£300,000 being spent on school due for closure

5:27pm Wednesday 20th August 2008

HUNDREDS of thousands of pounds are being spent refurbishing a school earmarked for closure.

Hayward School in Great Lever is spending a £300,000 Government grant on general refurbishment, including painting and decorating, new blinds in classrooms and fixing a toilet leak.

The school, which was opened in 1955, was due to be rebuilt and £20 million — £15 million from the Government and £5 million from Bolton Council — was secured to carry out the work in 2005.

These plans were scrapped when the council announced proposals to turn the school into a privately-backed academy.

If the academy plans go ahead, a new school will be built on the site by 2011.

The £20 million Government and council funding would be ploughed back into the Building Schools for the Future programme, which pays for all the borough’s schools.

Bolton South-east MP Brian Iddon was part of the delegation which travelled to Westminster to secure the £15 million of funding for the new school.

He said: “I am very disappointed in the change of direction for this school as I had fought for this money. Now the council are wasting money on a school for which £20 million had been secured for a rebuild.”

Bolton Council insisted the school would be rebuilt. A spokesman said: “If successful, the academy would open in the existing buildings in January and it is anticipated the new buildings would be completed by 2010/11.

“If the academy proposal is not successful, the school would be considered for reconstruction under the Building Schools for the Future programme — but new buildings would not be constructed for at least five years.”