Report set to reveal cost of new Chrissies

From the archive, first published Monday 26th Sep 2005.

A CRUCIAL report into the future of Christopher Whitehead Language College will be finished next week and a final decision on its site is expected early next year.

Colin Weeden, head of policy at Worcestershire County Council, said the vital property services study, listing the potential costs and time-scale of redeveloping the school on its St John's site, is almost completed.

The document will be one of the last pieces of the jigsaw for councillors, who will then have almost all the facts to hand on whether to relocate the school elsewhere in the city or demolish and rebuild it.

While the report offers hope of an end to the seven-year debate, the council was tight-lipped over its findings - simply saying that all members would look at the information with an "open mind".

However, Neil Morris, headteacher of the Bromwich Road specialist language college - formerly high school - said he hoped for a decision on the future site by Christmas.

"I've had quite a reassuring meeting with Councillor Liz Eyre (cabinet member for children's services)," he said.

"She's looking at it with fresh eyes and both Coun Eyre and Mike Foster (Worcester MP) regard it as their number one priority.

"Hopefully, by Christmas they'll have made a decision. There's definitely the will."

In July, Coun Eyre told the Worcester News she believed £20m was the right amount for the new school, though early estimates suggest rebuilding on-site could cost up to £32m.

Mr Weeden said that, once councillors had read the report, the cabinet would consider the options open to them and then the full council would discuss the situation.

However, he added that a final decision was unlikely to come before February, when the council's capital programme - the amount of building funds available to them - are announced.

The study comes as the St John's school was yesterday given planning permission to extend two classrooms and add a new covered walkway at its ageing campus.

The modernisation of two language classrooms comes after the school received

specialist status - which brought more than £100,000 for such developments - earlier this year.

Although more than £500,000 has been spent upgrading the site in the last year, planners said the improvements to the school would not affect future decisions on its location.

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