Trustees are continuing to deliberate whether a controversial merger between two Witham academies should be scrapped.

Last month the Academies Enterprise Trust revealed that the consultation into the merge of New Rickstones Academy and Maltings Academy had concluded the schools should stay seperate.

Following a parent backlash, the trust suggested the schools should share more teaching resources instead.

However, the decision has not yet been rubberstamped as the trustees wanted to wait until the release of Maltings’ Ofsted report last week.

They have now deferred the decision to the next board meeting on April 21.