A CONTROVERSIAL change to a Huddersfield school will come into force on Saturday.

Lindley Junior School will convert to an academy on October 1 – the first primary in Kirklees to take the radical step.

The change will take the school outside the influence of Kirklees Council, allowing it to change staff pay and conditions and alter its curriculum.

The board of governors is going ahead with the acad-emy move after carrying out a consultation earlier this year.

Lindley Juniors, which teaches children aged from seven to 11, was due to become an academy this month.

But the move was delayed while the school negotiated with Kirklees.

In a letter sent to parents on September 14, the school said: “Following a busy summer of planning, number-crunching and hard work, the governing body of Lindley Junior School is delighted to announce that the school will officially convert to an academy on October 1.

“The governors decided that the funding agreement should be signed at a special governing body meeting on September 12.

“The delay allowed time for Kirklees to give us answers as to which services can be provided in the future, a task which proved to be more time-consuming than was anticipated.