PLANS to merge a junior and infant school in Bishop Auckland are to be discussed at a public meeting next month.

Parents, teachers and residents are expected to attend the meeting at Woodhouse Close Junior School, on Thursday, February 3, at 7pm.

Durham County Council has announced plans to move Woodhouse Close Infant School to the nearby junior school site to create one single primary school. Other uses would be found for the infant school site.

The proposals are still at the outline planning stage and have to go out to consultation before a decision is made.

A spokesperson for the council said: "As there is already nursery provision on the junior school site, it would offer education for children on the same site right from nursery age until they were ready to move on to a secondary school."

Copies of the consultation document can be seen in local libraries and at the schools and is also available on the county council website.