Sheep registered as pupils at French school in desperate bid to stop classes from closure

Parents and children watched on as sheep called ‘Baa-bete’ and ‘Saute-Mouton’ were enrolled

Fifteen sheep have been enrolled at a French primary school after parents feared that some classes could close due to lack of pupils.

Jules-Ferry in Crets en Belledonne, a village of fewer than 4,000 people at the foot of the French Alps, was told one of its 11 classes would be closed after student numbers fell from 266 to 261.

More than a dozen sheep were “registered” at the school in a bid to boost pupil numbers.

Local farmer Michel Girerd and his dog came to the school on Tuesday morning with around 50 of his sheep – and 15 of them were signed up with birth certificates.

Parents, children and teachers watched on as sheep, with names such as “Baa-bete” and “Saute-Mouton”, were added to the register.

Local mayor Jean-Louis Maret has officially recognised the schooling of the sheep, local reports say.

Gaelle Laval, one of the parents behind the initiative, told Le Parisien newspaper: “National education is unfortunately only numbers. And so now, with this surge in numbers, we are good.

“We can go see the director of academy to assert our rights and save our class.”