The fight will go on – that was the defiant message from protesters opposing the closure of West End Primary School, which is scheduled for shutdown as part of a Government shake-up of the education system.

Demonstrators organised a motorcade of more than 50 vehicles that travelled across the island on Saturday to highlight their concerns.

After the event organisers claimed it illustrated that they have island-wide support in their bid to block the closure.

The Somerset school is one of eight primary schools selected for closure as part of the Government’s education reform initiative.

Under the changes, each parish will be served by just a single “community hub” school, except Pembroke which will have two – Victor Scott and West Pembroke Primary School.

But protesters claim that administrators charged with deciding where the axe should fall placed too much weight on practical criteria – such as building size, accessibility, and even plumbing – while ignoring the historic legacy that the 154-year-old West End Primary School has earned in the education of the Black community during segregation.

Ellen-Kate Horton, one of the organisers of Saturday’s motorcade, said that the event had strengthened the group’s resolve to fight the closure.

Ms Horton, a West End Primary School alumni who went on to become a teacher and Permanent Secretary of Education, said: “I think the motorcade went extremely well – exceptionally well.

“We had more than 50 cars and we could have had more – some people decided to leave their cars at the school and get in other cars – most of the cars that actually took part were loaded up with supporters. That shows the depth of feeling and support.

“But this wasn’t just about the Somerset community. We were also very pleased with the reaction that we were given from people along the route – people walking down the street, people in other cars travelling towards us – we had a lot of support from them, from across the whole island.

“I think the message that was sent out on Saturday was that we have a great deal of support from the whole community.

“Initially I think the Government thought that this was a campaign run by me alone. I hope they now know that it’s not just me, I am not standing alone.

“It’s not just the Somerset community that supports us – it’s island-wide. People are aware of the significance that West End Primary has in our history.”

Ms Horton challenged David Burt to keep an earlier pledge that there would be further dialogue on the matter. She said: “We haven’t heard any response from the Government yet.

“Our next hope is for a town hall meeting. We attended one in Warwick last November and at that time the Premier promised that there would be another town hall meeting in Sandys, but we’ve heard nothing since – not a peep.

“But we’re going to stick at it. Initially we were told that this whole process may take five years, but we’re now hearing it may be seven to ten years, so hopefully time is on our side. Anything can happen.”