.
Plans for are starting to take shape this week, following the publication of official notices in the County Press to kick start the process.
"These notices are an important part of the process to achieve what the overwhelming majority of parents and the wider community want at Sandown, and I urge residents to have their say on plans to secure high quality secondary education for the area for years to come," said Cllr Paul Brading, the Isle of Wight Council cabinet member for children’s services. 
"The upper age limit of The Bay CE Primary School will be raised from 11 to 16, to take children right through their education from reception age, but there will be no sixth form provision.
"There are only 39 A-level students at Sandown Bay Academy — considerably less than the minimum of 200 students and curriculum of 15 subjects the Department for Education expects of a new sixth form centre.
Cllr Brading said current sixth form students would be able to complete their studies.
"The council’s hands are tied on this point, but I can assure pupils and parents affected they will have my full support to help everyone successfully complete their studies. We will be meeting with them in the coming weeks to discuss how best to achieve this." 
The new school will operate on both the current Bay CE Primary School and Sandown Bay Academy sites, once the lease reverts from AET back to the council, which owns the land and buildings.