SCHOOL CLOSURE DEBATE: AN under-fire council boss last night stood by the controversial announcement that one of the country's top-performing schools was to be moved out of its village location.

Margaret Asquith, children's services director at Darlington Borough Council, said that a new Hurworth School would help raise the academic achievements of pupils at the school it proposed to be merged with.

Hurworth School and Eastbourne Comprehensive would close and a new £20m school built near Alderman Tommy Crooks Park, in Yarm Road, Darlington.

The 1,200-pupil school would take children from both existing catchment areas and has been hailed as a "wonderful opportunity" to raise standards by senior town hall staff.

The project came under the spotlight at a meeting of the council's lifelong learning scrutiny committee last night.

Mrs Asquith opened the packed meeting with a presentation.

She said the council was proud of Hurworth School's achievements. But said that youngsters at Eastbourne were "just as capable of high levels of attainment as those at Hurworth".

She said the project would mean investment in both schools, giving children the best curriculum available.

Mrs Asquith said that the new school would offer opportunities to the "numerous children who are turned down for a place at Hurworth every year".

Darlington Conservative group leader, Tony Richmond, thanked Mrs Asquith, but said he was disappointed she had come alone to the meeting.

He said: "It disappoints me that the leader of the council and the cabinet member for education are not here.

"This is the most contentious political proposal we have had in this town for a long time. Myself and my colleagues do not agree with this."

Mrs Asquith addressed the issue of falling pupil rolls in Darlington's schools and said: "The falling rolls in some of our schools are already something to be worried about.

"The proposal sorts out the falling rolls for all our schools and means we have the capital available to invest in all the other schools."

She also stressed that the plan was a takeover, with the "staff, ethos and teaching moved from Hurworth to the new-build school".

But, Mrs Asquith was questioned about the legality of moving all Hurworth staff to the new site, while Eastbourne teachers were being asked to apply for jobs.

"We are aware of our duty of care and we are aware that there are some fantastic teachers in Hurworth and Eastbourne," she said.

"Darlington Borough Council has an excellent reputation in terms of staff welfare."

Councillor Veronica Copeland, chairwoman of governors at Eastbourne, said standards were rising. She said: "The federation (between Hurworth and Eastbourne) has not been a one-way thing - Hurworth has benefited from it.

"You would not know the difference between walking into that school and walking into Hurworth."

Coun Richmond returned to the issue of consultation.

He said: "Consultation in this town hall means 'we'll consult about how we implement what we have already decided to implement'."

Mrs Asquith was also questioned about whether announcing that Eastbourne was to be taken over would have a demoralising effect on its staff.

But she said: "Eastbourne School will be fully staffed in September. Some of the staff see it as a real opportunity to be in prime positions to go to a new school in the future."

The teachers' union NASUWT said last night that it was "disillusioned and angry" about the way the plans had been handled by the council.

Eastbourne teacher Terry Bladen, a former NASUWT national president, said: "My members in the school are incensed by the one-sided arguments being put forward by spokespersons for the council.

"They feel they are being portrayed as inferior teachers to those employed at Hurworth. Yet, these are the same teachers who raised the GCSE performance at A* to C grade from below 20 per cent to just under 35 per cent in less than three years."