THE wife of TV chef Matt Tebbutt is leading a campaign against the closure of the kitchen at a Monmouthshire primary school.

The kitchen at Raglan Primary School is expected to close at the end of the school year because Monmouthshire council says it is not up to standard.

The closure, which will save the authority around £30,000, means lunches will be prepared ten miles away at Abergavenny's Deri View Primary School and delivered to Raglan each day.

But parents, including Lisa and Matt Tebbutt, whose children Jessie, eight, and Henry, seven, go to the school, criticised the decision as "short-sighted" and are appealing to the council to reconsider.

Mrs Tebbutt said: "We're trying to get children interested in cooking and to combat child obesity so taking the kitchen away is a backward step. Something like this should be prioritised and savings made elsewhere."

Mr and Mrs Tebbutt, who run The Foxhunter in Nantyderry, are concerned food will lose its nutritional value if kept at a high temperature for a long period of time during transport.

Mr Tebbutt said: "We want to be moving in the other direction, to even more fresh food, even more local."

Other worries include the lack of consultation with Raglan Community Council and Raglan Village Hall and Recreation Association.

Community council clerk Peter John said there were "strong concerns" among community councillors because community money was put into the school hall and the school kitchen is used for community functions.

A council spokesman said the authority offered to meet trustees of the Raglan Village Hall and Recreation Association and they didn’t take it up.

He said the health and well-being of pupils was paramount and parents were informed of the changes.

The spokesman said the authority's school meals service had to save £220,000 in 2011/2012 and school kitchen closures may be the only way to achieve this.

He said moving staff is being considered but wouldn’t rule out job losses yet.