THE HALL was set out for hundreds but only five parents turned up to give their views on the future of the education of Southampton's special needs children.

Yesterday's disheartening turn-out was the second in as many days for the council, which organised two public meetings to discuss its plans to radically re-organise the service.

For a meeting held for all parents in the east of the city on Monday, just six went to hear about the scheme.

"It is disappointing," said Ian Sandbrook, director of lifelong learning and leisure for Southampton City Council.

The authority will now look to set up day-time meetings after parents of disabled youngsters explained it was difficult to get child care for their children at night.

Christine Savage, mother of an autistic child, said: "It is not that we don't care but it is difficult because our children need us."

But yesterday's meeting, which was held at Redbridge Community School and was open to all parents from the west of the city, had done little to put her mind at rest.

"I am not reassured," she said. "I am not being cynical, but a lot of parents see it as squeezing schools together to sell off the sites and the children are not being considered at all."

The council was looking for feedback on its plans to close Ridgeway House and Netley Court schools in favour of moving the children to more modern facilities elsewhere.

Parents fear their children, many of whom rank among the city's most disabled, will suffer.

Alan Stewart, who has a son with autism, said: "A bigger school is intimidating and could cause children to regress into themselves."

Another mother, who did not want to be named, said: "Our children are going to be the losers. I feel they are going to be the guinea pigs. Years down the line when it doesn't work, it will be our children who have lost out."

Mr Sandbrook said: "I think there is understandable anxiety about what will be lost, but we are talking about moving the children with more or less the same number of adults to better physical provision.

"These proposals are not about trying to do something on the cheap. This is not an underhand approach to save money."

The consultation process continues until February 22.