Highly controversial plans to build a school in a park came 'dangerously close' to reality because 'information was withheld' about alternative options, a councillor claims.

The proposal to build a new secondary school in Haslam Park, off Wigan Road in Deane was announced in October last year, sparking an outcry from local residents and campaigners.

The plans were scrapped last March.

Now, Bolton Labour group leader Cllr Nick Peel claims that a Freedom of Information Request has revealed that council members were not told about potential alternative sites.

He said: “The withholding of this information led to this council coming dangerously close to building over two well used pieces of land and arguably, had it not been for the public outcry and the organisation of community groups this would have happened.”

The plans would have seen Haslam Park given up by the council to the Department for Education to build a secondary school, while playing fields off Moss Bank Park had also been identified as the site for a primary school.

Cllr Peel claims that members of the council were told that 'council land was the only game in town' when it came to deciding where to build schools.

But he said the Department for Education actually had the option of buying and alternative site if local authority land, like Haslam Park, could not be agreed on.

He said: “Why was this information not given to members during all the briefings that members received?

“Why when two such controversial sites were presented as the preferred options for the council, that generated so much hostility in both Rumworth and Smithills that questioned viability, was the additional option of the Department for Education purchasing an alternative site not presented to ward members to gain their views?”  

But Cllr Adele Warren, cabinet member for regeneration, says that when proposals were presented 'site purchase was not an option' and that recent awards of new schools to Bolton by the government 'required sites'.

She said: “Officers were therefore asked to identify council owned sites for consideration, no alternative way of delivering these new schools was provided at that point in time.”