AN angry councillor has demanded the resignation of a school governing board chairman who refused to let him stay in a meeting.

Coun Stuart Parsons was told he had to leave the meeting called by Richmond School's interim executive board (IEB), which was held at the school on Thursday evening.

Chair of the IEB, Chris Lewis, told him the meeting was only for parents and carers.

However, the district and county councillor said members of the senior leadership team, including head Ian Robertson, remained in the meeting.

The meeting was called after the school's previous governing body resigned en masse.

The school and North Yorkshire County Council have refused to reveal the background to the dispute which led to the resignations, prompting more than 150 people to sign a petition calling for greater transparency.

Coun Parsons said: “I tried to explain to him that I was a representative on the local body which ran the school and that under national legislation I was viewed as a corporate parent but he still asked me to leave.

“It was totally unacceptable and I smell a cover up.

“I believe the chair of the IEB should resign with immediate affect and the other members should consider their positions.”

It is understood more than 150 parents people attended the meeting.

Parent Fraser Brown said he had been impressed by the IEB.

“I thought it was overwhelmingly positive from the parents' perspective and it drew a line under many things,” he said.

Mr Brown said he was impressed by the way the chairman handled the meeting and had absolute confidence in both the chair and the IEB.

The county council said it understood the meeting was held for parents to meet members of the IEB.

It added in a statement: “However, it is important that in addition to strong engagement with parents, that the new IEB also develops a positive relationship with local members.

“They are the elected representatives of the community and it is in the interests of all to establish relationships of mutual respect.

“We are disappointed that there were misunderstandings at last night’s meeting and believe a meeting between the IEB, local representatives and headteacher should now be offered as a matter of priority.”

The council added that Mr Lewis recognised the need and the importance of discussing matters with local members.