TWO independent schools have announced plans to merge.

Embley Park School, near Romsey, and the The Atherley Girls School, at Nursling, are to consult parents on the best ways of bringing the two together "to form a strong independent school of about 900 pupils".

Parents have been presented with three options: 1. Continuing to run the schools on their existing sites with a combined sixth form on one site (probably Embley) 2. A senior school on one site and junior on the other 3. A new single school (catering for 3 to 18 years olds) at Embley Park.

The governors have named the third option as their preferred plan, which they say is more practical and economic.

The partnership plan emerged after Embley joined Atherley in the United Church Schools Trust (formerly the Church Schools Company). Embley head, David Chapman, who would also be head of the new combined school, said it was hoped the two schools would be working in partnership by September 2006.

"It's a tight timetable but we have a coherent plan and we are confident we can fulfill it," he said Mr Chapman told The Advertiser that rolls at both schools were high and they were "coming together from a position of strength."

He said architects were already drawing up plans for a new school on the Embley site and that the local authority had been consulted about the increased traffic this could bring along the A27.

A new school - with 550 seniors and 350 juniors - would still only be 'medium sized' but would be able to offer a wider curriculum while limiting class sizes to around 20, said Mr Chapman.

David d'Arcy Hughes, chairman of Embley Park governors, said: "The population in this area is growing and therefore we have an expectation of a solid market into the future. Even so the capital required to create a school which would satisfy this vision is beyond the means of an individual governing body."

Atherley head Maureen Bradley is to retire in August, but will be the project manager of the merger. In a previous post she oversaw the merger of three Church Schools Trust schools in Lincolnshire.

She agreed that partnership would bring great benefits for the 14 to 19 year olds. "It will be a great advantage for the sixth form, where we will be able to offer more courses," she said.

This is the second time the Atherley has moved in the past decade. In 1995 it moved from Hill Lane in Southampton to Grove Place, Nursling, where the Church Schools Trust had invested over £5 million in new buildings and equipment. However, Mrs Bradley said any further expansion on this site was restricted because part of the premises was a Grade One listed building.

Cash from the sale of the Grove Place site could be ploughed into the new school at Embley, where a brand new state-of-the-art junior school would be built and the existing junior buildings (only recently completed) would become part of the senior school.

Mrs Bradley said she was confident of a good response to the proposals from parents. However, she admitted some would be concerned by a change from an all girls to a co-ed school. "We shall be honouring single sex teaching if that is what the parents want," she said.

And she added that there had been some pressure for The Atherley to become a mixed school from parents of boys who attend their prep school, Grove Place. The consultation process with parents, which will be conducted year group by year group, will begin officially after half-term. All parents have been sent a prospectus entitled A New Future for Embley Park and The Atherley Schools.

Both heads confirmed that the union would not result in a steep rise in fees.