A campaign by parents to save an independent girls’ school from closure has ended in success after an eleventh hour bail out by a leading church school charity.

The United Church Schools Trust (UCST), chaired by Lord Carey of Clifton, former Archbishop of Canterbury, will take over the running of Wentworth College in Bournemouth, which went into administration on July 28.

The entire independent sector is feeling the squeeze as a result of the credit crunch, as parents struggle to pay rising school fees and deal with escalating costs of food and fuel. One in 10 private schools is facing financial difficulties according to education experts. But groups of schools, run commercially or on a charitable basis, are stepping into the breach and taking over failing individual establishments to extend their portfolios.

Wentworth College, based in a mansion in a prime location, yards from the beach, near the affluent Sandbanks peninsula, faced closing its doors after more than 100 years. A recent Ofsted report described it as outstanding but it went into administration after a £400,000 loan from Lloyds TSB was withdrawn.

The school was trying to reverse a declining school population by going co-educational from September, but was said to have attracted only 40 boys when it needed 75. It borrowed the money to build sports facilities for boys but the bank –demanded payment with no notice.

Educational charity UCST – which owns and manages 11 schools based on Christian principles - presented its bid to take over the school to a packed hall of parents and teachers at the school on Thursday night.

Lord Carey told The Times that the discussions to rescue the school had moved very quickly. “Obviously we want to save the school. Our aim is to help.” He said the school would have a “broadly Anglican ethos” in keeping with the trust, but added that decisions were still in the early stages.

The rescue bid was confirmed at 12.30 am this morning just days before Grant Thornton, the administrator would have been liable for paying staff salaries, 14 days after the school was put into administration.

A campaign by the parent’s group to save the school raised £300,000 in promised interest free loans – half the amount needed to save the school. The campaign also asked parents to send in fees for next term a month early and up to 70 per cent have already been received.

Brian Cooley, one of the co-ordinators of the battle to keep the school open, said "parent power" had saved the school. "Wentworth is now really set and we hope for a huge positive chapter in its history if we can continue with the way we have been galvanised in the last couple of weeks."

He added that a “catalogue of errors” had put the school into administration. Mr Cooley, whose son is due to start at Wentworth College in September, said: “There was a lack of duty of prudence not to put the charity at any exposure to administration."

Andrew Barfield, a parent at the school said he was very relieved at the news. “We can see that the future for the school is very bright and positive and we’re very happy with United Church Schools Trust.”

But other schools remain in danger with at least six closing and dozens more are struggling. Those closing include, Dorset and Wispers school in Haslemere, Surrey. Four preparatory schools are also shutting down – Westbrook House in Folkestone, Kent; Sandhurst school in Worthing, West Sussex; Dorchester preparatory school in Dorset; and Fawkham House school in West Kingsdown, Kent.

Research by The Good Schools Guide, indicated that almost one in five has lost 10 per cent or more pupils in the past four years.

Barney Northover, head of education services at lawyers Veale Wasbrough, which represents 700 private schools, said groups of schools taking over schools that have fallen on hard times is a feature of the current market. “In challenging market conditions where banks are not in a position to give loans we could see more schools running into trouble. But this represents an opportunity for the groups of schools to acquire more schools to build their groups and that is their business plan.”

Charles Robinson, who is in charge of acquiring schools at Cognita, which owns and manages 46 schools, said there had been an increase in the number of institutions looking to become part of the group. He said small boarding schools for girls were particularly at risk of closure. “People don’t want to send their children away to boarding school and if they do they want them only an hour or two away and the preference for girls is for co-ed.”

The school will reopen in September under the UCST’s management. The charity runs the United Learning Trust, which is the UK’s largest sponsor of academies. Richard Tice a member of the United Learning Trust board, has called for academies to have the power to exclude troublemakers and sack poorly performing teachers.

Grant Thornton, the administrators, said they were not commenting on the case. UCST refused to comment.

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