Concern over 'unnecessary' school name change plan

Former pupils of a 139-year-old school say they are concerned over plans to rename it as part of a proposed merger.

Marling School, a grammar school in Stroud, has started a consultation on a proposed merger with Lift Schools, a multi-academy trust which runs 59 schools across the country, which would see its name changed to Lift Marling.

Nearly 1,700 people have signed a petition against the plans, set up by former student Luke Munday, who said it would "ride roughshod over the legacy of the school".

Lift Schools said it understood the "strength of feeling" on the issue, and that it wanted to hear from "as many voices as possible" during the consultation.

The school is currently part of the Cotswold Beacon Academy Trust, which voted in autumn 2024 to merge with Lift Schools because of financial pressures.

The formal consultation into the plans is running until 22 May.

It is the oldest school in Stroud, and was set up in 1887 by local cloth manufacturer and Liberal Party politician Sir Samuel Marling.

Munday said the name change proposals were "buried" in a letter sent from the school, which he said "would upset a lot of people".

"It's an old school, and for Lift to come in and stick a corporate brand on the front feels a stretch too far, and unnecessary," he said.

"I mean, you don't call your Weetabix cereal Kelloggs Weetabix, or put Unilever in front of Ben and Jerry's ice cream."

Marling School referred the BBC to the Lift Schools statement, which said: "Listening to our families and communities is really important to us... while the consultation process is under way, we want to hear as many voices as possible and would encourage people to come along to our in-person meetings."

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