Expansion plan to create more school places

The authority is holding a consultation on Monday over increasing places by more than 25 per cent from next September.

Coun John Peck, chairman of the children and young people’s committee, said: “We have a legal duty to find school places for all children of statutory school age whose parents want them to be educated in a state-funded school.

“Our projections show that the demand for places at schools in these areas will exceed supply from September next year.

“And whilst we don’t have a statutory duty to consult, we are always keen to seek views from a wide variety of stakeholders and the wider community as early as possible on expansion proposals of this scale.”

“It is paramount that we plan ahead.

“We need to think about the next 10 to 20 years, not just the here and now and increase schools’ capacities in certain locations to meet demand in the same way as we’ve been doing in other areas.”

The proposals are still subject to detailed feasibility studies.