Kirklees Council agrees £24m plan for new Fartown High School to move to All Saints

Mar 26 2010 by Barry Gibson, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

But council leader Clr Mehboob Khan believes the new school will be popular.

The Greenhead Labour man said: “Once the school is built we will have parents queueing up to get their children in.”

Clr Khan criticised Mr Foster and Ms Danson.

He said: “We could have a school that’s over-subscribed. That’s what we ought to be talking about – not talking down this investment, like the comrades on the back row.”

The Labour Cabinet voted unanimously to begin consultation on the plan.

The proposal has the backing of the Diocese of Leeds, which runs All Saints. The Catholic school will be extensively refurbished as part of the £24m plan.

The two schools will share state-of-the art indoor and outdoor sports facilities and access off Bradley Road. Two new access routes could also be created through the Bradley Business Park and on Fell Greave Road.

The new school will serve the growing young population in north Huddersfield. There are currently 1,900 11 to 16 year-olds in the catchment area but this is expected to rise to 2,400 by 2020.

Council figures show that 540 of the 1,900 pupils in the area go to high schools in Calderdale – mainly to Rastrick High. A further 371 attend All Saints while 380 go to Fartown.