Parents at Hermon have raised �20,000 for their fight

A judge has given parents permission to fight their case in the High Court after hearing Hermon School was 'full and vibrant'.

Council leader Maurice Hughes said it could delay work on a new school which will also serve Crymych and Blaenffos.

He said the judge's ruling was "a ridiculous waste of public money".

I think it is disgraceful that legal devices are being used to prevent children in this area receiving the best possible education Maurice Hughes

Pembrokeshire Council intends closing the schools at Hermon and Blaenffos and replacing them with a new �1.5m building at Crymych.

The proposals have been approved by Welsh Education Minister Jane Davidson.

But parents at Hermon - which is oversubscribed with 53 pupils on its books - are fighting the plan.

They are the first in Wales to fight a school closure in the courts and as well as raising �20,000 for their legal battle have won the backing of celebrities including singer Cerys Matthews and actor Rhys Ifans.

At the hearing in front of Mr Justice Charles, sitting in London, their counsel Nicholas Bowen described Hermon as a highly successful school.

He said it looked as if 'a much-loved, over-subscribed and thriving community asset' was being sacrificed to pay for much-needed capital investment in schooling for Crymych and Blaenffos.

Speaking after the hearing Mr Hughes claimed parents at Crymych and Blaenffos fully supported the merger and said the new school could now be delayed because of the ruling.

"I think it is disgraceful that legal devices are being used to prevent children in this area receiving the best possible education, and a ridiculous waste of public money.

"Estyn(Welsh schools inspection body) inspection reports indicate that the standards of achievement and the quality of teaching are weaker at Hermon than at Blaenffos and Crymych schools."