Teenagers left in limbo by the shock closure of their sixth form have accused their school of treating them like "guinea pigs".

A-level students at St Andrew's Church of England High School have been forced to find fresh places after learning their classes had been axed just three weeks before the new term.

The Waddon school's new headteacher Kerry Targett last month chose to shut down the sixth form, opened only two years ago, following disappointing exam results.

Many of the Year 12 and 13 students affected have since been offered places at Archbishop Tenison's Church of England High School, but some have criticised St Andrew's for failing to "uphold their duty of care".

One 17-year-old girl, who had just completed her the first year of the A-levels at the school, said: "They have wasted a year of our lives and their 'guinea pig' experiment has left us suffering."

The student, who asked not to be named, turned down a place at Archbishop Tenison's. She has secured a place at another Croydon secondary school but will have to re-sit Year 12.

She said: "It's been up to us to find a place if we didn't want to take up the place at Tenison's. Even then, it was not definite that you would get into the sixth form.

"I am extremely disappointed in St Andrew's effort to uphold their duty of care to us. It seems to have been forgotten."

Parent Susie Higgs, whose three children had just finished Year 12 when they learned of the closure on A-level results day, also criticised the school. 

She said: "They are all really upset and has come as a total shock. I feel that the school has failed them and are failing on a duty of care."

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Susie Higgs with son Joe, who had just finished Year 12 at St Andrew's when the school shut its sixth form

Richard Parrish, head of Archbishop Tenison's, confirmed his school would take on "a good proportion" of the affected students but declined to be drawn on the precise figure.

He described the closure as "very unexpected" but added Government cuts to post-16 funding had created a "very challenging situation for secondary schools in the borough".

Mr Parrish said: "All secondary schools in Croydon are under huge financial pressure, so it's not surprising these things are happening."

No one from St Andrew's could be reached for comment.

But in a letter to Year 12 students on August 13, Ms Targett said "not enough students in your year passed and met our criteria for entry into year 13" to make sixth-form classes "viable to run".

She added: "I know this is not an ideal situation for you to be in but I cannot continue to run with a sixth form that is not getting the best educational outcomes for its students and must therefore look at providing you with a stronger alternative provision, in another school."