Grammar pupils have staged a classroom walkout over their school's plans to convert to academy status.

Simon Langton Girls' Grammar School's proposals have sparked outrage among some parents who fear a 'privatisation' of the school.

Until now pupils themselves have been less willing to make their views on the issue heard.

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But today dozens of youngsters gathered on the grassland in front of their school building which runs alongside the busy Old Dover Road.

Many held placards aloft opposing the head and governors' plans to form a Multi Academy Trust and to sponsor ailing Spires Academy in the process.

Abigail Tuxworth-Grant, 18, said the protest was "completely student-led".

VIDEO: Pupils and parents speak to KMTV about why they're protesting

"We're doing this because we have to. I'm sure a lot of people would rather not go to all this effort to say we want our school to stay the way it is," she said.

"I know a lot of ministers have their doubts about grammar schools but I think that we just want to be heard, we want to be listened to.

"It's our education that's going to be affected and we want to have a say in it."

As we reported last week, the school's governors have asked Kent County Council to review their own voting process on the issue, which happened last November.

Parents had previously expressed anger at the school's apparent lack of transparency, a concern Miss Tuxwerth-Grant echoed.

"This hasn't been given as much publicity by the school and hasn't been talked about as much in the school or by the school as we would have liked," she said.

"We didn't know about it until after the vote had been taken and they'd already applied.

"I think we should have heard quite a while ago, back in November, when they were looking into becoming an academy."

We also reported last week how headteacher Jane Robinson had sent a furious letter to parents, accusing some of attempting to persuade pupils against the decision.

Miss Tuxwerth-Grant said: "On Friday our headteacher put out a statement saying that this [protest] was parent-led - a few parents forcing their view on the children.

"As you can see from this, it's not. We've done this completely ourselves."