Angry parents are looking to Surrey County Council (SCC) for answers after it told parents plans to expand three schools have been put on hold.

To combat a shortage in the number of primary school places in Epsom and Ewell, SCC announced plans, in its School Organisation Consultation, to make three schools in the borough - West Ewell Infant School and Nursery, Ewell Grove Infant and Nursery School and Danetree Junior School - ‘through’ primary schools so that they would include students from the age of four to 11.

It was proposed that this would be a staged process starting in September next year.

But the Epsom Guardian has been contacted by a number of parents in the last week who said they have been "devastated" by SCC’s announcement that the proposals are unlikely to go ahead.

One parent, who already has a child at one of the schools mentioned in the consultation, said that within the last month, parents had been told they would need to make alternative arrangements because SCC had not had enough time to conduct ecology, residents and transport surveys, meaning the proposals would not be going ahead.

The parent is a mother of a child born in 2009 - a "bulge year", the current Year 1 - which has created the shortage of school places in the area.

She said a meeting to discuss the issue was scheduled for October 8, but this was postponed and she cannot understand why SCC "cannot or will not" complete the reorganisation in time for when the bulge year will need to move into Year 3.

The parent, who wished to remain anonymous, said: "Everyone is anxious.

"We thought it was a done deal.

"It’s really hit a nerve with a lot of parents.

"They have started a petition and want to get answers to see if parent power can override the system.

"We feel like we have almost been abandoned and left in the dark.

"We can’t do anything about it.

"This area is renowned for families and lots of people have more than one child.

"It’s going to affect future years and cause a bit of chaos."

She said the schools in the area, already oversubscribed, will inevitably become even more stretched as the bulge year children are slotted into primary schools across the borough, some of which already have five or more classes per year and classes of up to 40 children.

The parent added: "We will need to travel on completely over-loaded roads, twice a day, when our local school is within walking distance of our homes.

"These changes, or lack of, will not only affect the current students, but also future years.

"Facilities in all schools will be stretched to their maximum, which in turn will affect all children in Epsom and Ewell schools."

Asked to respond to the concerns, a Surrey County Council spokeswoman said it would be writing to parents this week "to explain the current state of play".

She said: "No decisions have yet been made and we are still looking at a range of options which will be considered by the cabinet member for schools and learning in due course.

"A public consultation on the proposals will follow.

"Every child in Epsom and Ewell will get a school place next September, despite an unprecedented demand that means Surrey is facing a £215million funding shortfall to provide the necessary 13,000 extra places needed over the next five years across all the boroughs and districts."

Are you affected? Contact Hardeep Matharu on the newsdesk by calling 0208 722 6346 or by emailing hmatharu@london.newsquest.co.uk, or leave a comment below.