Parental anxieties fuelled by rumours over possible school closures have influenced the latest public school application figures, according to one principal.

Romelle Warner, who led the School Reorganisation Advisory (Score) Committee that has just reported to the ministry, also said that “people have been jumping the gun” when it comes to the issue.

“The report will give people other kinds of ways to look at the whole picture,” Ms Warner said, stressing that “absolutely no decision” had been made on schools.

The Score report on primary school performance, as well as school closure or consolidation, was handed in last week to Wayne Scott, the Minister of Education.

The document, which will be used in decisions made for the coming academic year, is to be made public once consultation is complete.

Ms Warner said it would not be appropriate to comment further until the report was in the public domain.

Her remarks came as figures published yesterday in The Royal Gazette showed which schools had experienced the lowest applications for the 2015 academic year.

Heron Bay Primary School, one of the smallest in the system, trailed at the bottom of the figures for the western zone, with eight applications for 2015 but 18 students enrolled in 2014.

However, Lisa Swan, the school’s principal, cautioned that some parents had unfounded jitters over the school’s future.

“That 2015 figure is not indicative of our actual enrolment — to some extent, that is parents feeling skittish over school closures,” Ms Swan told The Royal Gazette. “This is, of course, something that is out of my control, but I came in with the understanding that no decision had been made.

“Some parents came to see me and said that their child would not be coming to Heron Bay because of this rumour. As a parent, that makes some sense to me. As an administrator, I say that the school is open and doing great.

“When parents hear of the possibility of schools closing, they think of the smallest schools. Heron Bay is small, but for us that is a pro and not a con. Comparatively, even to the surrounding schools, our numbers are strong for the last four years. Because our name has gone out in the rumour mill, then we have taken a hit.”

Heron Bay typically admits 15 to 19 students a year: for 2011 and 2012, the figure was 15, and it rose to 19 for 2013, Ms Swan said.

“Parents are naturally trying to get ahead of the game,” she said. “They hear these rumours and they don’t want to send their child to a school just in case, which is unfortunate.

“In this immediate community, Heron Bay is first choice. We are going full speed ahead.”