SMALL high schools in poorer suburbs should consider merging to boost the life chances of disadvantaged students, says a report to the State Government.

The Melbourne University report paints a disturbing picture of conditions in some schools, saying the lack of resources is setting many kids up for failure.

News of the report comes as the Government has refused to name struggling schools that have had performance reviews by the Education Department.

A freedom of information request by the Herald Sun has been rejected on the grounds that identifying them would undermine public confidence in government schools and create "unwarranted anxiety" within communities.

The university report, seen by the Herald Sun, said many smaller secondary schools in the western and northern suburbs were forced to divert limited resources to senior programs at the expense of junior students.

"This tends to increase the gaps with other schools and prevents smaller schools from adequately addressing the needs of their disadvantaged students," it said. "If we do not build achievement early and sustain the effort, children from poorer families will carry failure with them throughout their schooling and be penalised beyond school."

The report called for more school mergers and more money to address poor facilities and staffing problems.

Written by researchers including Prof Richard Teese and Sue Helme, the study "Provision, Participation and Achievement" was commissioned by state education authorities.

Victorian Association of State Secondary Principals president Brian Burgess said he supported mergers in some cases, but the Government needed to pour in more funds.

"A lot of these schools are very rundown. They are in shocking condition, governments over the years have let them go by the wayside," he said.

Liberal education spokesman Martin Dixon said the study showed the Government had failed to deliver on its promise to make education its No. 1 priority.

An Education Department spokeswoman said schools in low-socio economic areas had been allocated $275 million over seven years in budgets for extra resources.

"The department is dedicated to providing every student with the best education opportunities, and targets extra support to where it is needed most," she said.

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