The council says it will work more closely with schools

The report, commissioned by the council, said wholesale changes were needed to raise standards.

It says there is evidence of significant underachievement among children, particularly at GCSE level.

In response, Denbighshire council said improving standards in schools will be its main focus.

Education consultants Cambridge Education were asked to carry out the research after it was agreed to look again at recommendations contained in a 2005 report.

They found an urgent need to give the highest priority to raising standards.

Findings included:

• Boys' performance was well below that of girls
• Attendance was unsatisfactory
• Too many young people were leaving schools in the county without qualifications.

The problem of falling pupil numbers, common throughout Wales, was also addressed.

We will be working more closely with schools at all levels and our communities to deliver the best possible education for our children and young people Council leader Rhiannon Hughes

The report says that the future of 18 schools in the county should be reviewed because they have 25% surplus places or more.

However, it also lists a number of ways in which these schools could be given a future by encouraging them to work together.

Denbighshire should also support small primary schools which provide good education and have strong links with the community, according to the report.

'Different rationale'

It stresses small schools need to demonstrate value for money and be prepared to find ways to become more efficient by sharing resources.

It also suggests clustering, federating and working towards the formation of area schools in some parts of the county.

"For small village schools then, there has to be another model - a different rationale for being there to justify their high cost; it is not just about the quality of schooling.

"New rural schools of a more optimal size increase opportunities for children and improve outcomes and are suggested as a way forward.

"This may be preferable to simply closing schools and allowing pupils to transfer elsewhere," the report says.

Council leader Rhiannon Hughes who is now taking responsibility for developing Denbighshire's vision for education by early next year said that closing schools would be the "very last option".

She said closures would only follow where there was a "new school or a positive way forward".

"We are aware that improving standards in schools is the single most important issue facing the education service and this report reaffirms that.

"The analysis of the most recent performance of Denbighshire's pupils based on examinations and assessments demonstrate an urgent need to give the highest priority to raising standards," she said.